 What's going on guys welcome back to the channel critical overload here So this will be the spoiler-filled spoiler-filled Review for David Gordon greens the exorcist believer again directed by David Gordon Green who also co-wrote the screenplay along with Peter Sattler I believe his name is This is starring Leslie Odom Jr. and Dowd Jennifer Nettles Norbert Butts Lydia Jewett Olivia Markham Ellen Burston and several others who really do not matter at the end of the day So this is Revolving around Victor Fielding who since the death of his wife 12 years ago has been raising the daughter Angela on his own But when Angela and her friend Catherine disappear into the woods only to return three days later with no memory of what happened to them It unleashes a chain of events that will force Victor to confront the Naderra of evil and in his terror and desperation Seek out the only person alive who has witnessed anything like it before Chris McNeil the exorcist believer again like I stated in my spoiler-free review It's easily the most mixed-bag horror film I have seen all year I went in with very little expectations as a lot of you know and yet I still came out of this with the appropriate thought of it being just okay It's not a complete train wreck like I thought like I thought it was gonna be This film is able to stay afloat thanks to the strong performances again that enticing first act the surprising use of what I believe were practical effects and The glimmers of a strong character drama that at least got me invested in half of the story on the other hand Believer holds itself back. Thanks to humor that never landed undercooked characters who you just couldn't care less about Tacky jump scares and a third act that comes off more comical than dramatic Also be prepared to endure one of the worst monologues. You've ever heard courtesy of Chris McNeil Now also with this film the themes about unity and community are some of the screenplays weakest aspects because it comes off more Preach it in anything as I stated in my spoiler free review when you beat your audience over the head with messaging That can become infuriating and insufferable because you're not being subtle. It feels like you're in a classroom We don't need that So while it doesn't truly create an atmosphere that's terrifying from start to finish I do have to commend that highly effective opening sequence that sucks you into the drama for the fieldings and their journey throughout this story The film begins in Haiti I believe it was 12 years prior according to the synopsis But the film itself actually discloses this to be 13 years So you got to make up your mind there guys We see Victor and his wife wandering Haiti the wife receives a blessing from some of the locals for her baby Angela then an earthquake strikes and Victor has to choose to save his daughter Who is still in the wife's stomach or his wife? But we don't find out his answer right there But the film wants you to think that he shows Angela of course since she's alive But as the film progresses you're gonna find out he did not choose Angela Also, as the film progresses the drama begins to drag and just fizzle out the central characters that we have here again The fieldings Angela and Victor there to say the characters you will find yourself mostly invested in and that's because believer Took its time showcasing an unbreakable bond between them before the devil's work started intervening that development only enhanced the Emotion surrounding that revelation that Victor actually chose his wife back in Haiti and not Angela when he had a choice A choice that was a trick by God in his eyes And he doesn't intend to fall for this trick again when it resurfaces during the third act when the devil or the demon if you will Tells them that they need to pick who lives and who dies their dynamic Victor and Angela is relatable and I could latch on to it right away Victor is an atheist who has turned his back on his faith that he was raised up on due to a lot of the trauma in his Life, but slowly he begins to believe hence the title of course Angela's friend Catherine and her family are very religious They are certain demons have overtaken them when they return from the woods The mother actually again is part of the exposition dumping problems I do not like and after Catherine goes missing her parents aren't really showcasing the best light But we also don't learn enough about Catherine or her family for me to start investing in them So you have an issue on your hands because you're wanting me to invest in these girls But one half of the girls are only worth investing in two-thirds of the parents are either Unlikable at times or they're just not very well developed and that's an issue because they're at the center of this conflict I should be able to invest in both parties in order for me to completely just be sucked in by the story So you dropped the ball there These are just some of the writing issues that again exist in believer other issues for the screenplay come in the form of its overcrowded roster of characters and Dow's character who was a nurse that almost became a nun until she became pregnant and had an abortion is Easily the third most lackable character. She starts off as what appears to be a caring type of joke But becomes one of the most lovable characters in the film Still her and the other makeshift group makeshift group of savers that come in to save the day during the third act But are really useless They're dead weight when they're on screen together, you know nothing about them So it's hard to really invest in them or what their efforts are in the third act The priest is useless and he spends a lot of his time in the car praying after the church informs him Psychiatrists are better suited for this matter with Angela and Catherine But why would the church who believes in supernatural phenomenon? Think psychiatry would be better suited for demonic activity. It's an odd writing choice Then this dude the priest has some semi heroic moment where he seems to have come to his senses and he starts Performing an exorcism on the girls, but he just has his neck snapped. So it's like oh, so you should have stayed in the car After all then guess who this film will actually want you to think is useful Chris McNeil a woman who makes it known that despite 50 years of becoming an expert according her and writing a book She still has performed an exorcism and yet believe her didn't waste any time making Chris's inclusion the most Pointless thing ever her decisions as an expert are laughable and nonsensical You're supposed to sell me on an angle of Chris being an expert because that's how you introduced her Then you stomp on it and continue to stomp on her inclusion further proving that she shouldn't have been here to begin with so This woman Chris walks right up into a room where Catherine is for no reason besides coming into her house and finding her parents in the corner Crying and doubting their faith I would assume goes right upstairs Proceeds to perform what I guess is her version of an exorcism and then allows herself to be fooled into thinking that Catherine is Deeming free a foolish choice since her eyes are stabbed out for her efforts by a crucifix when Chris again does the most stupidest things you could think of Chris then spends the rest of the film in a hospital up until Reagan visits her at the very end of the film and while she's in the hospital She's having these Jamie Lloyd like Halloween five episodes and it's like what is going on here The screenplay knows its own makeshift group of saviors and Chris McNeil are useless because none of them make a difference when It matters most Catherine eventually dies at the end of this film after her parents eventually Foolishly choose her when the demon decides it's time to head out I guess because none of them were useful in any sort of way So the demon actually leaves on its own it gives the parents an ultimatum and Victor decides not to choose his daughter Because he learned his lesson the last time he was tricked so this ends up saving Angela Killing Catherine and brings a full circle moment to that blessing that Angela had back in Haiti Again the scares in this film absolutely terrible There's almost no tension no atmosphere and for me what really kills this movie is how the mystery is severely lacking When you are showing me how these girls got possessed rather than leaving it as a mystery or at least giving me nuggets to draw conclusions from The acting though phenomenal pacing hit or miss some moments drag on better Some moments drag on other moments like the first act and bits of the third act very enticing The the grotesque imagery I would say are some of the best Effective moments of terror in the film with nails falling off to be more specific the score I thought was fantastic and doubt Leslie Odom Jr And the girls that played Angela and Catherine all did a phenomenal job in their roles And that's really the highlight of the film when it came down to the writing department that angle between Angela and Victor that's how well written I thought that aspect was everything else or a lot of the other chunks of that screenplay terrible I still would give the exes believer a six out of ten Let me know what you guys think about this down in the comment section below if having a record make sure you subscribe turn on post Notification in the video in the description. I have links on my social media accounts I'm on Facebook Twitter and Instagram you can message me there of course Let me move these news reviews I'm gonna cover in the future and with all that in mind guys I will see you in the next video