The Deliverance Review: Lee Daniels’ Exorcism Horror Shines with Strong Cast

Ten years ago, Lee Daniels announced a movie project based on the real-life case of Latoya Ammons, a single mother who claimed her house was haunted and her children were being possessed by evil spirits, necessitating an exorcism. The resulting movie has finally arrived but falls short, feeling both silly and mediocre. Since the film’s inception, Ammons has moved out of the house, which has since been bulldozed. Much of the media hype that helped clinch the film deal has cooled, sparking more critical perspectives, including the notion that Ammons’ paranormal claims might have been a dramatic way to avoid rent or deceive social services.

Daniels had the potential to create a brilliant and heartfelt film about Ammons’ case, one that acknowledged the possibility her experiences weren’t literally real but symbolically so. Such a film could have used “possession” as a metaphor for the racism, sexism, poverty, and class prejudice that fuel dysfunction and delusion. Initially, it seems Daniels is on this path. The movie features strong performances from Andra Day as the mother, Mo’Nique as her social worker, and Glenn Close as the cranky born-again Christian grandma. Close delivers a black-comic role with the same intensity she brought to her role in Hillbilly Elegy.

The film withholds its scares for a substantial duration, initially presenting itself as a social issue drama with a tinge of unsettling weirdness. The children’s unwillingness or inability to explain their bruises to the social worker adds an eerie layer. When something horrifying occurs at the kids’ school, and psychological explanations remain plausible, the movie delivers a punch that recalls the style of Brian De Palma.

However, the film ultimately succumbs to a predictable route, evolving into a conventional, derivative imitation of The Exorcist. Like many real-life exorcism films, such as The Conjuring 2, nobody in The Deliverance seems aware of how closely their narrative mirrors The Exorcist. This lack of self-awareness wraps the film in a thick sense of disappointment, making the end product feel like a missed opportunity.

The Deliverance is in US cinemas from 16 August and on Netflix worldwide from 30 August.

Source: The Guardian