Ciaran Hinds, Toby Jones & Alicia Braga are set to join Anthony Hopkins in the exorcism thriller “The Rite.”
Based on the book by Matt Baglio, the film is about “a skeptical young priest sent to the Vatican to be trained in exorcism by an unorthodox tutor following a decision by Pope Benedict XVI to train more exorcists.” Hopkins will play the priest and exorcism expert who uses non-traditional methods to get his results. Frankly, the film sounds like a buddy cop movie with priests instead. Here’s the full book synopsis from Publishers Weekly though we would imagine the film will play a bit fast and loose with the non-fiction work:
Journalist Baglio follows a Catholic priest through the latter’s training to become an exorcist in this incisive look at the church’s rite of exorcism and its use in contemporary life. Baglio began delving into the topic after hearing about a course at a Vatican-affiliated university, where he met and befriended the Rev. Gary Thomas, a priest in the diocese of San Jose, Calif. Thomas took the exorcism course at the request of his bishop and subsequently apprenticed himself to a seasoned exorcist. Keenly aware of the misunderstanding that abounds about exorcism through film images, Baglio sets about dispelling misconceptions and does so skillfully, separating the real from the imaginary in the mysterious and unsettling sphere of the demonic. Both Thomas and Baglio were changed by their exposure to the rite. Thomas grew spiritually during the process, which bolstered his desire to help his parishioners, and Baglio, previously a nominal Catholic, reconnected with his faith. For anyone seeking a serious and very human examination of this fascinating subject, one that surpasses the sensational, this is absorbing and enlightening reading.
As previously announced Mikael Hafstrom (“Derailed,” “1408”) will be directing the supernatural thriller from a script by Michael Petroni (“The Dangerous Lives Of Altar Boys,” “Queen Of The Damned”). While we’re kind of curious about this one, exorcism movies are generally pretty terrible despite it being one of the most fascinating topics out there. But it doesn’t fill us with confidence that the film is currently set up at New Line who’ve been cranking out braindead horror reboots such as “A Nightmare On Elm Street” and “Friday The 13th.” Filming is set to begin in Budapest in a couple of weeks.
–Written by Kevin Jagernauth
