User reviews

It's not a natural state for human beings to view the world in constant shaking, zooming in and odd angles - this felt like I was watching the world from a boat on waves. It really lets everything else down, and what could have been a great horror, becomes a motion sickness misadventure.

The atmosphere is great, leading actors are of course a stellar choice and the plot is (although been done a thousand times), solid. If you can get past whatever on earth the director was thinking giving the cameraman orders to 'shake like you're filming this on drugs' - it's not too bad. Last sentence: IMBD can you stop this ridiculous minimum character count.

As I'm almost 30 minutes into this movie, I'd like to say that I probably won't get through it. Not because it's too scary, but the cameraman is obviously crapping him/herself. The shaky shots are doing me 'ed in as they say. Plus Pacino is sleep walking through it too.

Ok. Longer review required. So I'll watch a bit more.

Every bloody angle is skewed. Is that supposed to add something? Every scene is plagued by the notion that this somehow makes the viewing experience more "authentic". Yeah really. I was an alter boy once upon a time and since then I've always wanted to ask someone, anyone, when was the last miracle amongst the faithful. Maybe the fact checkers are a more scary prospect. Peace.

Here we are again-another film about demonic possession, another "based on a true story" tagline, another exorcism. But The Ritual, which dramatizes the infamous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt, had something more in its grasp: a chilling historical case, a legendary priest, and the potential to stand out in a saturated subgenre. Unfortunately, while the bones of a compelling and terrifying film are here, the execution undercuts itself at nearly every turn.

The source material is potent. The real-life exorcism of Emma Schmidt is one of the most detailed and disturbing accounts in American history. But while the story had me hooked, the mockumentary-style camerawork took me right out of it. It's a baffling creative choice that feels like it belongs in an entirely different film. We're not watching a found-footage horror film here, but the cinematography seems to think we are. Jarring close-ups, erratic shaky cam, and a lack of visual clarity not only disrupt the pacing, they often hide the horror instead of revealing it.

Pacino, even in his late career, still commands the screen. His Father Riesinger is a worn man with a quiet intensity, bringing grit to the role. Dan Stevens matches his performance, injecting skepticism and emotional weight into a character. Abigail Cowen gives a physically demanding and emotionally performance as Emma. She doesn't overplay the possession, instead grounding it in fear, confusion, and exhaustion. Her portrayal makes you believe she's both victim and battlefield.

The Ritual isn't without merit. The performances are strong, the story is there, and there are moments that hint at something deeper and more terrifying. But the disjointed visual style does it no favors. It's a film that constantly reminded me of what it could have been something chilling, thought provoking, and unforgettable. Instead, it's a promising exorcism tale that exorcises itself of its own potential.

I know the reviews aren't great but I like Pacino and Dan Stevens, plus I'm usually overly forgiving with these type of movies, so I would have got some enjoyment from it.

I said would have because I couldn't get very far into it.

The reason was the camera which was so distracting. It was shaking with random zooms and unnecessary camera angles. I don't think I've experienced anything like this before, and hopefully nobody will attempt it ever again.

Baffling choice for such a movie. I guess if the director didn't want anyone to focus on his movie for a split second, then mission accomplished.

In a world where two or three exorcism movies are being released each year, you have to do something special to make your mark. Unfortunately, The Ritual is about as bland as you can get from an exorcism movie.

It's first issue is that it commits the cardinal sin of not being remotely scary or creepy. Partly this is because everything it is doing has been done to death, and has been done better in other films. Partly it is because it doesn't even seem to try too hard to cultivate a spooky atmosphere. The whole tone and look of the film is just dull.

The performances are OK, but nothing special. Al Pacino is wasted in a pretty formulaic role, and Dan Stevens does his best to put meat on the sparse bones of a beleaguered priest tasked with hosting the exorcism. It is a wonder how such a good cast was assembled for such a poor film.

Ultimately though, I do think this film falls apart with its story. It is just so formulaic and derivative of the exorcism genre. I knew every single story beat that was going to happen before it did. Nothing here is remotely new. I think they rested on their laurels due to the fact it was based on a real story, but that doesn't make it any better. The whole thing just lacked any real theatricality or spark.

Of all the exorcism films that I've seen in recent years, this is most definitely one of the least inspiring. One to avoid.

