Latest news with #1928
SBS Australia
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
#Archives : 2017 - Retracing the 1928 Tour de France with Phil Keoghan
In this episode, we dive into the world of cycling with Phil Keoghan, producer of the documentary Le Ride, which follows the inspiring story of Harry Watson - the first New Zealander to race in the Tour de France in 1928. Phil shares how discovering a forgotten book about Watson sparked his mission to bring this remarkable tale back to life. The thing I'm most proud of is we have ensured that the story has been captured for all time. Phil Keoghan With a passion for authenticity, Phil recounts the challenge of retracing the 1928 Tour route using vintage bikes and explores how the riders' determination resonated with post-WWI audiences in France. He also reflects on the emotional depth of the story, the production hurdles, and the pride of preserving a piece of forgotten history.
Daily Mail
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Chilling true story behind real-life exorcism of 'possessed' woman that inspired Al Pacino's The Ritual
Hollywood legend Al Pacino is starring in his first ever horror movie, The Ritual. The terrifying film is based on the real-life exorcism of Emma Schmidt in Iowa back in 1928. The case is the most documented exorcism in history, largely thanks to theologian Carl Vogl's 1935 book Begone Satan. It's also believed to have partially inspired the 1973 horror classic, The Exorcist. While some specific details of Schmidt's life and alleged demonic possession are unclear, most accounts state that she started showing signs of Satanic interference from as young as 14. Schmidt, who was raised Catholic, began hearing 'sinister inner voices' that compelled her to do 'shameful and unmentionable' things, according to Vogl's book. Some of her behavior included sexual acts, an aversion to holy objects, and the urge to attack her spiritual advisor. According to Bloody Disgusting, Schmidt was 'uniquely aware of the presence of religious artefacts'. If somebody approached her with a holy object, even if it was hidden, she could sense it and would fly into a rage. She was also 'highly sensitive to holy water', to the point that she once refused a meal that had been sprinkled with a few blessed drops. Multiple doctors examined her at the time and could find no signs of mental or physical illness, which only further fueled the theory that she'd been possessed. Schmidt underwent her first exorcism in 1912 at the hands of Father Theophilus Riesinger, who is played by Pacino in The Ritual. At one point, it was suspected that she had been possessed by her Aunt Mina, who was believed to be a witch. While little is known about her first exorcism, Riesinger returned almost two decades later in 1928 to perform a second exorcism. This one was far more elaborate, with Riesinger and another priest, Father Joseph Stieger, played by Dan Stevens in The Ritual, taking Schmidt to a convent in Earling, Iowa. Schmidt was given a pseudonym, Anna Ecklund, to protect her identity during the chilling exorcism. The second exorcism was performed in three sessions over a period of four months, totalling 23 days in total. Riesinger claimed that Schmidt was possessed by four different spirits, including her own father, who had unsuccessfully tried to get his daughter to commit incest with him. According to Vogl's book, Schmidt levitated in the air, vomited repeatedly, contorted her body, and made inhuman animal noises during the exorcism. Eventually, Riesinger completed the ritual after three consecutive nights and days with no breaks. Schmidt survived and lived out the rest of her life in peace, although some reports claim that she suffered from mild possessions over the years until her death. Her case largely remained a secret until a widely-read Time magazine article was published in 1936, Religion: Exorcist & Energumen. Now Schmidt's chilling story is being brought to life in The Ritual. Directed by indie filmmaker David Midell, the movie sees Pacino transform into Father Riesinger, who teams up with Dan Stevens's conflicted Father Steiger to banish a demonic spirit from, Schmidt, who is portrayed by Abigail Cowen. It's new territory for Pacino, who has steered away from the horror genre throughout his illustrious career. The closest that the 85-year-old has come to horror is the psychological thrillers The Devil's Advocate, Insomnia, and 88 Minutes.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Who Let Al Pacino Star in This Terrible Exorcism Movie?
