For centuries, a secret Order of priests has existed within the Church. A renegade priest, Father Alex Bernier, is sent to Rome to investigate the mysterious death of one of the Order's most revered members. Following a series of strangely similar killings, Bernier launches an investigation that forces him to confront unimaginable evil.
May be the nadir of the subgenre that produced The Exorcist (at its high end) and Stigmata (at its middle-to-low end).
– Stephen Holden,
New York Times,
8 Sep 2003
rotten:
It's The Exorcist warmed over.
– Peter Travers,
Rolling Stone,
8 Sep 2003
rotten:
The picture is so lethargic that I began to think of watching it as a form of atonement.
– Owen Gleiberman,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Sep 2003
rotten:
All the fine cinematography can't hide the sad fact that the second half of the film delivers none of the shocks and starts required of atmospheric horror.
– Jon Strickland,
L.A. Weekly,
11 Sep 2003
rotten:
Devout Catholics will be appalled; everyone else will be asleep.