The Last Exorcism (2010)

A troubled evangelical minister agrees to let his last exorcism be filmed by a documentary crew.

Director:

Daniel Stamm

Writers:

Huck Botko, Andrew Gurland

Stars:

Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell, Iris Bahr

3 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Fabian	...	Cotton Marcus
Ashley Bell	...	Nell Sweetzer
Iris Bahr	...	Iris Reisen
Louis Herthum	...	Louis Sweetzer
Caleb Landry Jones	...	Caleb Sweetzer
Tony Bentley	...	Pastor Manley
John Wright Jr.	...	John Marcus
Shanna Forrestall	...	Shanna Marcus
Justin Shafer	...	Justin Marcus
Carol Sutton	...	Shopkeeper
Victoria Patenaude	...	Motorist
John Wilmot	...	Spindly Man
Becky Fly	...	Becky Davis
Denise Lee	...	Nurse
Logan Craig Reid	...	Logan Winters

Storyline

In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the evangelical Reverend Cotton Marcus was raised by his father to be a preacher. He agrees that the filmmaker Iris Reisen and the cameraman Daniel Moskowitz make a documentary about his life. Cotton tells that when his wife Shanna Marcus had troubles in the delivery of their son Justin, he prioritized the doctor help to God and since then he questions his faith. Further, he tells that exorcisms are frauds but the results are good for the believers because they believe it is true. When Cotton is summoned by the farmer Louis Sweetzer to perform an exorcism in his daughter Nell, Cotton sees the chance to prove to the documentary crew what he has just told. They head to Ivanwood and they have a hostile reception from Louis's son Caleb. Cotton performs the exorcism in Nell, exposing his tricks to the camera, but sooner they learn that the dysfunctional Sweetzer family has serious problems.

---

Plot Keywords:

exorcism | documentary crew | baton rouge louisiana | louisiana | fraud | 

---

Taglines:

Believe In Him.

---

Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for disturbing violent content and terror, some sexual references and thematic material

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [jp]

Country:

USA France

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 August 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cotton

Filming Locations:

Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,104,856 (UK) (3 September 2010)

Gross:

$40,990,055 (USA) (2 October 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Strike Entertainment, StudioCanal, Arcade Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's poster was banned in the UK after receiving complaints deeming the image offensive.

---

Goofs

Upon entering the barn for the second Exorcism scene Nell is seen to be wearing a pair of Dr Marten boots, the amount of mud on the boots varies throughout the scene.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Shanna Marcus: Cotton!

---

Connections

Referenced in IMDb's 20th Anniversary Star of the Day: Eli Roth (2010)

---

Soundtracks

"Black Paws, Snow Deep"
Written and Performed by Caleb Landry Jones (as Caleb Jones)
Courtesy of Caleb Jones

User Reviews

The trickster

The whole setup here is that we have a professional actor - paid to put on shows about fire and brimstone - who will need to discern over the course of the film who is putting on the show he finds himself in. A film crew is turning this into a movie, presumed to reveal hidden mechanisms that move spectators. Turns out something else is controlling the thing and moving parts we thought we knew all about and possibly us. This will test his mettle as a showman himself, let's say his faith in the healing power of his act (art?). Is the girl acting out some repressed sexual trauma? Is the father, at the same time covering his tracks with Jesus babble? Or is the demon, the great trickster? (a mild problem here is that, the film being what it is, we never really wonder, do we?)

This is excellent stuff and could have worked as more than horror. Indeed, until the last part horror is intermittent here. Our focus is on juggling one show as part of another while getting to decide which one horrifies more. The choice for 'found footage' is one of the better applications I've seen in terms of structure; it means we have one more show running behind the other two, and one that we use to look for the real root of horror. There are many dramatic shots in the flow, but we can chalk these to the presence of a professional cameraman.

The ending has been reported as problematic. Oh, it is graphic but in ways that have become a staple in films dealing with some extraordinary demonic darkness; Polanski, Rosemary as well as Ninth Gate, the Hammer shocker The Devil Rides Out, Night of the Demon, recently Drag me to Hell. Many viewers bemoan the revelation and tend to prefer the whole thing coated in whispers and rumors. Fair point.

It works for me because it allows us to recast evil as another staged trick. Another group of people are brought in at the last moment to enact a show, the real deal this time. Real fire and brimstone. Death comes as storyboarded earlier.

If you're interested in the scam priest angle, it's only a light-hearted jab at faith here. Watch Marjoe for a more chilling portrait, the '72 documentary on the "World's Youngest Ordained Minister".