The Ritual claims to be 'based on a true story' about the most documented and publicized exorcism in American history. That the movies are still trying to pass off demonic possession as plausibly realistic rather than horror-movie make-believe has grown wearisome, although it's not improbability that dooms this Al Pacino-headlined genre throwaway—in theaters June 6—but a crushing lack of originality and a form that makes its clichés even harder to swallow. Confronted with the unholy, Dan Stevens' priest may exclaim that this is a 'profoundly new and strange situation for all of us,' yet only the youngest and least horror-experienced moviegoers will feel likewise. In 1928 Earling, Iowa, Father Joseph Steiger (Stevens) acknowledges to his flock that he's continuing to grieve the recent death of his brother, thereby foreshadowing the preordained moment when an underworld imp mocks him about this tragedy. When he playfully steals a cracker from a tray carried by Sister Rose (Ashley Greene), The Ritual establishes their quasi-romantic feelings for each other and, in doing so, suggests that perhaps this man of the cloth's faith isn't rock solid. His belief is soon put to the test when he's told by Bishop Edwards (Patrick Fabian) that his church will be the site of the forthcoming exorcism of Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowen), a young woman who's undergoing this ceremonial purging after having exhausted all other Western medical options. Handling the exorcism is Father Theophilus Riesinger (Pacino), who arrives in Iowa wearing a friar's robe that's cinched with a thick rope, and with a thick German accent that Pacino milks for all its worth. Theophilus is convinced that Emma is at the mercy of one of Satan's minions, and upon meeting with Joseph and Patricia Heaton's Mother Superior, he explains that they must all stay united in the face of the 'enemy' and its 'ancient' methods. Director David Midell's script wastes no time getting down to business, and as it turns out, the ritual he intends to perform is a multi-evening affair. Night one goes slowly, with Theophilus merely reading from his Bible while two attending nuns chime in when necessary and Joseph takes notes—a process that concludes with a sprinkling of holy water that knocks Emma out. Midell employs shaky handheld cinematography marked by sudden herky-jerky zooms throughout The Ritual, giving the material an aesthetic instability that fails to generate a sense of verité authenticity or dreadful unease. Shot in dark, muted hues, the film comes up with not a single enticing camera movement or image, and its tale proves similarly uninspired. In no time flat, Joseph starts voicing doubts about Theophilus's approach, whining repeatedly about his desire to have Emma seen by a professional doctor because her symptoms—such as a terrible seizure that causes her to foam at the mouth—resemble those associated with epilepsy. Theophilus pooh-poohs such concerns, arguing that Joseph's reservations are the tricks the Devil plays on the devout to weaken them in their divine battle. The Ritual embraces the narrative formula pioneered by The Exorcist and duplicated by legions of inferior wannabes, with Joseph plagued by a spiritual crisis that he's destined to overcome during a finale in which triumph is achieved by praying really hard. Before that inevitability, however, the film partakes in a cornucopia of familiar sights. Initially treated without restraints (because Joseph thinks them cruel), Emma lifts Sister Rose up by the hair, pulling out a giant clump in the process. Once tied down, she thrashes about, roars, and curses in English, Latin and Spanish. She additionally pukes bloody goo into a bucket, develops horrible sores all over her body, and attacks her Christian compatriots by thrusting her bed at them—all maneuvers that are so de rigueur it hurts, and are staged with not a shred of suspenseful surprise. Midell's tactics are almost as old as his diabolical baddie, and they include Jason Lazarus and Joseph Trapanese's shrieky score, copious loud noises to accompany wan jolts, and indecipherable whispering that everyone hears late at night in their rooms or in empty church hallways. Doors mysteriously creak open, Emma's body crackles as it contorts, and Stevens looks harried as a small-town priest who finds himself 'haunted' by Emma and the not-very-nice things she has to say about him and both Rose and Theophilus—not to mention he's freaked out by a spot on his arm that Emma licks and, later, appears to monstrously bubble. Stevens' character overreacts to everything that takes place over the course of the multiple rituals. Fortunately, he has Theophilus to calm him down with stories about his flight from evil in Europe and his personal connection to Emma, whom he didn't save years earlier when he was a rookie exorcist. The sole honest (and therefore interesting) moment in The Ritual features Joseph asking Theophilus why, out of all the people in the world, Emma was chosen to be preyed upon by Beelzebub's minions. Alas, Pacino's protagonist proffers an answer of such vague gibberish—apparently, she's a rare human with 'profound sensitivity' that leaves her ideally susceptible to the 'otherworldly'—that he inadvertently reveals the endeavor's silliness. For five decades and counting, demonic possession has been one of horror's favorite subjects. However, aside from Friedkin's 1973 classic, it's rarely effective if the films in question ask us to buy it as a legitimate phenomenon; better to embrace the florid, fanciful outrageousness of the conceit instead of pretending, as Midell does, that this is super-serious business. By hewing to the (supposed) historical record, The Ritual handcuffs itself, forced to trade in occurrences that are both hackneyed and tepid. The proceedings culminate with a basement showdown that peaks with the sight of Emma hovering ever-so-slightly off the ground—a deflating capper to a film that hasn't a clue how to scare. As a sage exorcist who's desperate for redemption, Pacino chews the scenery with as much gusto as possible, yet the material is so inept that it doesn't even provide him with corny dialogue or insane incidents that might let him really go over-the-top. His Theophilus views himself as Heaven's conduit in an eternal war against Hell, but this misfire strands its legendary star in bland B-movie purgatory.
