The film is set up like a documentary, following the "final exorcism" of Reverend Cotton Marcus (played by Patrick Fabian), a scammer/preacher, who has been faking exorcisms for money. This documentary is meant to expose exorcism as the sham that Cotton believes it to be. When Cotton arrives at the Sweetzer farm to meet with the tragically possessed Nell Sweetzer (played by Ashley Bell) however, he is unexpectedly faced with something that he has never encountered: The possibility that this young woman may actually be possessed by Satan.
The resultant questions are these:
- Is Nell possessed?
- If so, what is a phony exorcist going to do about it?
- If not...what exactly is going on?!
I don't want to give anything away here, in case you're planning on watching the film (which I will get to in a minute), but suffice it to say that one or more of those questions may remain unanswered. (They certainly did for me...at least after one initial viewing.)
Speaking of "one initial viewing," will I watch this again? The answer is yes, I will. Why? Because much like Winter's Bone, something in the end of the movie all but demands that I watch it again, to search for clues and answers that I may have missed. To me, if I did miss them (which I'm sure I probably did), then that warrants a second viewing. Why? Because I care...I care enough about the people in the film that I want to know what actually happened...what didn't happen...and why. If I didn't miss anything...then I may be frustrated by a second viewing, feeling that I've wasted my time on a DVD with nothing but loose ends and the mother of all abrupt, confusing, and possibly pointless endings.
Yeah, you heard me. The mother of all abrupt, confusing, and possibly pointless endings. When I run into something that steals that accomplishment away from TLE, I'll be sure to let you know.
What's good about this movie?
The way that it was made is absolutely fascinating and captivating. Stamm's direction seems to have been trying to get as close to reality as possible...without actual reality. The creepy farmhouse that much of the movie takes place in is a real creepy farmhouse...not to be confused with its distant cousin, the fake creepy farmhouse. Additionally, most of the actors (aside from Fabian and Bell) played characters with the same first name, in order to keep them from escaping too far. They weren't looking for actors acting...they were looking for people experiencing. And that comes across absolutely brilliantly in the film.
What's even more brilliant about the film is Ashley Bell, a relative newcomer to the filmmaking scene. Her performance is so lavishly layered and creepily crisp (please take note of that awesome alliteration) that even if I didn't want to watch the film again to try to piece the puzzle together...I might just watch it again for her performance. Little trivia tidbit here for you, according to IMDB, "Bell did all the bends and contortions of her body on her own. No special effects were used - she has hyper-mobility." That statement will mean very little until you see the film...or at the very least the film's trailer.
What's that you said? Trailer? Yes...here it is...but be forewarned. Not only is the trailer (like the website) way scarier than the movie itself...but the trailer is also...well...in my opinion...terrifying. So if you think that you might be frightened by the trailer...then by all means, DO NOT WATCH IT. If you do and you get scared, I totally warned you.
So yeah, that's the gist of it. If you're looking to be scared out of your wits (which I wasn't) then you may be let down by TLE. If you're like me and you can appreciate a film, even with its shortcomings *COUGH-ENDING-COUGH*, for the unique way that it was made, and a cornucopia of stunning performances (not just Bell), then TLE may be worth your time.
If you've seen it, or see it after reading this, let me know what you think.
Stay Classy,
LT
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