Deliver Us From Evil

91%

In an era that gore and quick thrills cluster the theaters, Deliver Us From Evil is a breath of fresh air.  The movie follows a police officer who is investigating a series of events that are connected by what appears to be evil.  The cop has lost his faith, disengaged with his family, and has devoted his life to his work.  The events of the film and the help of a hip, modern priest help him realize that there is something else out there, something more powerful than any of them.

The movie is completely content based and does not rely on cheap thrills to get your skin to crawl.  There is one quick action that does make you jump, but nearly the entire movie has you tense and makes you think - especially with the "Inspired by actual events" tagline.  When you think of horror movies that are content based, the main one that comes to mind is The Exorcist.  If The Exorcist was released today, it would not hold it's place on the pedestal that it is on, because of the less sensitive audience.  If this movie was released at an earlier time, it would hold almost that same place.  There is an element at the end that brings the family closer and brings peace to the police officer.  I want to meet the police officer and this priest and learn as much as I can about these events.

The cast is perfect.  Eric Bana plays a great stern police office that clearly has a chip on his shoulder.  Olivia Munn is a great wife that feels her husband is disconnected from the family and, although she is clearly on his side, her performance tells you she needs more.  Joel McHale who is usually hilarious, steps out of his comic role and into a partner that is just as stern as Bana.  Edgar Ramirez is the real star here.  He is a hip priest that has been affected by his work and is very down to Earth.  You really connect with him as a human being before you see him in action as a priest.

I can tell that this is a movie that will go unseen by a lot of movie-goers.  I am not a religious person, but this film is captivating on many levels and had me sucked in.  If you are religious and enjoy horror movies, this movie will absolutely terrify you.  If you are a non-believer and enjoy horror movies, this movie will terrify you.  It's a film that stays with you and will leave a mark.

This is the kind of movie that deserves attention.  Due to it not thriving on cheap instances that scare you (and sometimes make people laugh due to their jumping), there is no sound in the theater and you could hear a pin drop.  The theater was not full, but everyone there was alone watching this film.

Drew Oliver