The Rite... Got it Right!!

Someone finally got it right! (No pun intended...lol)

Inspired by true events The Rite follows skeptical seminary student Michael Kovak who reluctantly attends exorcism school at the Vatican. While in Rome, he meets an unorthodox priest, Father Lucas, who introduces him to the darker side of his faith.

After seeing so many exorcist type movies (ex. Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Last Exorcism, Dominion, etc.) you begin to wonder if maybe you might stumble upon one that is actually good. Thankfully, The Rite delivers an exorcism film that is actually worth seeing.

To me, Anthony Hopkins can do no wrong and he proves that time and time again, this film is no exception. The Rite does an excellent job of portraying an accurate representation of what an exorcism is. The cinematography helps to shape the movie with its excellent shots of Rome, the Vatican interiors, Father Lucas' home, and even the exorcisms are filmed very well. Also there is a great appreciation for the development of the main character Michael Kovac (played by Colin O'Donaghue), by the end of the movie we truly know who he is and so does he. With this movie, it almost feels like we are taking a journey through a surreal world. In this journey we realize the movie is more than what is seen on the surface. And it still blows the mind that there are exorcism classes, but I guess that's the only way to learn right.

All in all, going into this movie blindly would not be wise, its pretty important and almost vital to have some sort of knowledge of faith for it to really sink in. Put it like this when leave from watching this movie it will definitely leave something for you to think about. I can honestly say it put a cold chill up my spine!!

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Anthony Hopkins to play villain in 'Arabian Nights'

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Anthony Hopkins is in final negotiations to play the villain in “Arabian Nights,” an action-adventure pic directed by Chuck Russell.
Written by Russell and Barry P. Ambrose, the period epic centers on a young commander (Liam Hemsworth) who, after his king is murdered in a coup, joins forces with Sinbad, Ali Baba and the Genie from the magic lamp to rescue the queen, Scheherazade.

Hopkins will play Pharotu, an evil sorcerer who killed Sinbad’s love, a mermaid, and is looking to amass more magic for himself.

An end-of-summer shoot is being eyed.
 
The actor recently wrapped a turn as Odin in Marvel’s Thor and is starring in supernatural thriller The Rite, shooting in Hungary.

The Wolfman is Unleashed...

When Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro) is lured back to his family estate to hunt for his missing brother, he discovers a horrifying destiny beyond his wildest imagination.

Haunted since childhood by his mother’s death, Talbot reunites with his estranged father (Anthony Hopkins) after leaving the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor decades before. He quickly discovers something with insatiable bloodlust is stalking the villagers and a skeptical Scotland Yard inspector named Abberline (Hugo Weaving) has arrived to end the carnage.

The initial 30 mins of this film had me, but then as the film continued it begin to lose me little by little. As we already know it is a remake so there really is nothing new except the fact that it has somewhat been modernized for the times.

I must admit there was a bit of disappointment with this film. Not that I had high expectations, but I just think the plot and storyline were a little choppy and all over the place. With movies such as this we already know how it begins an ends, but it is more about how will you keep us entertained in the middle. Don't get me wrong the acting was great and was definitely up to par, but then again you are dealing with two outstanding Academy award winners (Hopkins and Del Toro). And also to my surprise, Emily Blount's character Gwen is able to hold her own with some heavyweights. She truly embraced her character inside and out.

On another high note (and there was some reaching) the setting of the film was much more fitting. I like how they used a Gothic background which gave the movie a little bit more depth. And if you can recall some of the scenes, for example, the pub were a bit reminesce of the original Wolfman and An American Werewolf in London. All in all, the first half build-up is off the chain but then it does not continue to follow suit as a monster movie should in the end.

As I continued to watch this movie I realized that there is a secret/mystery that has been revealed and the movie wasn't even half way in. This put a damper on the mood because now the interest has decreased. In the end the movie somewhat brings it back full circle, however not enough to save the movie.

A disappointment, but not a total failure.

Grade: C-