The horror genre has seen an explosion of found footage films and while The Last Exorcism received more commercial and critical acclaim, it’s the comparable The Taking of Deborah Logan that’s the superior picture.
Not only have found footage horror films become very popular, but movies that use this mold to tackle exorcisms have also on the rise in recent history. Both The Taking of Deborah Logan and The Last Exorcism explore this subject matter, albeit in very different ways. The former is framed around Alzheimer’s disease, whereas the latter is more of a meditation on faith. These found footage horror movies go down unique paths, but they’re both presented as documentaries and there’s a considerable amount of crossover between the horror films.
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The Taking of Deborah Logan has gained more of a cult following in recent years thanks to streaming services, but it was completely overlooked upon its release. It’s significant that both of these movies have comparable budgets of below $2 million, yet The Taking of Deborah Logan struggled to make even $500,000 back, while The Last Exorcism made nearly $70 million and earned itself a sequel. However, despite The Last Exorcism’s success and how both movies approach found footage horror in similar ways, The Taking of Deborah Logan is actually a deeper, superior film.
Its Use Of The Documentary Format
What instantly makes both of these horror films stand out is their use of the documentary structure to reinvigorate the limitations of found footage films. The Last Exorcism positions itself as a documentary about Preacher Marcus (Patrick Fabian) performing his last exorcism and his gradual disillusionment towards the church. This is a powerful angle, but The Taking of Deborah Logan makes the documentary structure even more integral to the story that it’s telling. The film is interspersed with plenty of talking head sequences with doctors and medical footage to hammer in the scientific nature of this documentary. There’s even a disclaimer that kicks off the film which tries to lend the documentary even more credence.
Brilliantly, at one point The Taking of Deborah Logan brings up a notorious serial killer, only to then cut to footage of another documentary on his crimes. It’s a smart way to go about exposition that compliments the structure. Furthermore, everyone in The Taking of Deborah Logan is exceptionally out of their league, as they’re not disillusioned preachers or ghost hunters, but individuals who are trying to put together a medical documentary on Alzheimer’s. It allows their fear to be palpable in a way that’s not present in The Last Exorcism.
How It Creates Pathos For Its Protagonist
The Last Exorcism has an exceptional cast that’s headlined by Patrick Fabian and Ashley Bell and, even though they’re both positioned as tragic figures who have experienced loss, they’ve got nothing on Deborah Logan. Jill Larson’s performance as the ravaged title character is exceptional. There’s immediate sympathy felt for Deborah as she appears to be stricken with Alzheimer’s, but matters only get progressively worse for her. She may technically be the villain of the film, but it puts both her family and the audience in complex moral territory because she’s clearly also a victim. The Taking of Deborah Logan figures out how to utilize the character’s illness to create unnerving sequences that are both terrifying and heartbreaking.
How The Locations Evolve
Another reason that The Taking of Deborah Logan is such an exceptional found footage horror film is how it organically moves the terror between locations to riff on different brands of the genre in the process. The majority of the film takes place within the Logan household, and the use of stationary and handheld cameras conjures an atmosphere reminiscent of Paranormal Activity. The movie eventually moves to a hospital and uses a lot of surveillance footage to depict Deborah’s decay before it then progresses to the woods with a conclusion that would make both The Blair Witch Project and The Descent proud. The Last Exorcism also moves its powerful finale to the woods, but there’s more going on in Deborah Logan as it tries to generate new scares out of its changing environments.
The Scope Of The Story
A serious flaw in some found footage and exorcism films is that there’s often a very rushed timeline. It makes sense that complications need to take place, but within the reality of the movies this can lead to some incredulity with the characters. The Taking of Deborah Logan shows that it takes place over the course of two months. The progression of Deborah’s behavior plays very differently over that time frame and the film doesn’t waste that. The movie shows how the entire family gets worn down over two months of this tension. The Last Exorcism is very focused, but that can work against it at times, especially for Marcus’ journey towards answers.
Both of these films handle exposition very well, but the situation at hand in The Taking of Deborah Logan also seems more intimidating. Granted, The Last Exorcism involves actual demons, monster births, and a haunting ritual, but much of these specifics are kept in the dark. Deborah Logan on the other hand explains that Deborah is merely the pawn of the spirit of a serial killer who wants to settle a grudge from beyond the grave. The Taking of Deborah Logan also has Deborah kidnap a young terminally ill girl, which adds a whole other sense of danger and victimhood to the situation that’s absent in The Last Exorcism.
How It Approaches An Exorcism
The Last Exorcism takes an atypical approach to exorcism films, and the ritual that ends the movie is amazing. The visuals are powerful, and the fact that this demonic vision can reignite Marcus’ faith is a beautiful idea, but it all touches on popular conventions that have been done before. The Taking of Deborah Logan doesn’t make the exorcism or ritual its priority, and they even get shut down by the church when they try to take that route. What’s so evocative about all of this is how Deborah—in her possessed state—begins to act like a snake, whether that means she spits out poisonous venom or unhinges her jaw to consume her prey. It’s a very original take on all of this. Unlike The Last Exorcism, unfortunately The Taking of Deborah Logan didn’t get a sequel to explore how this troubling story of possession continues, but the two horror films still make a solid double feature.