In Italy, a woman visits religious experts, exorcists, and psychiatrists to understand the real difference between possession and mental illness while trying to discover what happened to her mother (now in a mental hospital), who allegedly murdered three people during her own exorcism.
“The Devil Inside” follows a woman Isabella who is documenting her journey from the United States to Italy where she and filmmaker Michael are trying to find out the real condition of her mother Maria Rossi who killed three people twenty years ago.
The film starts with a 9-1-1 call received from Maria where she confessed to committing three murders. The court however declared her insane and sent her to a mental hospital in Italy. The investigation found that Maria killed three clergymen who tried to perform an exorcism on her.
Isabelle, with no definite notion of the presence of evil, travels to Italy and meets a few priests who suggested her mother’s condition to be of some evil possession. They even asked her to witness a real exorcism to be able to distinguish between mental illness and possession.
“The Devil Inside” has some really very good scenes (even though there is not enough screaming moments) that flow with the story and most of the time the film stays with the core subject line.
The performance is decent to add value to the story which is designed as a docudrama. Suzan Crowley is amazing in the role of a possessed mother but the guy with the camera was certainly annoying and seems not interested in whatever happening on screen.
Most of the time, without any real reference, it’s difficult to pull off a documentary or found-footage-style film. Here director William Brent Bell has done a great job in bringing elements of uncertainty as well as drama and emotions to play.
Being a fan of horror movies and independent films, I don’t see any reason to be critical of “The Devil Inside”. I realize and wish to enjoy the film, from the moment when it starts with that 9-1-1 call and that pretty much sets the tone. Moreover, the mother-daughter interaction in the mental hospital as well as the exorcism attempt inside the hospital is very captivating.
“The Devil Inside” movie story also shows the idea of a multiple-demonic possession, and demonic transference, and was almost engaging throughout with some intelligent twists in the tale, until it ended abruptly with a note that the facts surrounding the Rossie Case remain unresolved. This is indeed a very disappointing ending.
“The Devil Inside” – Watch the Movie Trailer
Director: William Brent Bell
Starring: Fernanda Andrade, Simon Quarterman, Evan Helmuth
Genre: Horror
Release Date: January 6, 2012
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