TOP TEN DEMONIC POSSESSION MOVIES

A chilling and thought-provoking example of fine religious horror filmmaking, Nefarious stars an excellent Sean Patrick Flannery as a demonically possessed serial killer awaiting execution, who in his final hours tries to convince a non-believing psychiatrist (Jordan Belfi) into delivering his manifesto to the world.

Written and directed by Cory Solomon and Chuck Konzelman (Unplanned), Nefarious provides a welcome alternative to the usual demonic possession movie tripe: dialogue driven, intelligently written, and foreboding Catholic-infused horror that takes the insidious and corrupting nature of evil seriously.

A commanding performance from Sean Patrick Flannery elevates the spiritually and thematically compelling Nefarious into upper echelons of faith-based horror that will haunt the soul.

A frightening and innovative tale of grief, loneliness, and the dire consequences of messing with the dark arts, Talk to Me could very well be a generational classic that can have an impact on the mainstream.

Talk to Me stars Sophie Wilde as Mia, a teenager still grieving the loss of her mother a year prior. When Mia takes part in a unique séance ritual involving the amputated hand of a psychic encased in a clay cast, demonic spirits begin to exploit Mia’s fragile psyche leading to unspeakable horrors.

The feature film directorial debut of brothers Danny and Michael Philippou (who are also known by their YouTube channel RackaRacka), Talk to Me in its basic form is a demonic possession movie, yet the filmmaking skill and approach to storytelling brings a new lease of life to a worn-out subgenre of horror.  

Second instalment of John Carpenter's "Apocalypse trilogy", Prince of Darkness is an ominous blend of religious and cosmic horror that is as chilling as it is thought provoking.

Donald Pleasance stars in Prince of Darkness as a Catholic priest who uncovers a mysterious ancient cylinder both alien and supernatural once protected by a secret order of monks in the basement of an abandoned church. When he urges his friend and theoretical physicist professor Howard Briack (Victor Wong) to recruit a team of scientists to investigate the origin of the cylinder and its gooey contents, one by one they are possessed by an ultimate embodiment of evil poised to undo creation.

Conceived after Carpenter undertook a heavy interest in theoretical physics and atomic theory, Prince of Darkness is the kind of thinking man’s horror movie that some these day might label as "elevated"; a one-of-a-kind genre piece where the theological and the theoretical share space to create a doom-laden horror.

Dialogue driven and atmospheric blend of serial killer thrills and supernatural chills, The Exorcist III: Legion is a stand-out in the demonic possession movie sub-genre, with its searing intelligence and unique rhythm getting better with repeated viewings.

The Exorcist III: Legion stars George C. Scott as Detective Kinderman (played in the first Exorcist by Lee J. Cobb), a high-strung cop investigating the re-emergence of diabolical serial killer James Venamun, aka The Gemini Killer (Brad Dourif). The only catch is Venamun was executed 15 years ago. Fearing a copycat, Kinderman’s investigation leads him to a mental asylum, where he finds the demonic spirit of Venamun in possession of the body of Father Damian Karras (Jason Miller), the very same Catholic priest who saved a young girl from demonic possession 17 years prior.

From the first frames in which an ancient evil prowl the streets of the modern world, The Exorcist III: Legion contains a heavy air rich in themes of faith, madness, death, and the permissive attitude of a God who allows evil to pollute his paradise. Director William Peter Blatty (who adapts his own book Legion) gives these themes the credence and weight they deserve, underlying The Exorcist III as a horror film rich in theology and sheer terror in which society’s most vulnerable are used as pieces in a spiritual battle.

Sequel to the 1981 splatter classic The Evil Dead, Sam Raimi delivered a part-horror, part-comedy and all-around bad-ass follow-up that cemented his reputation as an entertaining and innovative filmmaker. Bruce Campbell returned as tortured hero Ash, now sporting a chainsaw in place of a severed arm and a shotgun locked on zombie demons, still the only film that can pull off “Groovy!” without slipping into dirty hippie cliché.

This quasi-remake of the low-budget original kicks off with an innocent cabin trip that rapidly turns into a fight for survival against demonically possessed, flesh-craving zombies. Raimi’s energetic, balls-to-the-walls direction and Campbell’s gung-ho performance—especially the epic battle against his own severed, possessed hand—make it a thing of horrific glory.

Lord of the B-movie and king of chins Campbell’s bravura turn as the chainsaw-wielding, “boomstick” operating hero sealed his status as a horror icon, while Raimi’s wild style marked him as a talent destined for bigger things. Evil Dead II remains as unique and entertaining an entry in the demonic-possession canon as they come.

