Dominion (2005)

Years before Father Lankester Merrin helped save Regan MacNeil's soul, he first encounters the demon Pazuzu in East Africa. Merrin's initial battle with Pazuzu leads to the rediscovery of his faith.

Director:

Paul Schrader

Writers:

William Wisher, Caleb Carr

Stars:

Stellan Skarsgård, Gabriel Mann, Clara Bellar

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Father Lankester Merrin
Gabriel Mann	...	Father Francis
Clara Bellar	...	Rachel Lesno
Billy Crawford	...	Cheche
Ralph Brown	...	Sergeant Major
Israel Oyelumade	...	Jomo (as Israel Aduramo)
Andrew French	...	Chuma
Antonie Kamerling	...	Kessel
Julian Wadham	...	Major Granville
Eddie Osei	...	Emekwi
Ilario Bisi-Pedro	...	Sebituana
Niall Refoy	...	Corporal (Thief)
Lorenzo Camporese	...	Private (Thief)
Burt Caesar	...	Dr. Lamu
Marcello Santoni	...	Dutch Farmer

Storyline

Lankester Merrin is a archaeologist by profession but an ordained Roman Catholic priest who has lost his faith and abandoned his vocation. He is haunted by what he was forced to do in his native Holland during World War II. The church he's excavated in Northern Kenyan dates to the Byzantine period but this puts its construction hundreds of years before Christianity was introduced to the area. the church was buried to the rooftop in sand and as its structure is exposed, a madness slowly descends on the camp. the local tribesmen are prepared to go to war and demand that the church be buried. Soon, two British soldiers are found dead and their commanding officer, Major Granville, shoots a innocent civilian in cold blood. As fear descends upon everyone in the camp, it becomes apparent that a young disabled boy, Cheche, is possessed by the devil forcing Merrin to re-examine his own beliefs.

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Plot Keywords:

year 1947 | year 1944 | 1940s | supernatural horror | cgi animal in live action title | 

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Taglines:

Before the Legend You Know, is the Story of How Evil Began.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and disturbing images

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Frankenheimer voluntarily stepped down from directing the Exorcist prequel (then referred to as "Exorcist: Dominion") one month before his death in July 2002. Paul Schrader took on this project later in 2002.

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Goofs

In the scene where the flag is being taken down and folded, "Taps" plays in the background. "Taps" is an American military song, and is not played by the British Army. "Last Post" would have been the appropriate music.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Kessel: I am Obersturmfuhrer Ralph Kessel from the S.S., and this is one of my men. We found him in a ditch with a kitchen knife in his back, murdered by one of you. You see the German army retreating, and it makes you feel hope. It should not. So, who is responsible for this?

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Crazy Credits

At the extreme end of the end credits, after the last production company logo has faded out and the screen is entirely black, a demon voice grumbles "I am perfection".

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Connections

Followed by The Exorcist (2016)

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Soundtracks

Satan's March
by Todd Smith, Jason Stepp, Michael Oliver, Jeff Siegel p/k/a Dog Fashion Disco
Published by Hug the Retard, LLC
Performed by Todd Smith, Jasan Stepp
Michael Oliver, Jeff Siegel p/k/a/ Dog Fashion Disco
Courtesy of Artemis Records

User Reviews

An Interesting Turn Of Events

It's interesting that WB finally released this title - although a limited release - after shelving it then shelling out the money to have another director (an arguably lesser director) do it all over again. What did they thing Renny Harlin would give them that Paul Schrader hadn't? And if WB wanted a summer kid-flick-hit, what would make anyone with the power to sign a cheque think Harlin could do it? This Paul Schrader version is wonderful. It's intelligent, and probably the only follow up in The Exorcist franchise that succeeds on more than a monetary level. I'm not a Harlin fan - he directs without vision. But I think from a purely academic stand point, it will be interesting to pair up both versions - Paul Schrader's and Renny Harlin's - of this movie on DVD and see the differences of where an insightful director will go and how a limited director doesn't even how to get there.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Italy Morocco

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 August 2005 (UK)

Also Known As:

Exorcist: The Original Prequel

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$140,703, 22 May 2005

Gross USA:

$251,495

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$251,495

Company Credits

Production Co:

Morgan Creek Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1