The Exorcism of Emily Rose

This film is based on a true story. Emily Rose is a 19-year-old girl who dies shortly after a failed exorcism. The priest who performed the exorcism is put on trial for negligent homicide. The story is told in flashbacks from the courtroom. I recommend the movie and enjoyed it. When it came time for the verdict, I found myself holding my breath, completely captivated.

The rating of the movie is PG-13 and is not as scary as The Exorcist. I like it for that. It's not just another horror flick. I don't like horror flicks. It seems to take possession more seriously by not going over the top, and definitely is sympathetic to the priest.

From http://www.upcominghorrormovies.com/movies/exorcism.php.
"A true story, the case of Michel is well known among those who study exorcisms. In 1976, the Catholic Church officially recognized the demonic possession of an 18-year-old German college freshman. During her exorcism, the young woman died, and a priest stood trial for causing her death."

It seems the original title for the film was The Exorcism of Anneliese Michel. It is "based on a real court trial in the late 1970's in Bavaria."

From a link on that page I found this:
http://www.moviesonline.ca/movienews_1253.html. It has a synopsis of the true story behind the film.

It begins:
"From her birth on the 21st of September, 1952, Anneliese Michel enjoyed the life of a normal, religiously nurtured young girl. Without warning, her life changed on a day in 1968 when she began shaking and found she was unable to control her body. She could not call out for her parents, Josef and Anna, or any of her 3 sisters. A neurologist at the Psychiatric Clinic Wurzburg diagnosed her with 'Grand Mal' epilepsy. Because of the strength of the epileptic fits, and the severity of the depression that followed, Anneliese was admitted for treatment at the hospital."

It's a very enlightening story.

Anyway, see the film if you can and tell me what you think of it.

The question this movie brings up for me is that of whether Christians can be possessed. I have always thought they couldn't. This movie challenges that, as does the true story behind it. The jury is still out for me on that, but the movie has made me question what I've been taught.