THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER

Two possessed girls

THE EXORICST: BELIEVER (2023).  Director: David Gordon Green. 

Two young girls -- white Katherine (Olivia O'Neill) and black Angela (Lidya Jewett) -- go missing for three days and are found with no memories of what happened. Afterwards they begin displaying strange, violent tendencies and acting oddly, things that point to demonic possession according to Katherine's church-going parents. However, Angela's father, Victor (Leslie Odom Jr.), does not believe in such nonsense but is finally driven to contact Chris McNeil (Ellen Burstyn), who wrote about her own experiences when her daughter, Regan (Linda Blair), was possessed and successfully exorcised. Regan hated the world-wide attention and cut off contact with her mother because of the book. Now Chris is determined to help these two new families who are facing an unfathomable evil. 

Frail but feisty: Ellen Burstyn

There have been so many Exorcist sequels and imitations that Believer comes off like a parody at times, and has little suspense. The protracted sequence that features dual exorcisms eventually becomes tedious -- the movie is almost two hours long --  and aside from an eye stabbing of one pivotal character, and an unfortunate incident involving a priest, there is so little action that you begin longing for even the slimiest of slasher flicks. Believer severely limits the thrills and chills and substitutes some minor character development and little else. The FX are okay and over-familiar. The performances of the young girls are fine, and Ann Dowd scores as Ann Brooks, a nurse with some experience with the occult. David Gordon Green also directed Halloween (2018). Linda Blair doesn't show up until the very end of the movie and has about one line. 

Verdict: Definitely won't make a believer out of you. **.

HALLOWEEN (2018)

Michael

HALLOWEEN  (2018). Director: David Gordon Green. 

Forty years after his killing spree in Haddonfield, IL, Michael Myers is transferred to a different facility and, naturally, escapes. His sister, Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis), who has turned her home into a fortress in preparation for his return, sets out with her shotgun to kill him. Meanwhile, Michael murders several individuals. Will Laurie finally wipe out the brother who tried to kill her? 

Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie

Who cares? I was never a particularly big fan of the original Halloween, only saw a couple of the mostly mediocre sequels, and found this one (which, I believe, ignores the events of the previous "sequels") to be distinctly unoriginal, and eventually, rather dull. The script is disjointed, the pacing is off, and there are only a couple of moments of suspense and very few thrills. Oddly, critics seemed to like the movie even more than the fans, some even finding it "terrifying" and "well-directed." I can only imagine they fell asleep and had a scary nightmare. 

Laurie's daughter and grand-daughter in the cellar

One critic liked the film because of its suggestion of female empowerment, since Laurie, her daughter, and her grand-daughter, all square off against Michael at the climax, but apparently this very young reviewer hasn't seen many slasher films and has no awareness of the whole "final girl" trope. There are a couple of likable kids in the movie: a young boy who tells his father that he likes spending time with him hunting, but would rather go to dance class that night (Billy Elliot?) -- too bad that he doesn't -- and little Julian (Jibrail Nanttambu), a black kid whose babysitter comes to a bad end. 

Verdict: The film doesn't have enough energy for its own good. *1/2.