JP/12/POSSES

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Possessed (Horror/Drama, 95 minutes). Starring Timothy Dalton, Henry Czerny, Jonathan Malen, Christopher Plummer. Directed by Steven E. De Souza.

Set in 1950's St. Louis, the film tells the story of a seemingly ordinary 10-year-old boy named Robbie (Malen) who starts experiencing strange occurrences at his school and at home.

He begins to get into trouble since everybody, including his parents, Karl and Phyllis, think that he has been doing far too much to get attention.

They start to believe that Robbie has not been causing the disturbances when he talks in languages impossible for him to know and does unimaginable things for a boy of his age.

His parents then enlist help from two priests to perform an exorcism on him, but not before a fight with the bishops who think that religion should leave behind its seemingly superstitious image.

Claimed to be based on the only documented exorcism in America, the film is much better than any of the sequels to The Exorcist but never as gripping as the original.**1/2