“THE POPE’S EXORCIST” AND VILLAIN’S CAPERS
So last night I was watching THE POPE’S EXORCIST (2023). I wasn’t expecting much from it other than an adeqaute time-killer and some scenery-chewing by the always fun to watch Russel Crowe, and it doesn’t fail to deliver on those counts. It’s diverting entertainment, but nothing special. But what caught my attention is how the film deviates from your typical umpteenth remake of THE EXORCIST (1974).
In William Friedkin and William Peter Blatty’s immortal classic (not merely one of the greatest Horror films ever made, but one of the finest films ever made in any genre) the demon’s motives are a mystery. In the much-lauded director’s cut of THE EXORCIST that was released in 2000, we get a restored scene in which young Father Karras (Jason Miller) asks the elder Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow) an obvious question: What does the demon want?
Karras can only venture a guess. “I think the point is to make us despair. To see ourselves as animal and ugly. To make us reject the possibility that God could love us.”
What makes THE POPE’S EXORCIST different is that this demon not only has a motive that becomes crystal clear, it’s got a downright caper!
Satan is, of course, the ultimate villain. Driven by vanity and hubris to wage war against humankind just to spite God, he’s the epitome of pride, jealousy and every ugly aspect of human nature. His is the rage of a jilted lover who in turn seeks solace in hurting others. His close associates, the angels who joined him in his doomed rebellion in Heaven, and his earthly disciples (the legions of Devil Worshipers, Witches and Warlocks who populate countless Horror movies) are just as reliable as movie badies, but their motives are usually as simple as causing mayhem and general chaos in the name of their Big Kahuna.
But the demon is THE POPE’S EXORCIST is far more ambitious, operating on the level of a James Bond Villain, and one of my favorite things about Bond Villains are their capers. What makes Auric Goldfinger the best of the bunch isn’t merely his arrogance and aplomb, it’s that the bastard has ambitions that extend beyond mere greed: he’s looking for glory!
“Man has climbed Mount Everest, gone to the bottom of the ocean. He's fired rockets at the Moon, split the atom, achieved miracles in every field of human endeavor... except crime!”
Now that’s a proper Pulp villain! One of the things I can’t stand about the (otherwise excellent) SKYFALL is that Silva’s ambitions are limited to simple, petty revenge against M and M16 for abandoning him (which he understood was part of the job when he signed up).
Which brings me back to THE POPE’S EXORCIST. In this the demon is identified as no mere scrub but a prince of Hell, Big Daddy Lucifer’s right hand guy. Shaking people’s faith in God’s love? Pfft! Chump change. At the end of the second act we discover that Asmodeus is aiming much higher. The boy he is possessing is mere bait to attract the title character so that he can possess him and get inside the Vatican itself!
Now that’s a proper caper!