Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Tense "documentary" has some blood, lots of scares.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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The Last Exorcism
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 8 parent reviews
Based on 22 kid reviews
Kids say the film is a mixed bag with some finding it surprisingly effective and scary for a PG-13 rating, pointing to a few disturbing scenes, while others feel it lacks genuine scares and has a slow start. The discussions around its violent and unsettling content raise questions about its appropriateness for younger viewers, as many agree that it should have a stricter rating despite some claiming it offers intriguing twists and clever writing.
- surprisingly effective
- disturbing content
- lacks genuine scares
- mixed reception
- slow start
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
Reverend Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian) has been preaching since he was a child and now no longer believes in what he's saying. As part of his job, he performs "exorcisms," which are fake and designed to bring nothing more than peace of mind. Fed up with the lies, he invites a documentary crew to film his latest performance on a "possessed" teen, Nell (Ashley Bell). Unfortunately, his ceremony doesn't work, and trouble continues, with scary threats and violent attacks. Cotton believes that the haunting is man-made, but eventually things get a little too weird to entirely discount a supernatural influence.
Is It Any Good?
Like The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity before it, THE LAST EXORCISM employs the very effective "fake documentary" format. This elevates the drama to a much more immediate, visceral level, and it also brings a great side effect. All three movies tend to focus on implied horror rather than explicit horror; since that leaves something to the audience's imagination, the result is much more chilling than all the violence and gore in the world.
The movie loses points for being one of the later examples of a now-familiar genre, but it does have a highly charismatic flawed hero in Fabian's Cotton Marcus. Thankfully, the movie gives him enough time to come to life before the scary stuff kicks in. The character's crisis of faith and his curiosity and confidence make him someone worth re-visiting, should there ever be a sequel.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the film's violence. How much was actually shown? Was it more or less scary not being able to see everything?
Does the "documentary" format make the film more or less scary?
Is Cotton Marcus a good person, or is he a bad person who's deceiving people? What does he learn over the course of the film?
Movie Details
- In theaters : August 27, 2010
- On DVD or streaming : January 4, 2011
- Cast : Ashley Bell , Iris Bahr , Patrick Fabian
- Director : Daniel Stamm
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Middle Eastern/North African Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Lionsgate
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 87 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : disturbing violent content and terror, some sexual references and thematic material
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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