Feature

The Rite

Anthony Hopkins plays a priest in Rome who specializes in extricating demons.

Directed by Mikael Hafstrom
(PG-13)

*

The young Irish actor who plays the protagonist in this goofy exorcism thriller is not the reason people might be tempted to see it, said Bill Goodykoontz in The Arizona Republic. The chance to see Anthony Hopkins “trot out his Hannibal Lecter act” is another matter, and the former Oscar winner doesn’t disappoint. Hopkins is always “fun to watch” when he’s over-the-top, and he’s “way over-the-top” here as a priest in Rome who specializes in extricating demons. But it eventually matters that the young seminarian he’s asked to mentor “barely registers on the screen,” said Michael Phillips in the Chicago Tribune. As a would-be priest of wavering faith, Colin O’Donoghue goes for “quietly troubled” but ends up hollowing out the story’s emotional center. “What did you expect? Spinning heads? Pea soup?” asks Hopkins after performing one fairly routine satanic expulsion. He’s right, said Andrew O’Hehir in Salon.com. No one expected The Rite to be The Exorcist. Even if it’s merely an odd blend of “slow-burning horror flick” and “Vatican recruitment video,” at least it’s “mostly a watchable one.”

Recommended

Pope Francis hospitalized with respiratory infection
Pope Francis.
get well soon

Pope Francis hospitalized with respiratory infection

Amsterdam launches campaign urging rowdy British men to 'stay away'
Amsterdam Red Light District
causing a nuisance

Amsterdam launches campaign urging rowdy British men to 'stay away'

Is the U.S. running out of ammunition?
Cargo of ammunition, weapons and other equipment bound for Ukraine waiting on a tarmac at Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware
Today's big question

Is the U.S. running out of ammunition?

France aspires to work by working less. Is it working?
Paris city center
In depth

France aspires to work by working less. Is it working?

Most Popular

How to watch 5 planets align in the night sky on Tuesday
Moon, Jupiter, Venus.
skyline

How to watch 5 planets align in the night sky on Tuesday

'Rewilding' animals could help combat climate change, study finds
Two gray wolves.
where the wild things are

'Rewilding' animals could help combat climate change, study finds

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is going to be a dad
Erin Darke and Daniel Radcliffe
harry potter and the dadly hallows

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is going to be a dad