The Exorcism of Saint Patrick

Right, well as I stumbled upon the 2024 movie "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick", I can't claim that I harbored any expectations to the movie when I sat down to watch it. Why? Well, because I've watched the other two movies, "Wolves Against the World" and "Dead Teenagers", in the series and from the same writer and director Quinn Armstrong and weren't the least bit impressed with neither of those movies. Yet, I still opted to watch "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick" on the off-chance that this movie would be better than the other two.

I have to say that the storyline in "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick" definitely was a major step up from the other two movies in the same series. So thumbs up to writer and director Quinn Armstrong for that accomplishment. It was a more interesting and well-told storyline this time around, and I was actually adequately entertained here.

The only performers on the cast list that I was familiar with were actor Jim Azelvandre and actress Maya Jeyam. It was odd, however, that actress Maya Jeyam starred in this movie, playing the role of Alana, as she also starred in "Dead Teenagers" where she played a different character named Jamie. The acting performances in "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick" were good.

If you have watched "Wolves Against the World" and/or "Dead Teenagers", then you definitely should watch "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick", because it makes up for the shortcomings of the other two movies.

Whereas this movie is listed as a horror movie, it was more of a psychological thriller laced with elements of horror. Not that it was a bad thing, but you just shouldn't have your sights set for a genuine horror movie.

My rating of writer and director Quinn Armstrong's 2024 movie "The Exorcism of Saint Patrick" lands on a five out of ten stars.

After arriving at a remote cabin, a priest starts to work on an extreme form of conversion therapy against a gay teen in his charge which soon goes wrong when the teen commits suicide, bringing his and several other ghosts who have been wronged by this treatment in the past back to haunt him.

Overall, this was a rather enjoyable effort. One of the finer features found here is the incredibly effective and worthwhile starting point that devolves nicely into a strong genre piece. Focusing heavily early on of a psychologically-unhinged relationship between the two alone out in the cabin where his tactics and treatment attempt to work out the sexual orientation the kid shares which provides this with more than enough justification and motivation for what's going on. The physical, emotional, and verbal abuse suffered at his hands which is all later shown to be approved by his parents due to their consent to everything all for the sake of his soul adds even more fuel to what's going on as everything takes place at the camp allows for a solid and engaging setup. After this point, the film does go for a rather formulaic ghost revenge effort that still builds nicely off what came before it. Since the build-up at the camp makes the events feel justified and warranted, the haunting scenes that come about here have quite a bit of impact with their justification coming from the previous treatment the son and numerous others have been subjected to as their karmic retribution has the appropriate work behind it. However, the action used to accomplish this is basic and extremely predictable, resulting in plenty of these scenes leaving a disappointing feeling with so many repetitive aspects coming into play with these scenes. It's not as detrimental as it sounds since the scenes are still fun with the karmic retribution attached but it does diminish the film.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.