It's almost poetic how Joshua John Miller's The Exorcism feels as cursed as the tormented souls it portrays onscreen. From that painfully generic title to a post-production saga spanning nearly four years – an ordeal brought about by COVID delays – this riff on the offscreen troubles of The Exorcist has been marred by bizarre creative choices and a whole lot of bad luck besides. Originally slated for streaming under the title The Georgetown Project, Miller's film has now pivoted to a theatrical release under a new, humdrum moniker.
( Shudder drew the short straw for its eventual streaming debut.) The Exorcism is also hampered by a surreal coincidence: during production, its lead wound up starring in another similarly titled demon-possession film, to which The Exorcism will be inevitably, and unfavorably, compared. (The two are unrelated, which is more good news for The Pope's Exorcist .
) With a setup like that (and having watched the movie), it's difficult to recommend The Exorcism. However, the morbidly curious might appreciate its few redeeming qualities. There’s also the reliably sturdy presence of Russell Crowe, who anchors the film even when it eventually spins out into unintentional chaos.
And, not for nothing, Miller employs one or two clever visuals to establish the meta-ness of it all, including an icy tracking shot that seems to establish a stately home only for the camera to pull back to reveal a dollhouse set constructed on a massive studio lot. In its first.
