Por Victoria Hope

In a world so divided and with such relevant political and social issues being addressed, Christian Swegal's directorial debut entitled "Sovereign" is like a finger touching an exposed and open wound of bigotry that has plagued the world and mainly America. 

Starring Nick Offerman (The Last of Us), Jacob Tremblay (The Life of Chuck) and Dennis Quaid (The Substance), the film tells the story of a father and son who identify as 'sovereigns', a class of conspiracy-minded Americans who, in the context of the social movement, see themselves as "sovereign citizens", individuals who consider themselves above the laws and government authorities of the United States, often claiming that the government is illegitimate. 

It is delicate moments like this in the world today where films like "Sovereign" are incredibly necessary to show where exacerbated extremism and the certainty of impunity (as well as excess religion) can lead ordinary people, especially when supported by individuals who also buy into these same beliefs, to act on unthinkable acts.

One of the film's highlights is undoubtedly the performances, especially by Offerman and Tremblay, who, together on screen, have an unparalleled chemistry. The father-son dynamic works very well, and Jacob is also worth mentioning, as he manages to convey all the conflicting feelings that a child of extremists harbors inside him; after all, he begins to question whether his father really is the owner of all the truths and whether the whole world is wrong. Returning to Nick's side, this is one of his best works in a portfolio filled with many impeccable performances on TV and in the movies. 

Despite the  very interesting script, the film often focuses on the American police force aplenty, as if, in a way, it were trying to paint the story and sometimes it may seem to divide the characters into  simply good or evil, without many nuances of gray and without really questioning this institution, which doesn't make the intentions of the narrative very clear. However, the resolution of everything is extremely important and moving, haunting even.

With the world and America polarized, Sovereign shows the tip of the iceberg that can explode when individuals find themselves fragile, with all their feelings on the surface ready to explode and that is exactly what will culminate in the tragic end of this story, wrapped in mourning, sadness and losses on all sides.

RATE: 8.5/10

 

By Victoria Hope

When the announcement was made about yet another exorcism film starring Russell Crowe, many imagined that this would be a sequel to the previous film by th star, 'The Pope's Exorcist', but both films deal with completely different universes and approeaches and it is just a coincidence that the same actor is in another film that addresses the same topic.

It is not quite clear who is behind the latest work choices of Crowe, who has already delivered masterpieces such as Beautiful Mind and Gladiator, but it is only known that in recent years, he has been involved in projects with a smaller budgets each time. 

That being said, 'The Exorcism', tells the story of a has-been actor who is battling more than just supernatural demons, but also internal demons such as addiction, depression and the feeling that his time has passed. One of the few things this film gets right is the character study aspect of the main character, but of course, it's all thanks to Russel Crowe who gives 200% of his effort and charisma to try and tell this story.

The Exorcism / Picture:  Miramax

The Exorcism starts very well, with a scene that manages to capture the audience's attention in the first few seconds and for a few minutes, the film really works well, with excellent performances on screen and a good dramatic load that promises to bring a good possession story to light, but from the middle to the end, that's where the problem begins.

The film tries to mix a lot of interesting ideas and concepts, but in the end, it doesn't quite have much to say and doesn't get there, which is unfortunate as the story had the potential to be an excellent retelling or even homage to the original Exorcist. At some point, the story gets lost and doesn't come back until the final seconds.

That being said, it's not a 'bad' film, but rather a film that needed more polishing and more story development. Perhaps the runtime was too short to develop this side, but if the story had focused more on the family drama instead of just bringing unnecessary jumpscares at times, this could have been one of the most interesting horror films of the year. Had they focused on the main character and his child a bit more, maybe showing some bits of their past together, maybe this would be another story.

Rating: 7.5/10