feminist tensions in exorcism cinema mpca
DESCRIPTION
Exorcism cinema concerns the possession of an individual and the subsequent performance of a ritual to cast out that demon or evil spirit. These films tackle the subject of possession and exorcism from a variety of religious affiliations, and they seem to have mainly occurred in two key time periods: the 1970s and the 2000s. The movie that started it all, The Exorcist (1973, dir. William Friedkin), is still considered one of best examples of this subgenre to date. Following the theatrical re-release of The Exorcist in 2000, more exorcism movies emerged, starting with The Exorcism of Emily Rose in 2005. This project focuses on our readings of the representations of the characters, discourses, and tensions in each film, and what these representations mean for how such films reflect, reinforce, and/or challenge notions of feminism, gender appropriateness, sexuality, power, hegemony, patriarchy, religion and science. For this project, we focus on the struggle between possession and exorcism, and look at how this struggle reflects social and cultural anxieties regarding female sexuality. Primarily, we argue this struggle represents the tension between a feminine innocence and sexuality that the patriarchy fears and seeks to control. These cinematic possessions tend to occur within women who are in the transitional period of moving from innocent girl to sexually active woman. The possession essentially represents the manifestation of the sexually active identity perhaps too early given the biological age of the girl and the character’s innocence in relation to sexual activity. However, the tension is not just about women’s sexuality and expression of sexuality; it is that through such expression their power and agency are enacted, and that is why their sexuality must be repressed. By becoming sexually active, women become empowered in their own lives, and potentially gain power over the lives of men. This empowerment appears to manifest in how the possession gives the women the ability to speak their minds without fear of repercussion. They may speak their minds about sexual desires, but also to express unguarded, insensitive, insightful comments about the people around them. Thus, we argue, the use of demonic possession does not simply reveal the tensions modern societies and cultures have about female sexuality; it also demonstrates the tensions about women finding their voice and their power to take control of their own lives. The possession metaphorically creates an empowered woman, but the exorcism metaphorically presents, in the form of the male priest, a protagonist who must remove this possessed woman and the threat she represents to decent society. For more on this post, please visit: http://playingwithresearch.com/2014/10/06/feminist-tensions-last-exorcism-last-exorcism-part-2/TRANSCRIPT
CarrieLynn D. Reinhard, Dominican UniversityChristopher J. Olson, DePaul University
FEMINIST TENSIONS IN EXORCISM CINEMA: CASE
STUDY ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON OF THE
LAST EXORCISM AND THE LAST EXORCISM PART II
Noel Carroll & The Philosophy of Horror
Women in Horror Movies•Women as Other•Woman as Victim•Woman as Monster•Woman as Abjection
Feminist Critique of The Exorcist
•Woman as Lesser •Woman as Lesson•Woman as Virgin/Whore•Women as Sinner/Threat
The Last Exorcism & Its Sequel•The Last Exorcism (2010) •Found footage horror movie•Faced with real possession•Faced with satanic cult, demonic pregnancy
•The Last Exorcism Part II (2013)•Not found footage, but begins immediately following previous•Whereas first movie focused on priest as protagonist, focuses on teenage girl as protagonist
The Last Exorcism’s Damsel in Distress
The Sequel’s Empowered Woman
Conclusion•In The Last Exorcism•Women as Threat•Women as Sinner
•Women as Other•Woman as Abjection•Woman as Monster
•Woman as Lesson•Woman as Lessor
•Also all in The Last Exorcism Part II•But also Woman as Powerful