Bonehead-XL In the year 2000, "The Exorcist" was released to theaters in an extended cut, advertised as "The Version You've Never Seen." This was mostly a stunt but it successfully introduced one of the best horror films of all time to a new audience. The same year, I recall seeing advertisements for a Showtime TV movie called "Possessed," based off the "true events" that inspired "The Exorcist." Yes, this was a movie based on a reportedly true story that inspired a better known movie. For some reason, the movie always stuck in the back of mind. I seem to remember some decent reviews at the time. For years, I assumed it was a better-then-average TV movie. Finally seeing the movie now, I can see that isn't true. "Possessed" is a cheesy, melodramatic made-for-television schlock-fest.In the early 1950s, a little boy named Robbie begins to act erratically. He's using profanity and misbehaving at school. Bloody gashes and cuts appear on his body. Most alarmingly, he gains the ability to move things with his mind. The boys' parents don't know what to do, quickly turning to the local Catholic church. A troubled priest named William Bowden, and his student Raymond McBride, becomes involved. Bowden quickly begins to believe that the boy is genuinely possessed by a demon. He asks for an exorcism. Though the local bishop is reluctant to approve the ritual, he eventually gives them the go-ahead as long as it stay secret."Possessed" is simply not a very good horror movie. It's attempts to scare are obvious, ham-fisted, and poorly constructed. When Robbie first begins to display unusual behavior, he telekinetically slides his desk around his class room. The effect is hokey and overdone, generating laughter instead of chills. Later, he spins a chair in his living room around on its leg. This, too, is ridiculous looking and badly constructed. "Possessed" goes for the hackiest horror clichés. The little boy has a creepy ventriloquist dummy. The story is set during Halloween. The final exorcism takes place on a dark and stormy night. The actor playing Robbie is a freckled, beady-eyed redhead, which does not make for the most convincing scares. When the time comes for the demon to make itself known, "Possessed" limply recreates the famous things "The Exorcist" did. The boy yells profanity – not even very shocking profanity – in a cheesy demon voice. He spits and vomits. Worst yet is when he makes his bed hovers or produces a giant cross out of nothing. The melodramatic score, full of stock horror shocks, does not help matters.Starring in "Possessed" is Timothy Dalton. Dalton, the most underrated of James Bonds, plays Father Bowden. Bowden is haunted by his time in World War II when a dying soldiers on the battle field asks for his last rites and the priest ran and hid instead. The bayonet wound on his side is frequently referenced and, in the film's most overdone moments, it causes a lingering pain. Dalton gives the part his all, forcing as much of his natural charm in the rickety material as possible. It's no hope though. The character's drinking habit is the hoariest of clichés as is his struggle with his own faith. When the film calls on Dalton to directly threaten the demon, he seems to be playing it for humor. He actually tells the devil to "buckle up. It's going to be a bumpy night." Dalton appearing in schlock like this is sadly understandable but how the heck did they get Christopher Plummer to drop in on this? All his scenes were probably shot in a day but, even then, surely he had something better to do. For that matter, even Piper Laurie is above the material, during her even briefer cameo."Possessed" does an okay job of establishing its setting. The kid's watch "Duck and Cover" in class. Radios are everywhere. Milton Berle is referenced. Robbie reads Superman and horror comics. However, most of the film's attempts to appear timely do not succeed. Early on, Bowden attempts to break up a fight between black protesters and the racist mob attacking him. References to Hitler and World War II are sprinkled through. (The most embarrassing moment is when the possessed Robbie pretends to be an MC in hell, introducing the Fuher to the priests.) These attempts to root the movie in a specific time are heavy-handed and cheesy.Director Steven E. de Souza previously made "Street Fighter," a movie that gets a little more leeway with me then anyone else. Maybe de Souza should have stuck with Van Damme. By blatantly inviting comparison to a cinematic masterpiece like "The Exorcsit," "Possessed" was setting itself up for failure. By filling its run time with the corniest of dime store horrors, it sets itself up for unintentional laughter.

