Deliver Us from Evil

A decent exorcist thriller that puts its money on a realistic environment. No shortage of surprises - and they work pretty well, even though nothing absolutely amazing and, if it wasn’t for the fairly standard story, I would definitely give it four stars. The clash in the finale was intense, thrilling and breathtaking. Derrickson has a talent at creating a great atmosphere, Dr. Strange is in good hands. (29/10/2014)

Derrickson's film overall works well and it's clear that he is capable of storytelling, having good moments in it and eventually building it up. If the part with the wife and daughter were cut out, the overall tone of the film wouldn't change and it might even be a bit more dynamic and suspenseful. The gore scenes are great and the exorcism itself is truly the climax. If it weren't for the constant feeling of repetition, I would give the film an even higher rating. (07/02/2015)

The elements of ghost horror movies set in an A-rated thriller a la Se7en – a tough cop with a flashlight finds his way through the darkness. The script is not exactly inventive, but the craftsmanship is perfect. Scott Derrickson knows what he’s doing. The main character is not a one-dimensional good guy; he has his own skeleton in the closet he has to deal with. The atypical priest becomes an important sidekick. The film is aided by its fast pace, the hellish make-up of the main bad guy (Sean Harris, who plays him, also deserves praise) and the instrumentally varied music by Christopher Young, which is monumental bordering on frightening. The slow start escalates into an intense horror experience. The use of music by The Doors is strange, but it gives the film a certain cool feel and individuality. “Vengeance always destroys the avenger.” (08/08/2014)

The only problem with Derrickson's film is that it presents exactly the type of horror that any experienced viewer is currently oversaturated with: ghosts, strange noises under the bed, a peculiar priest, exorcisms. This template is so tired that despite the director's enormous skill, which holds the viewer's attention throughout and searches for themes beyond all James Wan's ghost stories, the film doesn't have much chance to break through. Big plus points just for pushing an interesting detective storyline, for the music by The Doors, and for Eric Bana, who's still got it. But even that is not enough to satisfy me this time... 70% (25/10/2014)

One day, Catholic cop Sarchie got blind drunk and had a fit at the jukebox playing The Doors. And now there’s a humorous police crime buddy exorcist horror “inspired by true events" where, thanks to the width of the genre, you don’t get clichés you’ve seen a hundred times over from just one or two, but from three genres at once. So situations arise where separate clichés meet in clashing combinations and create something completely new, often bizarre or downright ridiculous, but always (however unintentionally) entertaining. If only it could decide what it wants to be, if it were shorter, if only it didn’t run off naively into ridiculous situations (welcome to the tomb with the twisting Morrison or the furry owl) if only the frights weren’t so cheap and pre-warned, if only Ramírez had at least a pinch of charisma, if only McHale weren’t Jeff from Community, if only this, if only that, this could have been good, very good. Unfortunately, there are too many “if only"s for one picture. (04/07/2014)