Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17010 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-04-18
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Arabic, English, German
• Dubbed in: German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 113 minutes

Synopsis
When Father Lankester Merrin arrived to expunge a troublesome demon from Regan MacNeil in the original EXORCIST movie, many viewers were left cowering in fear. But questions remained as to the true identity of the mysterious Merrin, and how he rose to become such a potent force in the battle against demonic possession. For inquisitive fans still fervently pondering the unfathomable Merrin, help is at hand in the shape of this prequel film, EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING. In the post-World War II world, Merrin (Stellan Skarsgard) has seen his faith lapse due to some tumultuous firsthand experiences on the battlefield. Taking a lengthy sabbatical in an attempt to rekindle his belief, Merrin travels to East Africa. While there, he encounters an archaeological team who have uncovered a Byzantine-era church which, astonishingly, shows no visible signs of decay. Upon investigating the remarkable find, Merrin happens upon a crypt beneath the church, and inadvertently unleashes the same omnipotent demon that he duels with in the first EXORCIST movie. The local villagers unwittingly succumb to the powerful otherworldly force, and as chaos breaks out, Merrin experiences a cruel sense of irony when the very horrors he sought to escape engulf him once more. Overcoming a difficult production that saw original director Paul Schrader ousted from the crew, Renny Harlin (DIE HARD 2) pulls out all the stops to deliver a creepy complimentary piece to the other EXORCIST movies. The casting of Skarsgard as the younger Merrin was a wise move, and neatly augments the work of fellow Swede Max Von Sydow in the first film. Working in the shadow of such a legendary movie is never easy, but Harlin manages to create a disquieting air of uneasy menace as he allows the tale to unfurl.

Customer Reviews

Good and bad in equal measure
It's hard to be cruel to the film in light of the troubled production history - and it's a fool that continues to compare every sequel to the original (the 70's are dead, folks - studio and audience tastes have changed).

The film is quite well paced, the performances are - generally - strong, but it is let down by a ridiculous exorcism at the end that veers into OTT campery that would make Joel Schumacher blush!

If anything, the film suffers from being the dumbed down version that the studio wanted instead of Paul Schrader's original (now released as "Dominion").

Extras are limited, but Harlin's commentary is frank and the trailer is noteworthy because it's for Dominion!

Not as terrible as everybody makes out - but more of a curio than something you'd like to own because it's a fantastic film. It isn't, but it isn't the worst movie ever made either.

Worth watching
Quite good overall. Forget all the silly stuff about comparing it to the original; I don't know why people feel re-makes, sequels, prequels etc somehow devalue an existing film, in this case The Exorcist. Don't watch them if you feel your thoughts or feelings for one film are going to be sullied by watching another film altogether. The rest of us are capable of seperating in our minds one piece of work from another and appreciating them (or not) in isolation and as two seperate pieces of work.
Anyway, The Exorcist The Beginning charts Father Merrin from the original Exorcist hired to find an artifact in the ruins of an ancient church somewhere in Africa after the Second World War and discovering that this place is where Lucifer fell to Earth upon being cast out from heaven. Some of the CGI effects are a little ropey, most of the other special effects are perfectly fine, the story is also perfectly acceptable although I would agree with another respondent that the final scene is over long and rather over done. It's not the original Exorcist of course but who expected that? It's just a reasonably good horror film about the devil, possession etc with nods to both The Exorcist and The Omen amongst others and is an entertaining two hours or so watch.

Pleasantly Surprised, some shocking scenes
I was actually quite impressed with this prequal, a lot of background storey to take in, sometimes gets a little heavy, but where this movie shines, is from the half way point to the end, where things really start to happen, there was no expense spared on shocking and voilent scenes in this film, especially the hyena scene. And has a great twist too.

Watch it for the nasty scene's at least, its well worth it