Watch on Netflix: This exorcism movie is based on a true story!

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Set in 2011 Pittsburgh, The Deliverance follows Ebony Jackson, a single mother struggling to raise her three children amid poverty and instability. A family moves into a house that soon shows disturbing signs. If the film flirts with the classic codes of the exorcism film, it is particularly grounded in Ebony’s inner demons, emphasizing the social and economic pressures weighing on her. This dual battle between the supernatural and the harsh reality gives the film a social dimension rarely seen in stories of this type.

Inspired by the Latoya Ammons case or also known as House of Demons in 2011.

The Deliverance, a film written by Lee Daniels, David Coggeshall and Elijah Bynum; Directed by Lee Daniels Andra Day, Glenn Close, Monique, Caleb McLaughlin…

who is he with

The cast of The Deliverance is backed by top-notch talent. Andra Day, already recognized for her role in Billie Holiday, plays Ebony with moving intensity. She’s a single mother struggling to raise her three children — teenagers Shante (Demi Singleton), Nate (Caleb McLaughlin, aka Lucas from Stranger Things ) and young Dre (Anthony B. Jenkins) — with no money and a long-time broken heart. . She is separated from her husband, a soldier in Iraq.

Usually, the hero of a horror movie is an innocent besieged by demonic forces. But before the film gets to the question of possession, it focuses on Ebony’s demons: her tendency to hit her children and viciously, rage-filled, lash out at everyone who lives with her, including the devil.

She is surrounded by Glenn Close, who plays Bertha, Ebony’s mother, expertly. In an unlikely role, Glenn Close manages to capture the complexities of a woman torn between her religious faith and her troubled past. She was also far from an exemplary mother. She also knows how to send out poison darts while constantly quoting Jesus, battling cancer, and continuing to flirt with black men younger than her.

Finally, Monique – who previously starred in Lee Daniels’ Dear – plays Cynthia, an unfriendly woman from social services who follows the Jackson family after witnessing Ebony’s various failures.

is it worth watching

along with SalvationLee Daniels tries his hand at a new genre, the horror genre, while adding his personal touch. Known for films like Precious, The Paperboy and The Butler, here he explores the concept of demonic possession from a deeply human and social angle.

Ebony is a single woman with three dependent children and a sick mother whose temper has landed her in prison and struggles with alcoholism. She is a mother who is sometimes reduced to helplessness. He’s also very protective, venting his hellish rage on the tyrannical teenager next door.

What Daniels wants us to understand is that Ebon is a conduit for the forces of oppression—economic and racial—that have marked her life and turned it into a daily pressure cooker. The film does not justify him, but shows us that his demons are confused with the demons of society.

It is this family portrait and this social picture that The Deliverance offers in its first two-thirds, and they are especially successful. Because we understand very well that Lee Daniels offers a stirring portrait of America that is often neglected: that of black and poor families.

With Glenn Close, who stands out in the middle: completely immersed in this black community, dressed like a stolen car, stolen, tight jeans, and very focused on the African-American male gender.

The duo of Andra Day and Glenn Close does a great job. They are simply dazzling, each bringing undeniable depth and humanity to their characters. Their performances are undoubtedly what make the film so endearing, despite its minor weaknesses.

The devil is in the details (or not)

Because the film loses its power in the last third, when the exorcism takes up all the space. As the plot moves towards the purely supernatural, the tension is reduced and the scary elements are less effective.

The audience is faced with an exercise in style, where the fear of the supernatural is masked by an over-exposed production. Terror often lies in the unseen and what the mind imagines when it reaches its limits.

This passage, while visually impressive, lacks the emotional impact that the rest of the film is capable of. It’s also hard not to draw comparisons to William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, a classic of the genre with its ability to instill fear, certainly something incredible, but unmatched.

The Deliverance is a hybrid work that oscillates between a poignant social drama and a more conventional horror film. Despite a last act that runs out of steam, the film is worth watching for its excellent performances and a decidedly personal and critical perspective on demonic possession. Lee Daniels reminds us that real demons are not always what we imagine.