31 Days of Horror: Deliver Us from Evil (2014)
Day 12 of 31 Days of Horror is another possession film.
For the 12th day in the 31 Days of Horror, I went with another possession film. This time, I watched the 2014 film Deliver Us from Evil. The film is directed by Scott Derrickson, who directed The Black Phone (2021), Sinister (2012), and Doctor Strange (2016).
Deliver Us from Evil stars Eric Bana as Ralph Sarchie, a New York police officer, and Edgar Ramirez as Father Mendoza. The film also stars Joel McHale as Sarchie’s partner and Olivia Munn as Sarchie’s wife.
Officer Sarchie gets involved in a series of crimes that leads to the discovery of demons possessing three marines that were dishonorably discharged. Sarchie and Father Mendoza combine forces to thwart the demonic evils that are terrorizing New York City.
Now, I didn’t know much about the film when I started watching it. I chose it because it was a film directed by Derrickson. I loved The Black Phone, Sinister, and Doctor Strange so I figured that this film would be pretty good.
And I wasn’t disappointed. Deliver Us from Evil is very creepy. There are moments that are intense, moments that will make you cringe, and moments that will send shivers up your spine.
One of the flaws with many possession films is that the battle at the climax is typically between the exorcist and the demon. Those types of battles are mainly spiritual and don’t do well on film. The way Derrickson portrays the battle between Sarchie and Mendoza verse the final demon is a good one and keeps the audience entertained.
One of the interesting things about this film is the writers. IMDb lists three writers including Scott Derrickson, Paul Harris Boardman, and Ralph Sarchie. Yes, you read that correctly. One of the writers is named the same as the main character. According to IMDb’s bio, Ralph Sarchie is retired from the New York City Police Department. He and Lisa Collier Cool co-wrote an autobiographical book entitled “Beware the Night”. The book details his encounters and experiences with the supernatural. It’s also the inspiration for the film.
That sort of makes the film a bit scarier.
Ranking for 31 Days of Horror (1 being the best):
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