Horror films "Based on a True Story" are terrifying because they remind us that what happened to someone else could happen to us too. The Exorcism of Emily Rose may be an average film, but the real story of Anneliese Michel is anything but average. Anneliese's possession included horrifying symptoms and required numerous exorcism sessions before her tragic death, leading to a trial for negligent homicide.
There are no more frightening words than a horror film that touts itself as "Based on a True Story." A fictional horror film can be left at the theater, but one based on real-life events means that if it happened to someone else, it could happen to you. This is also true of horror films where "based on" is to be interpreted as inspired by a true story, in that even if the events in the film don't quite match the reality, there is still a sliver of truth in there. It's in this category that The Exorcism of Emily Rose falls. The film sees lawyer Erin Bruner (Laura Linney) defending Father Richard Moore (Tom Wilkinson), who has been charged with negligent homicide when attempting an exorcism on Emily Rose (Jennifer Carpenter), a 19-year-old student. While Carpenter received acclaim for her role as Emily (with director Scott Derrickson citing her ability not only to contort her body but her face too to such a degree that the film almost had an R rating), the film itself is average at best. The same can not be said about the real story behind the film. No, the tale of 23-year-old Anneliese Michel is decidedly anything but average.
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The Michels, a deeply religious family, lived in Klingenberg, a small town in Bavaria, West Germany. The father, a sawmill operator named Joseph, had once considered becoming a priest, and there were no less than three nuns in the extended family. So, in 1948, when Anneliese's mother Anna gave birth to an illegitimate daughter, it was so disgraceful that when Anna and Joseph were married, Anna was forced to wear a black veil during the ceremony. From that point on, Anna insisted that she and the family atone for those sins and the sins of others. This was the world that Anneliese was born into in 1952.
Growing up, Anneliese was, like the others, encouraged to be overtly devout, doing penance for the sins of the family that predated her. Mass was twice a week, and the girls' time was largely spent indoors praying in lieu of playing with other children. When Martha died at the age of eight, it added additional pressure for the young Anneliese to be that much more repentant, even made to sleep on the stone floor to atone for the sins of the drug addicts at the train station. It didn't help matters that Anneliese was a sickly child, having had measles, mumps, and scarlet fever at a young age, leading to physical and psychological ailments that plagued her into her teens.
Anneliese began experiencing blackouts at the age of 16, going into a trance, walking aimlessly, and wetting her bed. At 17, she was diagnosed with grand mal epilepsy due to intermittent convulsions. However, she then started seeing evil hallucinations during prayer, followed by severe depression and thoughts of suicide, encouraged by voices in her head telling her she was damned. That was just the beginning. As per The Telegraph, Anneliese would be performing 600 genuflections in a day, leading to damage to her knee ligaments. She then barked like a dog for two straight days while hiding under a table. Anneliese lapped her own urine off the floor, ate spiders, coal, and a dead bird's head, and screamed for hours on end. Her family wanted to bring Anneliese in for further medical tests, but Anneliese insisted on an exorcism, and after two failed requests, a third was authorized by Bishop Josef Stangl.
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Father Arnold Renz was appointed by the Bishop to perform the exorcism, aided by Father Ernst Alt, with the first rite taking place on September 24, 1975. The exorcisms, most of which were recorded, revealed numerous demons in Anneliese seeking control: Lucifer, Cain, Adolf Hitler, Judas Iscariot, Nero, and others. The exorcisms continued with one-hour-long sessions held secretly in the bedroom of her parent's house, where Anneliese was often in need of restraining, either by holding her down or chaining her to a chair.
The recordings during these sessions are, as The Telegraph describes them, terrifying listening. Obscenities are screamed, a series of throaty gurgles mixed with inhuman growling can be heard, as well as the demons each waxing poetic about the horrors of Hell. 11 months before passing away, Anneliese stopped receiving medical treatment. Her body started deteriorating from malnourishment and dehydration. Barely recognizable, Anneliese became covered with bruises and bedsores, her hair began falling out, and she had wasted away to a mere 68 pounds. Finally, after nearly 70 exorcism sessions, Anneliese passed away on July 1st, 1976.
