Since his wife’s death, Victor (Leslie Odom Jr.) has raised his daughter Angela (Lidya Jewett) alone. After Angela and her friend (Olivia O’Neill) return from a three-day disappearance with missing memories, they begin displaying frightening behavior. Victor’s best hope is to find the only person who has seen anything like this before: Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn), whose haunting experience with her daughter Regan may be the key to combating ultimate evil.
For in-depth thoughts on The Exorcist: Believer, please see my colleague Dom Fisher’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray of The Exorcist: Believer delivers a terrific viewing experience, and it offers a subtle but welcome improvement over the accompanying Blu-Ray disc. Numerous sequences in the film take place under the cloak of darkness, which this disc handles faithfully with clear detail and excellent delineation. Black levels are robust in this presentation, staying deep and inky with so much depth. The highlights in the film are impeccably defined with whites pure and balanced with no instances of blooming to be found. Any instances of compression artifacts and banding found on the Blu-Ray are eradicated with this 4K UHD disc.
The increased range of the color spectrum is stunning to behold. The Dolby Vision finds new depths when it comes to the nuance of the hues. This 4K UHD presentation comes through on any promise of perfected clarity and color. There are elements of the production design and grotesque makeup effects that you can readily appreciate with this transfer. Skin tones appear natural with healthy doses of crisp detail apparent on faces. Every location is handled with the precision of an impeccably authored disc. As great as the Blu-Ray is on its own, Universal has delivered a top-notch transfer on this latest 4K release.
Audio Quality
This 4K UHD Blu-Ray comes with a dynamite Dolby Atmos audio mix that is an unnerving powerhouse. This is a very active track that provides all manner of chilling sound effects and an effective score to keep you on edge. There is a substantial amount of activity in the low end that makes itself known. Dialogue is clear and balanced well with the pervasive environmental sounds. There is nearly always something going on in the surrounds, but there is not an ounce of difficulty hearing what everyone is saying. The height channels are used to horrific effect in some of the more startling developments. All of the sounds are coming from the appropriate directions, and there are absolutely no technical issues with the track. There are no missteps for fans of this one. There are optional English SDH, Spanish, and French subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Co-writer/director David Gordon Green, executive producer Ryan Turek, co-writer Peter Sattler, and special makeup FX designer Christopher Nelson deliver a really informative commentary track in which they discuss the motivation behind certain decisions, their reactions to some of the events in the film, personal anecdotes from the set, inspiration from other films, trying to come up with their own unique take on the franchise, and more.
- Making A Believer: A nine-minute piece in which the creative team discusses their approach to making a new Exorcist installment.
- Ellen and Linda – Reunited: A nearly five-minute look at the returning faces from the original film and how they are integrated into this story.
- Stages of Possession: A six-minute look at the stages of possession for these characters and how they were manifested emotionally and physically.
- The Opening: A six-minute exploration of the pivotal opening scene and how it sets off the narrative.
- Editing An Exorcism: A nearly five-minute dive into the climactic exorcism that finds many characters coming together to try to save these girls.
- Matters Of Faith: A nearly five-minute piece that explores the religious ceremonies practiced in the film and how the filmmakers strove for authenticity.
Final Thoughts
The Exorcist: Believer is a middling possession tale that trades on the glory of its original namesake. Without the baggage of the legacy attached, this is the type of film that you watch to pass the time and never think about much again. As a legacy sequel, the film fares much worse, and not just due to the fact that it wastes the established characters. We have seen so much in the past 50 years to shock our system, and this new outing never really goes anywhere surprising or particularly exciting. All of the performers are doing a great job for what they are asked to do, but the story definitely needs some more meat on the bone and drive to create its own identity. Universal Home Entertainment has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray that features a stellar A/V presentation and a decent offering of special features. If you are a fan of the film, you should be pleased by the disc.
The Exorcist: Believer will be available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray, and DVD on December 19, 2023. The film is currently available to own on Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Universal Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.