The scariest found footage horror movie released thus far, REC saw those gifted Spaniards show the rest of the world how it’s done. Intense violence and tension-filled scares unfold through the POV of a television journalist (Manela Velasco) and her  cameraman (Pablo Rosso) trapped covering a demonic contagion inside an apartment complex, the last 20 minutes alone enough to have many crapping in their pants.

A monster mash of demonic possession, zombie and found footage genres, REC is as immersive and scary a horror movie as they come. Directors Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza craft a claustrophobic, crap-your-pants inducing nightmare of pure high-tension dread.

Frights build relentlessly throughout, but nothing prepares you for that heart-pounding finale that will have many crying for their mummy.

The stunning directorial debut from Canadian filmmaker Ian Tuason, Undertone delivers as a creepy blend of supernatural thriller and religious horror that delves into themes of faith, guilt, and the arrogant evocation of evil.

Undertone stars an excellent Nina Kiri as Evy (Nina Kiri) the co-host of the popular supernatural podcast “Undertone” which she shares hosting duties with Justin (Adam Di Marco). Playing the roles of sceptic and believer (respectfully), Evy and Justin investigate 10 audio files emailed to them that allegedly captures a demon named Abyzou plaguing a young married couple, with each recording increasing in intensity. It doesn’t take long for Abyzou to invade Evy’s home where she is caretaker for her dying mother (Michèle Duquet.)

It’s no small thing that Undertone is the closest movie to match both the visceral and spiritual impact of The Exorcist. Much like The Exorcist writer William Peter Blatty, Tuason is a Catholic who takes the theme of evil seriously as an insidious, penetrating force that preys on the vulnerable. Tuason in turn delivers a film that explores the insidious nature of evil, and the dispirited life of faith shunned only for a festering darkness to worm its way through the gaps of a wounded soul.

A chilling and perplexing horror assault on the senses, Hereditary features director Ari Aster taking on familiar horror genre tropes and twisting them into a unique and macabre tale of terror innovative in style and execution.

Hereditary stars Toni Collette as Annie Graham, artist of award-winning miniatures, wife to Steve (Gabriel Byrne), and mother to Peter (Alex Wolff) and Charlie (Milly Shapiro). When her emotionally manipulative mother passes away, a grief-stricken Annie notices strange occurrences in her home, especially with the cripplingly shy Charlie.

Aster masterfully structures Hereditary to creep towards its horrific components on the strength of its drama, creating the emotional stakes needed to make its shocking, mind-numbing moments of horror brilliance that much more powerful. Toni Collette delivers one of her best turns as a mother racked with guilt, grief, and a touch of madness. It takes considerable skill to play a role that requires such gigantic swings of emotion, yet Collette does so with heartbreaking, terrifying power.

Presented as a lost recording of the “live TV event that shocked a nation!”, Late Night with the Devil delivers its scares under the bright lights of prime time. Australian directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes pull it off with impressive flair, the late-night TV format stripping away horror’s usual cheat-codes of dark lighting and jump-scare trickery.

David Dastmalchian stars as Jack Delroy, struggling host of Night Owls, who after grieving his wife returns with a Halloween special featuring teenage Lilly (Ingrid Torelli), recently saved from a satanic cult. Lilly, however, has a demon inside her, a fact Jack and his audience will soon reckon with.

Set in the late 1970s, the Cairnes brothers tap that decade’s fear, violence and paranoia, when chaos played on TV while Charles Manson and Anton LaVey jockeyed for screen time. In a rare lead role, Dastmalchian delivers one of his best turns as a host whose hunger for ratings brings ramifications sinister and deadly. Great too is Torelli as a wide-eyed teen facing demons literal and metaphoric, and Fayssal Bazzi as a medium plagued by a nefarious spirit.

Based upon the novel by William Peter Blatty (that was loosely based on true events), The Exorcist tells the story of a 12-year-old girl (Linda Blair) possessed by a demonic entity. Parallel to that is the story of a Jesuit priest (Jason Miller) who is asked to confront this evil while dealing with demons of his own.

Directed by William Friedkin (The French Connection), The Exorcist delves into heavy themes of faith and the eternal battle of good versus evil. The Exorcist also chronicles the repulsive transformation of a child into a monster of unspeakable evil and does so in a stark, realistic manner where the supernatural invades the real world and no one can hide behind the veil of “logic” while doing so.

Its effect was instant. Film lovers were – and still are – repulsed by the horror of The Exorcist. Yet so too are they moved by its conclusions, where sacrifice and heroism were made by holy men representing good in their battle against evil.