The two priests, Anna, and Joseph were charged with negligent homicide, with the trial beginning on March 30th, 1978. The recordings were played for the three-judge panel, and with Anneliese's own insistence on being possessed, became key points for the defense. The prosecution, on the other hand, testified that Anneliese's death could be attributed to epilepsy, mental disorders, and her extremely religious upbringing, which Professor Hans Sattes of Wuertzburg University, added up to "a spiritual sickness and heavy psychic disturbance." according to The Washington Post. It was faith versus fact, and ultimately fact won out. The four were found guilty but were given lenience, sentenced only to time served, and three months probation.
Even in death, Anneliese was denied freedom from the extremely stifling religious autocracy that filled her life. Her parents buried her next to Martha at the outer edges of the cemetery, where illegitimate children and souls lost to suicide are relegated. And after a nun told the parents that she had a vision that Anneliese's body was still intact, proof of her possession, they exhumed the body in February 1978 (it wasn't — the body had normal body decay). Even as recently as 2013's interview in The Telegraph, Anna still insists that the exorcism was the right course of action, despite her daughter's tragic death. "I know that we did the right thing because I saw the sign of Christ in her hands. She was bearing stigmata and that was a sign from God that we should exorcise the demons. She died to save other lost souls, to atone for their sins."
The Exorcism of Emily Rose does take some artistic liberties, including Americanizing the story of Anneliese Michel, but does retain the faith-against-fact story that made the original trial so fascinating. As for whether Anneliese was actually possessed or not, it's a question that may never truly be answered, but the deeper you read into her tragic story, the more it becomes evident that sometimes fact backs up faith.
Loosely based on a true story, The Exorcism of Emily Rose mixes compelling courtroom drama with generally gore-free scares in a ho-hum take on demonic cinema. Read critic reviews
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The Rev. Moore (Tom Wilkinson) is prosecuted for the wrongful death of a girl thought to be demonically possessed, because he administered the church-sanctioned exorcism that ultimately killed her. Prosecuting attorney Ethan Thomas (Campbell Scott) contends that the young woman, Emily (Jennifer Carpenter), suffered from schizophrenia and should have been medically diagnosed. Meanwhile, defense lawyer Erin Bruner (Laura Linney) argues that Emily"s condition cannot be explained by science alone. Show More
Rating: PG-13 (Intense/Frightening Sequences|Disturbing Images|Thematic Material)
Genre: Horror, Mystery & thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 9, 2005 wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $75.1M
Runtime: 1h 58m
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co: Firm Films
Sound Mix: SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)
Cast & Crew
Laura Linney
Erin Bruner
Tom Wilkinson
Father Moore
Campbell Scott
Ethan Thomas
Jennifer Carpenter
Emily Rose
Colm Feore
Karl Gunderson
Joshua Close
Jason
Kenneth Welsh
Dr. Mueller
Duncan Fraser
Dr. Cartwright
JR Bourne
Ray
Mary Beth Hurt
Judge Brewster
Henry Czerny
Dr. Briggs
Shohreh Aghdashloo
Dr. Adani
Scott Derrickson
Director
Paul Harris Boardman
Writer
Scott Derrickson
Writer
Paul Harris Boardman
Producer
Beau Flynn
Producer
Gary Lucchesi
Producer
Tom Rosenberg
Producer
Tripp Vinson
Producer
Tom Stern
Cinematographer
Jeff Betancourt
Film Editing
Stuart Aikins
Casting
Sean Cossey
Casting
David Brisbin
Production Design
Sandi Tanaka
Art Director
Lesley Beale
Set Decoration
Show all Cast & Crew
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Critic Reviews for The Exorcism of Emily Rose
All Critics (157) | Top Critics (39) | Fresh (70) | Rotten (87)
Full Review… J. R. Jones Chicago Reader Full Review… Chris Stuckmann Chris
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Freak.com Full Review… Marc Savlov Austin Chronicle Full Review… Richard Roeper Ebert & Roeper Full Review… Steve Biodrowski Cinefantastique Full Review… Jeffrey Overstreet Looking Closer Full Review… Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Full Review… Joe Lozito Big Picture Big Sound Full Review… Anton Bitel Eye for Film Full Review… Prairie Miller Long Island Press
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