BeatRoute Magazine [AB] print e-edition - [May 2018]

Double down the depths of hell
The Excorcist and The Devil and Father Amorth
hat an excellent day for an exorcism”
“W – the croaking words slither between
cracked, lifeless lips caked with the noxious vile
which proceeded them. Two entities are scarcely
visible in a room devoid of light – an exorcist,
and the shell of what was once a vivacious
12-year-old girl named Regan MacNeil. Digging
into the days proceeding this moment in cinematic
history would strike a collection of images
revealing a third, commanding entity which
could only be described as terrifying. Regan,
once a picturesque vision of a perfect daughter,
suddenly transformed into a shocking display
spitting unspeakable profanities and projectile
vomiting impossible amounts of soupy bile, furthermore,
morbidly engaging in masturbation
with a crucifix resulting in bloodied lacerations.
The Exorcist (1973) boasts not only a high rank
in horror history books, but also longevity as it
still shakes contemporary audiences in a way
they surely have not felt before despite having
traipsed through the obnoxious gore of the
torture porn sub-genre that dominated the
early 2000s.
The Exorcist was not the first religious horror
film by any means – after all, Mia Farrow birthed
her little devil spawn only a handful of years
earlier in Rosemary’s Baby (1968). Though not
the first to tap into arguably the most haunting
sub-genre of horror, it was the first nominated
for an Academy Award. Given that cinema-goers
were graced with a film that literally had
paramedics called on site to treat viewers from
fainting, I’d consider this a stunning feat for the
under-appreciated genre, and viable proof that
some of us genre fans actually like being scared.
Look Ma, no strings attached! Linda Blair’s levitation scene in The Exorcist.
16 | MAY 2018 • BEATROUTE
BY BREANNA WHIPPLE
But what made The Exorcist so damn scary?
Extending beyond the obviously unsettling
visuals dominating the 122 minute run-time, it
tapped into an frightening area etched in reality.
William Peter Blatty, author of both the novel
predating the film and the screenplay, derived
inspiration from an actual exorcism of an anonymous
young boy from Maryland that occurred
in 1949. From what is known, the boy underwent
numerous exorcisms, and several elements
between the fictitious tale of Regan MacNeil is
linear with the boy upon comparison.
Blatty’s tale is, however, just that – fictitious.
Despite this, it‘s reported that 500,000 Italian
people alone see an exorcist every year. Though
mastering the craft of lavishly presenting the
horrors of demonic possession on film, it would
not be until May of 2016 that director William
Friedkin would witness one in real life.
His latest feature, The Devil and Father Amorth
(2018), is an experience offering a glimpse
into the non-fictitious side of a spiritual practice
he brought to light 45 years ago. Praising the
work of renowned exorcist Father Amorth,
Friedkin witnesses a woman’s ninth exorcism. As
if that were not enticing enough, the documentary
also includes interviews with Friedkin
himself, Blatty, multiple doctors, and a woman
successfully exorcised by Father Amorth. Very
thorough and gripping, The Devil and Father
Amorth is a wonderful addition to the legacy of
the world’s greatest horror film.
Catch The Exorcist and The Devil and Father Amorth
at The Globe Cinema on Fri., May 18.
MIKE HOOVES
local filmmaker strives for a naturalistic
queer perspective
Growing up, Calgarian artist Mike Hooves
fed their fascination for animation by
spending hours playing Mario Paint on their
Super Nintendo. Now at 25, Hooves is an
artist, animator, illustrator, and filmmaker
whose work is playful, whimsical and gestural.
“Not completely polished, either,” says
Hooves, “I like it to be a little rough.”
Creating art largely from a queer,
feminine perspective, Hooves also pulls
influence from nature, which they attribute
to their upbringing. “My Dad actually lives
and works in a provincial park, so when I
was younger he took me on a lot of hikes,”
says Hooves. “I still go on hikes, but doing
that when I was younger shaped my art a
lot more.”
This past December, Hooves painted a
winter mountain landscape on the +15
windows in Bankers Hall for the Bud of
Bud Artist Collectives Augmented Reality
Art Show. “I like the mountain-scapes that
are just beyond Calgary that you’re always
seeing when you’re in the city,” expresses
Hooves. “When you see them, there’s that
lingering thought of ‘there’s freedom, it’s so
close to us!’ But it’s outside of Calgary. That
influences my work a lot – that wilderness.”
Continuously building off their naturalistic,
queer, feminine perspective, Hooves
has been shifting their focus from drawing
and design to filmmaking. “I like filmmakers
who work with small budgets,” says Hooves.
“It makes their work more honest in all
aspects of their films.” Over the past year,
they’ve filmed and premiered two of their
own small budget short films; POLYMORH,
which is about Hooves’ gender identity,
BY HANNAH MANY GUNS
and G.E.M., a collaborative documentary
that focuses on Good Life Community
Bike Shop’s weekly Gender Empowerment
Mechanics (G.E.M.) program.
“I actually made these two films at the
same time,” informs Hooves. “I didn’t really
know what I was doing. A day of filming
for me was just trying to pool my experiences
together with the other people who
I had to help me on set, and figuring things
out. I liked to make it so I was working in
spaces where it didn’t feel like I had to rush,
so there was no malice or anything, and
everyone was kind so we’d figure things out
together. It was very collaborative, it was
all about shared knowledge. Nobody really
knew what we were doing overall, but we all
knew how to do little pieces.” For these two
shorts, Hooves’ counts John Waters, Maya
Deren, and Norman McLaren as her inspirations,
along with countless underground
animations.
Presently, Hooves is working on a project
with Fairy Tales, Calgary’s Queer Film Festival.
“They’re going into their 20th anniversary
this year, so they’ve commissioned a
short documentary about Calgary’s queer
history,” says Hooves. “I’m on the project
with my partner, and I’m helping mostly
with animation and info-graphics, like animating
a map that shows the locations of
where all our old gay bars used to be.” The
film, Outliers: Calgary’s Queer History, will
premiere at the Plaza Theatre.
For more info on Mike Hooves and their work,
follow them on Instagram at @mikehooves.
FILM