Vatican group label ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ “unreliable splatter cinema”
A new horror flick, The Pope’s Exorcist, made its way to cinemas last week, with Russell Crowe playing Father Gabriele Amorth, an Italian Catholic priest who founded the International Association of Exorcists.
Directed by Julius Avery, the film is advertised as being “inspired by the actual files of Father Gabriele Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican.” Crowe’s character must deal with a possessed child, which leads him to discover a “centuries-old conspiracy” that the Vatican has “desperately tried to keep hidden.”
However, the International Association of Exorcists has not taken too kindly to the depiction of their group. They have declared the movie “unreliable … splatter cinema” (via The Guardian). This comes after they released a statement last month following the release of the trailer.
The group condemned the movie as “pretentious” and confusing, leaving audiences to wonder whether “the real enemy is, the devil or ecclesiastical power.”
The IAE continued, “The end result is to instil the conviction that exorcism is an abnormal, monstrous, and frightening phenomenon, whose only protagonist is the devil, whose violent reactions can be faced with great difficulty. This is the exact opposite of what occurs in the context of exorcism celebrated in the Catholic church in obedience to the directives imparted by it.”
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