Starring Russell Crowe, Daniel Zovatto, Alex Essoe and Franco Nero.

Directed by Julius Avery

Sony, out now

Father Gabriele Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican, investigates a young boy’s terrifying possession and ends up uncovering a centuries-old conspiracy the Vatican has desperately tried to keep hidden.

Maybe I’ve just seen too many horror movies about possession. Julius (Overlord) Avery’s horror movie adds nothing to the sub-genre and decides to throw everything at the wall with a vain hope that some of it will stick.

The ace in his hand is Russell Crowe as Amorth, giving a rather fruity performance as the Italian exorcist, and he does at least seem to be having a ball. He’s joined by Daniel Zovatta as Spanish priest Father Esquibel, who dealt with similar supernatural shenanigans in Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, and there’s even a great bit of casting with Italian legend Franco Nero as The Pope.

The problem is perhaps highlighted by five different people collaborating on the screen story and screenplay, which in turn is based on two of Amarth’s own books. There’s just too much going on, but nothing of any note. It’s not a straight exorcism movie – it has bits of Dan Brown, a haunted house, poltergeists – it’s everything all at once. What’s even scarier is that the movie sets itself up for 199 sequels!

Verdict: Generic, predictable and frequently risible nonsense. 3/10

Nick Joy