There is absolutely nothing interesting about this movie. There is the setup and then everything after that is just the same old same old growling voice theatrics of every other exorcism movie since the exorcism movie to start the whole exorcism movie craze, William Peter Blatty and William Friedkin's The Exorcist.

Now, this movie on the other hand was run through a highly technical process called "tension extraction" to remove any trace of dramatic variance. It's just dull. All the characters are one dimensional.

The plot is threadbare if not simply cut and paste. No, truly.

Someone pitched it this way: "Think The Exorcist but involving a young woman being helped by an old priest with an accent and a young priest with doubts." And someone else said, "So.....The Exorcist." And the first person said, "No one remembers that. We'll throw in the mom from Everybody Loves Raymond. They'll remember her. And we'll call it The Ritual." And the second person says, "But there was a really good folk horror movie just a few years ago called that." And the first person says "Perfect. People will have forgotten what that was about and think this is the latest quick reboot and hand over their money like the dolts they are. Get me the oldest actor on the planet to play the one priest. Is the guy from Cruising still alive?"

And within the next four minutes a script was finished by a malfunctioning AI, Pacino's agent told the studio where to park the truckload of money, and the film wrapped production so fast Roger Corman's corpse tripped a California seismograph rolling so hard over in his grave.

This piece of garbage movie is everything that is wrong with everything in the world. There is no thought put into anything anymore. It is all about rushing out rehashed tripe to take cash from the masses.

I thought that Russell Crowe had cornered the market in crappy exorcism films, but The Ritual proves me wrong: anything Crowe can do, Al Pacino can do just as bad, if not worse: Al's lackluster performance as elderly Father Theophilus Riesinger is a career low. Not that Pacino is all to blame for this tired and predictable possession flick: David Midell's direction is atrocious, with horrible, wobbly, reportage-style camerawork making the film a strain on the eyes, while his script is a messy hodge-podge of well-worn clichés that have been done to death ever since Regan first spewed up pea soup over 50 years ago.

In The Exorcist, it was easy for the viewer to feel empathy for the little girl who unwillingly played host to Pazuzu, since director William Friedkin was mindful to introduce us to her before the demon took hold. The fact that Linda Blair was so loveable and cherubic before becoming a foul-mouthed, head-turning beast with a crucifix up her snatch made her transformation all the more horrific. Not so with The Ritual, which immediately jumps into the deep end, poor possessed Emma writhing and drooling uncontrollably from the get go. We know very little about the woman, which makes it very hard for the viewer to care about what is happening to her. The only reason I was keen to see the demon driven from her body was that the film would finally be over.

Sadly, it takes several tedious rituals to achieve the desired result, none of which deliver anything we haven't seen many times before: we get some vomiting, guttural swearing, and levitation, with observer Father Joseph Steiger (Dan Stevens) struggling with his faith a la Damien Karras. One might imagine that the best would have been saved for last, but the final ritual, in which the priests successfully exorcise the demon, is a damp squib: it's loud and chaotic, but there's nothing shocking, and it's over before you can say Captain Howdy, everybody living happily ever after (as the film's closing captions inform us).

I rate The Ritual 1/10: it's formulaic, boring, unimaginative and utterly banal garbage. Those of us stupid enough to stay to the end exited the theatre in a hurry.

Many of the negative reviews have clearly missed the point of this movie. It's subtextual goal was not to instill fear, but to showcase a reality--the reality of the spiritual world and the warfare thereof. Sure, there are cinematic embellishments, and indeed, the shaky camera style was NOT the move for this type of movie. I believe a majority of still shots would've given this movie more grounding, focus, and realism.

HOWEVER, the message is genuine, and real. I think what people disliked so much was how the movie portrayed genuine people of faith, both weak and strong, acting in this scenario. The prayers, the passion, the fear, the confusion, the sin, the repentance, and the love was all there. It wasn't overdone, or corny, but transparent.

This movie merely attempts to showcase both the reality of evil and the reality of the Church's fight against it, to include the Church's imperfections in her members.

Exorcisms, or any extraordinary demonic activity in real life does not have the dramatic lighting, or the shaky camera, or the acting. And the faithful of the Church fight that evil foremost with faith, hope, love, and prayer. This movie is about that.

It's not meant to be a new and novel installment in the horror genre. It's meant to convey a reality that stays true to how Emma's ACTUAL exorcism went and those involved as attested to by Father Joseph Stieger.

