Deus Irae, on Screambox

When you constantly submerge yourself in evil and corruption, it is bound to leave a mark. Father Javier is an exorcist. He is not merely damaged. He might be damned. So might his entire band of demon vanquishers, but they intend to scare the hell out of Hell in director-screenwriter Pedro Cristiani’s Deus Irae, which premieres today on Screambox.

Father Javier uses heroin to cope. He might have even killed an innocent possessed vessel just to out maneuver a demon. Frankly, it is a little hard to tell what happens in the opening scenes, due to Crisitani’s intentionally fractured style. Regardless, his mentor Ramon fears the once-good Father has lost his way, but that makes him perfect for the demon-busting trio led by Father Marcos.

Together with Sister Helena, they perform the exorcisms other priests just won’t do. If that results in a bit of collateral damage, so be it. In fact, Father Javier starts to figure that might be a good thing, because it shows the Hellspawn their willingness to go to extreme lengths.

Somehow, Deus Irae is extremely disturbing, even when you are not entirely sure what the heck is happening. It is also very gory and annoyingly dark and murky. This film is basically difficult to watch in every conceivable way, yet it is clearly the work of a provocative genre auteur. In fact, it is hard to think of another film that so directly challenges moral assumptions.

This film is a lot, but Pablo Ragoni, Gaston Ricaud, and Sabrina Macchi do some extraordinary work as the trio of exorcists. Essentially, we watch them wrestle with their own potential damnation and potentially damning others.

There is imagery in this film that will make even the most seasoned horror consumer incredibly uncomfortable. This is not a film for consumers of drive-in style horror, but it would be a grave mistake for film snobs who look down on the genre to dismiss it out of hand. Recommended for fans of horror at its most extreme, Deus Irae starts streaming today (12/10) on Screambox.