The Rite (2011)
Average Rating: 4.2/10
Reviews Counted: 155
Fresh: 31 | Rotten: 124
Anthony Hopkins is as excellent as ever, but he's no match for The Rite's dawdling pace and lack of chills -- or Colin O'Donoghue's tentative performance in the leading role.
Average Rating: 4.3/10
Critic Reviews: 30
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 24
Anthony Hopkins is as excellent as ever, but he's no match for The Rite's dawdling pace and lack of chills -- or Colin O'Donoghue's tentative performance in the leading role.
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Movie Info
"The battle against the Devil, which is the principal task of Saint Michael the Archangel, is still being fought today, because the Devil is still alive and active in the world." -Pope John Paul II "The Rite" is a supernatural thriller that uncovers the Devil's reach to even one of the holiest places on Earth. Inspired by true events, the film follows seminary student Michael Kovak (Colin O'Donoghue), who is sent to study exorcism at the Vatican in spite of his own doubts about the controversial
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Cast
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Anthony Hopkins
Father Lucas Trevant -
Colin O'Donoghue
Michael Kovak -
Alice Braga
Angeline -
Ciarán Hinds
Father Xavier -
Toby Jones
Father Matthew -
Rutger Hauer
Istvan Kovak -
Marta Gastini
Rosaria -
Maria Grazia Cucinotta
Aunt Andria -
Arianna Veronesi
Francesca -
Andrea Calligari
Vincenzo -
Chris Marquette
Eddie -
Torrey DeVitto
Nina -
Ben Cheetham
Young Michael -
Marija Karan
Sandra -
Rosa Pianeta
Woman in Exorcism Video -
Giampiero Ingrassia
Doctor -
Rosario Tedesco
Police Officer -
Cecilia Dazzi
Nurse -
Attila Bardóczy
Xavier's Secretary -
Nadia Kibout
Ethnic Nun -
Anita Pititto
Vatican Nun -
Sandor Baranyai
Concierge -
Fabiola Balestriere
Young Girl -
Anikó Vincze
Katalin Kovak -
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The Rite Trailer & Photos
All Critics (155) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (33) | Rotten (125) | DVD (9)
This is a dreary metaphysical drama dressed in the vestments of a religious horror movie.
Top CriticOooh. Scary.
The Rite goes wrong in every way.
Starts glumly before flipping into supernatural camp.
Despite an impressive cast (excluding the excruciatingly dull O'Donoghue, a newcomer from Ireland), "The Rite" is the sort of misfire that Hollywood has long buried in January.
A run-of-the-mill chiller that spends an inordinate amount of time flirting with unconventional scare tactics before sacrificing all of its ingenuity to become the latest in a long line of "The Exorcist" clones.
Although Hopkins shines when his evil-infused priest exhibits low-level nastiness, his climactic exorcism scenes don't ring true and aren't very frightening.
[Hopkins] stumbles through his entire acting range - from lazy, stilted line delivery to balls-out mentalist improvisation.
Dull and overlong at times, but also scary when it needs to be.
Hopkins' character approaches his job like a weary pest-control specialist worn down by years and years of driving off a persistent cockroach that just keeps crawling back.
Playing like a chilling short story, an intriguing central relationship between the leads makes up for what it lacks in pace or impact.
Packed with a few good old fashioned jolts, "The Rite" is an atmospheric film that is kept on track by the performance of Anthony Hopkins.
It takes half-an-hour to bring Hopkins into the fold, and it's only then that the film begins to get anywhere near interesting.
doesn't completely suck
A lousy genre picture...
This package offers a nice transfer of a not-altogether-unpleasant time killer.
Parades about with a self-seriousness at odds with a second-half dominated by veiny-faced, limb-contorting special effects and screaming, screaming, screaming.
As the god-doubting theologian sent to Rome to learn exorcism as a way to conjure up his missing faith, a less charismatic figure couldn't be found.
Turning what should be a meditation on faith into a demon-possession flick probably seemed like a safe box office bet, but it also robbed The Rite of the opportunity to rise above what we usually get in movies about exorcisms.
Predictable and exaggerated, with some minor saving graces
Since this movie was so exhausting, I took an extra amount of joy in the brief jolts of electricity I saw -- namely the random violence and weird jokes.
...another routine look at demonic possessions and the priests who work so diligently to protect us against them. (Blu-ray Combo edition)
You'll find no swiveling heads or green vomit here, although there are a few scenes that stretch credibility by going in that direction.
Audience Reviews for The Rite
Super Reviewer
What begins as a dull supernatural drama turns into a cheap CGI-show in the final third. Cast includes stars like Anthony Hopkins, Ciaran Hinds and Rutger hauer but their talents are wasted here. Especially Hopkins gives us one of his most laziest performances in years here.
In my opinion Hafstrom is below average as a director and has no visual style of his own at all. The Rite looks and sounds like a bad episode of some poor TV-show. This is really frustrating film to sit through and boring indeed.
Super Reviewer
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- Michael Kovak: I prefer to believe people lie to themselves rather than face the truth.
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- Father Lucas Trevant: Knowledge of the unknowable. It's the quickest test for possession.
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- Father Xavier: Admittedly, it's very easy to confuse psychotic illness with possession. It's up to the exorcist to discern the difference.
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- Father Lucas Trevant: What did you expect? Spinning heads and pea soup?
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- Father Lucas Trevant: The terror is real Michael, it is.
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- Father Lucas Trevant: Be careful Michael, choosing not to believe in the devil doesn't protect you from him.
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| Believe or not believe. | 13 days ago | 0 |
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Foreign Titles
- The Rite - Das Ritual (DE)
- Le rite (FR)