I think people disliked this movie so much not because of its questionable camera work, but because it's about true faith. It actually exposes the nonglamorous and disparaging nature of a human being who's succumbed and enraptured by the diabolical. It's not cool, it's not pretty, it's not a spectacle, it's a human soul being tormented who's in need of compassion and love, and of course the prayers of the Church, to deliver them.

This movie dared an attempt at being theologically sound regarding demonology and spiritual warfare, and that's not what the masses want. They want a contrived fantastical story full of shock, adrenaline, and spookiness, but not reality.

So, sorry this account of genuine Christian faith in the light of evil didn't tickle your horror itch, but perhaps it could enlighten in you some sort of sense to the reality of primary evil, and therefore the realization of the Light which overcomes it.

Coming out of the cinema me and my friends couldnt believe we just watched a movie that really wasnt showing us anything at all. Where do i even begin? Bad acting (with 1-2 mini exceptions), THE CAMERA SHAKING ALL THE TIME FOR SOME REASON AND WE WOULDNT SEE CLEAR THINGS IN FRONT OF US, the script mustve been two pages long because noone said much things except of the psalms, the movie worked in silence for too long without showing you anything in the action. Felt like there was no order and not anything exiting happened. No jumpscares in a horror movie... Felt like a loop repeating being boring.

Why are the reviews so bad? I almost skipped it because the low ratings...it's actually good for a possession/haunted house movie...it has zero jokes, no corny people trying to be funny, and actually has scary scenes...seeing close up shots of the shock and fear on the sister's and priests faces are frightening!! It makes you feel grateful to not be in these situations, the scariest scenes happened towards the Iast 30 minutes...Bring her back was still way better, but this was a decent scary film...If you want to see a possession film, GO SEE THIS...I know bad scary movies, this wasn't bad, It just didn't have those usual jokes and typical dialog you are used to...it's actually for adults and for people that don't like Horror comedies...

Fundamentally, this is a movie about Christian faith and a corresponding belief in certain tenets of that religion which allows a level of disbelief to be suspended with regard to an arcane ceremony held in response to supernatural events. That is to say that the film takes demonic possession and the exorcism of such malign spirits seriously as real-world phenomena.

That said, I think that most of the reviews here misunderstand the production which 1. Is based on a case which inspired Friedkin's The Exorcist movie famously made in the early 1970s, and 2. Roots the portrayal of this historical case entirely within a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical context so placing it contrast to the fictionalisation performed by the Friedkin picture.

Its benefits are therefore both its historical context and its position within film history, alongside some solid performances and, I would underline, the insistence that demonic possession is linked to witchcraft and occult practice. Just by itself, the last point is a valuable contribution to secular culture.

Nonetheless, the film is overall of most interest to those seeking a real-life and faith-based context to such extraordinary cases.

The Ritual (2025) is an exorcism horror movie that is based on a true story and it is another generic ass exorcism horror movie.

Positives for The Ritual (2025): Dan Stevens and Al Pacino are giving their best with their performances. And finally, the movie is short at only 98 minutes.

Negatives for The Ritual (2025): This is another exorcism horror movie that you've seen a million times before and it plays out the same way as those other movies. There is nothing new about this one that others have done before and have done better. The side characters are boring and forgettable. The woman who is in need of an exorcism is every victim from those other exorcism movies and she acts the same way. And finally, the exorcism scene is so lame and underwhelming.

Overall, The Ritual (2025) is just as bad as every other exorcism horror movie that has been made and it will immediately fall into obscurity after you have watched it.

The film is about satanic rituals. We can say it's based on cliché themes. A young girl gets possessed by a demon. There are two priests in the film. These priests try to save the girl from this situation by performing satanic rituals. And the whole film goes on like this... From a technical point of view, the first thing that caught my attention was the camera movements. There were a lot of unnecessary camera moves. I guess the camera was constantly moved to add some action. Even in a random scene, the camera moves in a strange way, it shakes. We saw unnecessary zooms. This was disturbing.

Let's move on to the second point. The script was a total fiasco. Maybe the story could have been expanded, the background of the female character could have been explored. The script felt very incomplete, and the events were presented to the audience in a very narrow way. There's almost no depth in the screenplay.

