THE RITUAL

Here's the short answer: if you're an adult who can handle a serious, prayerful horror film, this one is worth your time. THE RITUAL takes its 1928 exorcism story seriously, and it takes faith seriously too — priests pray the Lord's Prayer, read Scripture, and lean on the Church rather than gimmicks. Al Pacino and Dan Stevens both deliver strong performances, and the story is inspired by real notes from the priest who lived it.

It costs something to get there, though. The documentary-style shooting — shoulder-mounted camera, deliberately spotty focus — makes the film feel real, but also makes it harder to watch. A few character arcs, especially a nun's, never quite resolve, and some scenes exist only to spook you rather than to move the story forward. The content itself is genuinely disturbing in places: a demon-possessed woman assaults a priest in a sexual way, violence against nuns, brief strong language, and implied nudity.

If that's within what you and your household can carry, and you're an adult, this is worth the trip.

Based on a priest's own notes, THE RITUAL follows Father Joseph Steiger and Father Theophilus Riesinger as they're assigned to perform an exorcism on a woman named Emma Schmidt in 1928 Iowa. Ritual by ritual, Emma's condition worsens, and the demon possessing her works harder to break the priests' resolve. Whether their faith and courage will hold is the question the film asks — and the one it leaves for you to watch unfold.

Three stars means this is solid, well-crafted work with real flaws holding it back from greatness. Al Pacino and Dan Stevens anchor the film with strong performances, and the supporting cast holds up its end too. The documentary-style camera work — handheld, imperfect focus — gives the story an unsettling realism, though it also makes some scenes genuinely hard to watch.

Where the film stumbles is in the script. Several character arcs, Sister Rose's especially, are left unfinished, and a number of scenes seem inserted purely to spook the audience rather than serve the story — creaking floors, heavy breathing, doors swinging open on a predictable schedule. These add atmosphere but not substance. The result is a well-filmed, well-acted film that doesn't quite pull all its threads together.

What this film gets right is worth celebrating. THE RITUAL puts a strong, biblical, Catholic Christian worldview front and center for nearly its entire runtime. Its priests pray constantly — the Lord's Prayer especially — read Scripture, attend church, and root their fight against evil in faith rather than technique. Father Theophilus's line, "We are the Lord's army and must save one of His children," could stand as the film's thesis. A nun who confesses her anger is led toward repentance rather than left to stew in it. This is rare, serious treatment of prayer and the Church in a horror film, and it deserves credit.

The film includes one brief note of feminist perspective — a Reverend Mother tells a priest she's tired of men who know less than her leading when she doesn't think he's fit for the task — a small, passing beat rather than a theme the film pursues.

The story's engine is an old and true one: evil is real, it targets the vulnerable, and it can only be resisted through faith, prayer, and courage that isn't self-generated. Scripture says the same thing plainly — "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil" (Ephesians 6:11).

THE RITUAL earns its praise honestly: strong performances, a serious treatment of prayer and faith, and a story worth telling. It also earns its caution honestly — this is a scary, disturbing film with content no family movie night needs. So here's our answer, the same one we opened with: worth the trip — adults only. Looking for something for the whole family instead? Start with our latest family-friendly picks.