"Exorcist Chronicles" DVD (director: Philip Gardiner)

Exorcism has long been used effectively by the Catholic church as a tool to assert power and fear among the faithful. As a dramatic, fictional subject, is there any proper follow-up to the now-classic William Friedkin film adaption of the William Peter Blatty novel, "The Exorcist"? I think not. Call me a cynic, but nothing since that 1973 film can hold a candle. "Exorcist Chronicles" is certainly no threat to that assertion.

This low-budget English indie pits a young Catholic priest and a female scientist (who tends to wear skimpy outfits) against a string of demonic possessions plaguing Derbyshire and Glastonbury.

A reliance on silly digital effects and visual filters do more harm than good here, but the coup-de-grace is the plodding plot and disjointed storyline. Acting is reasonable enough, and there are a number of appealing breast shots, but there's little else here to recommend, sorry.

Reality Entertainment

"An Unholy Exorcism: The Devil Inside (aka "Chronicles Of An Exorcism")" DVD (director: NIck G. Miller)

I don't like to be too critical of small-time indie films, but this one was tough to sit through. Why filmmakers (big or small) emulate past films (and ones of repute, even more bafflingly) is beyond me. Exorcism films, like shark attack films, have a huge legacy to live up to. "An Unholy Exorcism" comes across like a shallow, illegitimate, and amateurish simulation of the classic William Friedkin film, with a splash of "The Blair Witch Project". Call this one "The Linda Blair Witch Project", perhaps.

 You already know the story. Experienced priests are called in to "rescue" a poor girl from a demonic possession. This one's in an abandoned shack in a cornfield. And there's a local priest who's skeptical of the exorcist's motives. Shot in rough, grainy, faux documentary-style, this one hides behind the hackneyed camerawork, inane script, and virtually nonexistent effects. This is a silly film that isn't worth pursuing. (WWMM)