The theme of suspense was kept in the foreground, while horror was pushed to the background. They say it's based on true events. Maybe that's why they avoided exaggeration, I don't know. This looks like a horror movie, but it's not. Actually, it's not even suspense. It creates tension in a few moments but doesn't lead to anything. It's not what you expect. For me, it was a disappointment...

Man, I haven't seen a horror exorcism movie this atrocious since The Devil Inside.

Sloppy, boring and poorly executed, The Ritual is basically the worst aspects about modern horror. Filled with cliche horror tropes, uninteresting characters, poorly executed scares and thrills, and terrible writing that offers no scares nor tension to be built towards. It practically swallows a concept that has been done to death for the past years of horror movies and providing with bad dialogue and laughable performances. Al Pacino and Dan Stevens are actors I like but their performances are lackluster and poor. Especially Pacino's.

The production is cheap, the pacing is awful, and the sound designs are messy. The camerawork is atrocious because it feels like a horror movie trying to capture the vibe like The Office. Which I understand if it's trying to be a creative choice but this felt so unnecessary. Alongside with some awful make-up and very very cheap direction choices.

Just pure awfulness.

Here's a film with quite a dilemma. An exorcism story with little to no characterization, and no imagination. If the director was going for a more realistic approach, he failed.

This film performs almost every trick in the exorcism movie book and nothing more. It's quite a shame too. The direction is adept and offers some tension. The pacing is proper for this kind of storyline. The acting is pretty good. I've seen better, but I've also seen a lot worse. The setting is appropriately creepy and atmospheric.

The problem is it does little to tell us anything about it's characters and it strictly sticks with the exorcism. I felt like I learned nothing about this supposed "true story" throughout the runtime except how the rituals are performed. I believe that is where the critics and the audience are having a problem connecting with the film. It was just boring and uninspired.

Overall, I'd say it can wait until streaming. It won't be long before it gets there as nobody is rushing to the theaters to see this one. I was one of two people at my showing, and I completely understand why.

1.5 priests out of 5.

I'm guessing that Russell Crowe was busy for this latest exercise in priestly exorcism so an hardly recognisable Al Pacino decided to have a go. He is a Capetian father drafted in to help the reluctant Fr. Joseph (Dan Stevens) with a particularly difficult task. Fr. Theophilus must help rid the poor young Emma (Abigail Cowen) of an unwanted bodily guest. His methods do not impress the rather naive young father, nor the sisters in attendance as she increasingly resorts to involuntary bleeding, foul language, violent outbursts and even the usual hanging upside down from the ceiling lamp trick whilst under relentless assault from the repetitious bible verses being read across what I counted are at least seven of those ritual attempts at expulsion. Sound familiar? Well that's because it is. Aside from Pacino turning in a slightly different style of performance from his norm, the rest of this hasn't an original bone in it's body. Indeed, its only claim to fame appears to be that it is based on the original, almost century old, transcriptions from Fr. Joseph of events that are really supposed to have happened but we've seen this all predictably play out so many times before that even the traditional collapsible bed doesn't turn an head - spiritual or metaphysically. The one element that does provoke a little interest is, perhaps, the clear indication that Catholicism in the 1920s was riddled with incantations, superstitions and a degree of symbolism that probably hadn't changed since much since there was a Borgia on the throne of St. Peter. This might work on the telly at Halloween of you're full of Grappa, but as a cinema experience it is disappointing and entirely forgettable, sorry.

In 1928-based true-tale "The Ritual" priests Dan Stevens & Al Pacino (supported by nuns like Patricia Heaton & Ashley Greene) perform a three-week+ exorcism on Abigail Cowen (excellent). That exorcism though is basically just a repetition of rituals with similar outcomes (including everyone but Pacino getting deeply disturbed (and often injured)) and there's no real exploration of whether Cowen is actually mentally ill rather than possessed (it's mentioned - but dismissively). With solid performances and stylish direction (from writer David Midell) it is superior to most recent exorcist flicks (like the abysmal "The Pope's Exorcist")... but it still ain't too good.