sligocait I buck the tide of negative opinions of this film. It is not as salacious as "The Exorcist", which was written based on this true incident from 1949 mid-west America, and because we've become so used to vivid violence in movies, perhaps this movie suffers for not making up the details or punching them up to be more shocking to viewers. At any rate, I found it to contain an excellent performance by Timothy Dalton in particular and by the entire cast in general. Casting a red-headed, freckled boy caused at least one reviewer to mock the choice for the possessed child, but I remind everyone that Linda Blair was a cute, sugary-sweet child in "The Exorcist" as well, so I don't agree that this boy was a bad choice. Something really happened to a young adolescent boy in 1949 that was seen by and chronicled by many; it's amazing to me that his true identity hasn't slipped out after 60 years, but how do we know that he was NOT a red-haired, freckled child? I found the movie to be interesting and believable. No, it is not the most graphic horror film I've ever seen but it doesn't have to be. All it needs to do is to tell it like it really was, not how some writer imagines it, and I think that it succeeded very well in that way.

Cristi_Ciopron The action is set in the "duck and cover" epoch.All fear the "atomic attack".Bill Bowdern teaches at the Faculty of Theology,at "SLU";he was in the war and has his subsequent traumas;he drinks a little,knows much about comics and football.Bowdern defends the faith by fighting racism and gets arrested after punching a policeman.He's not afraid to use some bad language.One day,Bowdern is shown a house of the Alexian Brothers,as a terminus for the misfits.Robbie,eleven years old,is interested mainly in comics and tricks.He learns to be a ventriloquist.One day,at school,objects begin to move themselves by the boy;Robbie becomes morose,violent.He is seen by Rev. Roland Eckhardt ("a man of reason,a man of science,and a man of God",as he defines himself),who takes Robbie at his home and nearly gets killed by the boy.At first,Fr. Bowdern considers Robbie's "abnormal behavior" as "a lot of hearsay","mass hysteria".Then,he is asked to investigate the case.He does some research,finds out about Surin (as a Jesuit professor,he should have known already about Father Surin,at least as much as he knew about Lois Lane,I think).This movie is not frightful,lugubrious,scary,nor creepy,etc.;it seldom tries to be so,and in a naive,clumsy and conventional way.As a matter of fact,it bases upon facts,not upon fantasy.It tries to suggest the sinister,the horrible violence,the horrid,the fearful of the situation,by means of the reactions of those implied (W. Bowdern,Phyllis,etc.).I think it refuses to resort to cheap means in order to scare.The best actors of the show are Timothy Dalton,Shannon Lawson,Czerny and Christopher Plummer.Dalton utters sonorously,plainly,in his affected and theatrical way.W. Bowdern has a rough line:"Too many jackasses have made our decisions".On a TV in this movie we see a bit of a Bp. Sheen show ("higher than Milton Berle").

cobramaster12000 Well what can I tell you. When the boy starts to act like a talk show host..HILARIOUS!!! The cussing....well i don't like demonic possession movies with cussing. I like demonic possession movies that show physical strength of the supernatural like the classic THE EXORCIST. And in my opinion THE EXORCIST's sister THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE. Those films were great films. I loved them!!! But this was a disappointment. Wasn't scary...the demons voice was rather weird. One of the things i found cool was when he says "There is no single name. I am Legion. We are many." That was cool. When he say's his name in Latin...that was OK. It wasn't the best movie i have seen. THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE was awesome. THE EXORCIST was cool. But this is just a plain embarrassment to a modern day Hollywood horror movie. I think if you make an exorcism movie it should be as scary as THE EXORCIST and as intense as THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE. And by intense i don't mean cussing or anything like that. They could have done better than this. I know they could have.-Sorry for the horrible review but i want a decent horror movie. Not this load of crap.