Film Review: The Devil Inside

When it comes to found footage films, I have to admit that my patience is wearing a little thin. But for some reason, the horror genre seems to keep things relatively inventive. The most recent in the Paranormal Activity series wasn't blighted by this format at all (although I struggle to see where they can take the franchise as it rolls on), and the Spanish REC films are some of the best horrors in the last few years.

The Devil Inside takes the much used found footage (or fake documentary) format and couples it with another type of film that has long passed its expiration date, the exorcism movie. We all should get by this point that there was only one exorcism film, and that was the original Exorcist movie, which is also one of the greatest horror movies (and flat-out movies) ever made.

Funnily enough, the only way I'll watch Devil Inside again...

The sequel to The Exorcist was diabolical, and it's third would have been an outstanding film had it not had an exorcism scene shoehorned in to placate the masses. The most notable of recent exorcism movies was another found footage piece, The Last Exorcism, which wasn't actually that bad until it reached it nonsensical last ten minutes where all logic was hurled out the window.

The Devil Inside has good start, to give the film its due. But sadly this only lasts the length of it's 80's set news report footage, which is quite convincing. But the moment the movie hits present day with it's purported documentary format it falls apart. The main character of Isabella (Fernanda Andrade) who is looking for answers as to what happened to her Mother (who caused the deaths of three police officers during her exorcism back in the 80's), just looks like an actress. And it's totally unshakable throughout. And none of the other major cast members strike you in any way as a real person. It's easily the least convincing fake documentary I've ever seen.

As the story rumbles on, we get multiple exorcisms leading to another exorcism of Isabella's mother, Maria (Suzan Crowley) who acts like a cartoon version of someone possessed by the Devil. Crowley's performance is already a front runner for the worst acting of 2012. It can't even be described as 'so bad it's good', instead 'so bad it surpasses good/bad and arrives full circle at bad again' would be closer to the truth.

That's not to say that's the only case of bad acting, pretty much the entire main cast are pretty woeful, joining pretty much everything else about the film, which ends so abruptly that you can't help but wonder if the film makers just threw in the towel, agreeing that there's a strong argument for a worldwide ban on exorcism movies.

*
Another dire swing at a genre which hit its pinnacle, which can never be topped, almost 40 years ago. Throw in a format of films that had it's big creative moment in 1999, and so appalling performances and you have an absolute stinker.