The Ritual (2025): Al Pacino has previously played the Devil so it's refreshing to see him bat for the opposing team in The Ritual where he is cast as Exorcist Father Theophilus Riesinger, an elderly Capuchin priest. The film is set in 1928, another priest, Fr Joseph Steiger (Dan Stevens) is prevailed upon to assist in the exorcism in his parish at a convent of Franciscan Sisters. Steiger and the nuns will assist in the exorcism. The possessed woman, Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowen), isn't the only disturbed spirit about, Riesinger and Steiger clash over methods to be used, Steiger being a man of science, seeks a medical explanation. Very much an Exorcism Procedural where the various Rituals are gone through in correct order. Some convincing scenes of horror with Poltergeist effects. Nuns bitten, bashed and half-scalped by Emma, Also levitation and Emma knowing more than she should. She even licks Steiger's arm and suggests that he has the hots for Sister Rose (Ashley Greene). Interestingly it is filmed through a dark filter where every scene is in a permanent state of twilight. A few plot twists and information being withheld by a protagonist influences the unfolding of the narrative. Nothing really new here, not a great Exorcist film but not a bad one either. Based on a true story. Directed by David Midell, Written by Midell and Enrico Natale. 6.5/10.

There's nothing interesting about the story, no good plots, nothing to emotionally involve the audience. Everything is just predictable. And the camera work constantly makes you want to look away from the screen. In all honesty, this movie just made me sad, cause of the absolute waste of a good cast. What has happened to cinema that legends like Al Pacino have to take part in low quality movies like this.

In conclusion, this movie is basically a collage of the most common and predictable parts of every exorcism movie you've ever seen. And is made in a way that makes it feel like a YouTube documentary video.

This movie deserves a much higher rating. It offers a thoughtful and compassionate portrayal of an extraordinary exorcism. Faith is tested, falters, and is ultimately renewed through the Holy Spirit.

The acting is outstanding; Pacino delivers a wonderfully restrained performance, and the rest of the cast does an excellent job.

The music is superb, and every aspect of the production is well-executed. The direction is sharp, and I honestly don't understand the criticism this film has received.

Perhaps the disappointment comes from the fact that this is less of a traditional horror film and more of an effort to retell a true story, though it does incorporate some classic horror elements.

I really liked this movie because it uses, the traditional methods of horror, which is reminiscent of, 70s/80s horror vibes, Amityville Horror etc, it doesn't bore you with special effects, and it's not stuffed full of obvious Jump scares, if you like horror, and the possession movie vibe, then this is a strong, entertaining contender. There is also a strong cast with, Al Pacino, Dan Stevens, and Patricia Heaton, not obvious choices for a horror movie, but they all do it justice. More Horror movie makers need to go back to this traditional way of telling, horror stories, because unlike some modern possession stories ive seen,which take so long to take off, that the movie has finished, without you even flinching or feeling suspense, this one more or less jumps right into the good stuff.

Hii, în the moment i write this review i watch the movie. The truth is the most disappointing aspect is not the plot neither the actors, all of the are great , but my review is about filming it's about the stabilisation of the camera always moving not a static or stabilisation scene the cameraman always up and down right and left it s about i get dizzy and hard to watch making me feel uncomfortable to watch i feel is not professional and lack of experience and tehnologi , the edit is good nothing to talk about the actors good plot pretty much lik others ( somehow) good but the lack of filming making me har to watch and the dizziness that I feel I rate it 1 star with alot of disappointing in heart just for the great actors that acting in the movie.

The movie is not slow passed, it's just that nothing happens. There is barely any action, no character development. The jump scares break the monotony but even them seem outside of the main plot and feel like they could have been left out all together. Al Pacino's performance is the only thing this movie has going for it.

The parish priest seems there to fil in a spot so the movie can claim to be based on a real story. His only contribution feels squeezed in at the end so he can justify his place in the movie.

This middle ground between horror fiction and real story is hard to tread and the movie has failed to do so. I went in expecting more psychological horror rather then jump scares given the "real story" part and might have been a better direction for this movie.

The most boring and lame exorcism movie ever made. They must have paid Al Pacino double the going rate to be in this one.

Somehow even the Exorcist reboot from 2023 is much better than this and that movie is one of the worst.

Every minute was cliche and boring, every single scene was predictable before it happened, and there wasn't a single surprise throughout the entire 90 minutes.

The problem with making a movie and trying to lie about it by saying its "based on true events" is that for it to be based on true events it would need to be a documentary with realistic events that actually looks believable and therefore scary. You can't make the cheesiest, lamest, most unrealistic, uninteresting, contrived movie ever made and then claim its based on real events. It clearly was not because its pure cheese.