Alejandro Hidalgo talks about THE EXORCISM OF GOD

Hi guys, this is Barbarella. When Alejandro Hidalgo's House at the End of Time came out years ago, it became one of my favorite horror films of the decade, and it is now one of my favorite horror movies of the past two decades. It wasn't just that it was shot beautifully in and around a striking house, or that it weaves a certain creepiness all over the place. Instead, it's the unique way the story unfolds that elevates it and makes it a fully satisfying film. If you haven't seen it, you can (and should) check it out now as it's currently on a variety of streaming platforms.

The talented Venezuelan filmmaker directs another film, THE EXORCISM OF GOD, written by him and Santiago Fernández Calvete. Including different ways of looking at possession and exorcism, the English-language film tells the story of American priest Peter Williams, working in Mexico, plagued by a dark secret and faced with a job that forces him to face his past. I had the pleasure of speaking with Alejandro about the film. Check it out.

The Exorcist has set the bar high for films of exorcism, and I always worry about filmmakers who decide to make a movie about exorcism because you're never going to get back to that level. What made you decide to make a movie about it?< /p>

"Well, my goal is never to top a masterpiece like The Exorcist which, as you said, is totally impossible. But since I'm a big fan of this movie, I wanted to have fun making one and creating a story that feels really powerful and filled with incredible horror moments and also with a pretty interesting story, exploring human dilemmas, human conflict. feel like we've made a movie that doesn't top The Exorcist, but it's something you can have a great time watching with popcorn, having scares incredible. [It also has] a story that will bring thought, reflection, debate. That's what I feel about art.

"It's my own tribute to The Exorcist. It's always been a dream since I was little to make a film like this. I'm really happy with the result. I never had the ambition to change the genre, but to bring some very cool and original twists, and I think we did.”

Yes. So you used some beautiful locations as well. I love that you chose to shoot some of this in a prison. What kinds of factors did you have when determining where you wanted to film?

"Well, I wanted to bring America a very different setting. All the horror movies that we see in America are basically set in America, and I think there's a very special, unique, and beautiful in Latin America. My initial intention was to shoot this film in my own country, Venezuela, a beautiful country with incredible heavenly places. It was not possible because of the crisis, because of the dictatorship and the social implosion that we experienced a few months before the filming of the film. I had to move to another place and I found that Mexico was the ideal place because there were beautiful places. There are people very amazing and talented. It was great because in Mexico, like in all Latino countries, we see people struggling and going through hard times with poverty and crisis. The film shows you that but also shows you the beauty of these places.

"Also, our protagonist, Father Peter, is American, but he falls in love with Mexico. . He doesn't want to leave Mexico. He loves the people. He loves their warmth. I think that's a very important message, especially when at that time we had a president who was basically...