Most of the tropes of The Exorcist apply. Girl possessed by huge and dangerous powers. Experts ( in form of a rogue academic psychologist) in attendance. Subject largely confined... Most of the tropes of the modern standard pertain as well; as with Blair Witch and Paranormal Activity, most of the action is caught by the main protagonists - in this case in the name of medical science (on cheap film stock - after the project is poo- pooed by the powers that be).
The date is 1974 and we are assured in the promotionals and at the beginning: "Inspired by real events". If we wait until the very last credit rolls, we discover that 'inspired by' is a very different thing to 'based upon'. It's all hokum - right down to the seventies styled snapshot at the end offering the very well constructed allusion to and illusion of - reality. But it is all hokum. Nobody else in Norwich Odeon's Cinema 4 on a Wednesday at 6 waited to see that re-assurance anyway. One lady was heard to mutter: "we'll Google it". The word 'simulacra' was invented by one messr Beaudrillard for just such occasions. The STYLE is more real than the substance. Consequently, the fear does not take us over. Even despite the continual (and therefore waning) contrast of up-close intimate sounds followed by crashing, loud bangs.. (yawn).
Essentially, we are already living in that signified and spoken of future world (Beaudrillard, Orwell etc..) where cinema-goers sit through 2.5 hours of faux reality documentary, in the name of entertainment, to have theircuriosity pricked to the point that them MIGHT decide to 'Google' some of the characters to see what the story was all about. Those who do will dicsover soon enough that is was, in fact all pretend... (phew).
Meantime, in the real world, somewhere in Nigeria, 200 school - girls have been stolen and taken into the jungle by an armed militia. Oh - you hadn't heard..... LOL!
The date is 1974 and we are assured in the promotionals and at the beginning: "Inspired by real events". If we wait until the very last credit rolls, we discover that 'inspired by' is a very different thing to 'based upon'. It's all hokum - right down to the seventies styled snapshot at the end offering the very well constructed allusion to and illusion of - reality. But it is all hokum. Nobody else in Norwich Odeon's Cinema 4 on a Wednesday at 6 waited to see that re-assurance anyway. One lady was heard to mutter: "we'll Google it". The word 'simulacra' was invented by one messr Beaudrillard for just such occasions. The STYLE is more real than the substance. Consequently, the fear does not take us over. Even despite the continual (and therefore waning) contrast of up-close intimate sounds followed by crashing, loud bangs.. (yawn).
Essentially, we are already living in that signified and spoken of future world (Beaudrillard, Orwell etc..) where cinema-goers sit through 2.5 hours of faux reality documentary, in the name of entertainment, to have theircuriosity pricked to the point that them MIGHT decide to 'Google' some of the characters to see what the story was all about. Those who do will dicsover soon enough that is was, in fact all pretend... (phew).
Meantime, in the real world, somewhere in Nigeria, 200 school - girls have been stolen and taken into the jungle by an armed militia. Oh - you hadn't heard..... LOL!
