I remember first seeing The Exorcism of Emily Rose when it was initially released in 2005. It was the beginning of a small return to possession/exorcism in horror cinema, a somewhat stale subgenre that, while ripe for jump scares, has never really lived up to the impeccable storytelling and unnerving ambiance of the grandaddy of ‘em all, The Exorcist. Sure, there are good exorcism movies out there, but most are dreary, shock-laden substitutes for unnerving, stick-to-your-bones horror.
But I do remember The Exorcism of Emily Rose terrifying the holy ghost outta me. Mainly through the portrayal of Emily herself, played by Jennifer Carpenter, and her haunting body contortions done without the aid of CGI. Upon rewatch, the film does fall into that obscure category of excorcinema that, while boasting some frightening moments, holds more real-world implications than actual spooks.
The film subverts usual possession expectations by surrounding itself in the aftermath of a failed exorcism and subsequent trial of overseeing Priest Father Moore (Tom Wilkinson). Having been charged with negligent homicide, the Arch Diocese hires crack defense attorney Erin Bruner (Laura Linney) to defend him. Through the court proceedings, we are given glimpses of Emily’s story – a small-town girl going away to her big city college, having severe physical and psychological episodes perceived to be demonic possession, returning home, and undergoing exorcism rites finally leading to her death. We see and hear these encounters via testimony from both sides, the scientific and the supernatural, providing an interesting mix of viewpoints on perceived possession. But we spend a large amount of time with the skeptical Bruner, whose lack of faith is being tested throughout the story by the dark forces surrounding the trial.
In the case of Emily Rose, the well-documented possession and court case that inspired the tale are scarier than the celluloid.
The Possession, Exorcism, and Court Case of Anneliese Michel
Anna Elisabeth (Anneliese) Michel was born on September 21, 1952, to parents Anna and Joseph Michel in the rural Bavarian community of Klingenberg. She was raised alongside three sisters, a devout Catholic upbringing, as was about 70% of the population of Bavaria in the 1950s-70s. She grew up sickly, getting measles, mumps, and scarlet fever at a young age. She was skinny compared to her sisters, often complaining of subtle maladies common in youth but not as common in one person.
At 16 years old, Anneliese suffered her first of two severe convulsive episodes. Her second came shortly after she turned 17, and she was subjected to a series of EEGs to determine the cause of the malady. At this point, many texts assert that she was diagnosed with epilepsy. However, the testimony from her overseeing physician, Dr. Lüthy, during the court proceedings said she displayed “normal, physiological alpha-type brain activity.”(1) She was given the anti-convulsive Zentropil and monitored on a regular basis.
Her situation got worse, complaining of sore throat constantly and eventually having her tonsils removed. She got pneumonia and contracted a tuberculosis infection. She then had a third convulsion and was admitted to a psychiatric facility. There, her seizures were accompanied by screaming moans, and her body would convulse and contort, leaving her roommates terrified of her. She was despondent and would have daylight hallucinations of “devil’s faces” in clouds, trees, and art. She grew averse to religious symbols, complaining of foul smells coming from the facility’s chapel, which she refused to go inside. When not in the thrall of her afflictions, she came off as shy and mildly depressive, yet mostly normal.
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A family friend of the Michel’s would regularly organize religious pilgrimages that Anneliese attended. In 1970, on a trip to San Damiano, Anneliese refused to enter the shrine. She broke a rosary and was unable to drink the water from a Holy spring. Despite this, she still attempted to enter the consecrated grounds of the garden but found herself physically incapable of entering the gate. Her escort noted in all other aspects, that she seemed a normal, shy girl and was visibly upset she couldn’t participate like the other travelers. The family friend became convinced Anneliese was demonically possessed and shared this with her family. The priests could not verify her affliction as anything more than medical and refused to pursue exorcism. Instead, she would add religious council to her treatment prior to returning to school.
No sooner did school start than Anneliese had another severe seizure. Further EEGs showed nothing untoward. She was regularly seeing Father Ernest Alt, in whom she confided the more spiritual interpretations of her state. Despite taking her medications, she would suffer bouts of absenteeism and body stiffening. She told Father Alt she was being “molested” by the demons during these episodes. When he witnessed one of the molestations, Father Alt recited the Lord’s prayer, and Anneliese was immediately freed from her torment.
Anneliese went to University, where she attended any one of four on-campus churches and continued taking her medications, but of course, her symptoms worsened. She would see ghastly faces everywhere she looked. She isolated herself, growing depressed and disengaged in her studies.
Then she met Peter, and they fell in love. For two weeks, things were blissfully serene, but it didn’t last. Anneliese asserted that she couldn’t love him the same way due to her depression and romantic frigidity. Peter refused to give up on her and wouldn’t be pushed away, bearing witness to several unnerving episodes in their time together. Also, despite disengagement with her studies, she did well in school and even made an impression on the director of the University, who took a personal interest in her health.
She had another EEG at the director’s behest. Dr. Irmgard Scheip would finally state Anneliese did, in fact, have “epileptic patterns” in her brain cycles – however, the diagnosis of epilepsy was withheld pending further testing that would never come. The doctor surmised that the epilepsy, coupled with a previous diagnosis of her depressive psychosis from the psychiatric facility, were reasonable explanations for all her symptoms. She was taken off her previous medication and given Tegretol, a stronger drug to treat to seizures but with more damaging side effects, including behavioral changes, depression, loss of appetite, and detachment from reality.
The new course of drugs did nothing to prevent her seizures or psychotic episodes and, in fact, could have made them worse. She grew physically aggressive towards herself and others. She drank her own urine and ate insects – which seemed to be the only nourishment she could keep down. She would frequently complain about horrid odors no one else smelt and hear phantom banging on doors. She would growl and shout in foreign languages like Latin and Aramaic, which, while she had access to learning these languages, were advanced beyond her studies. By 1975, she chose to return home to her family, cut off all medical treatment, and seek refuge in Faith alone.
With Anneliese’s consent and new evidence backing their claims, Father Alt brought in priest Arnold Renz and received the necessary approval from Bishop Josef Stangl to perform the Ritual Romanum of 1619, aka the Rites of Exorcism. Over the course of 10 months, beginning September 1975, the priests would perform 67 exorcisms. Over time, the separation between Anneliese and her demons grew larger, and it was clear there was a young, tired girl completely separate from the demons possessing her. Eventually, the demons would identify themselves as six different entities: Belial, Judas Iscariot, Nero, Cain, Legion, and even Lucifer himself.
Near the end, Anneliese grew to believe her death would atone for the sins of youth and vanity. She stopped eating completely, hoping to weaken herself and, subsequently, the hold of the demons within her. By Christmas 1975, Father Alt reportedly began seeing his own visions, that of a living Christ on the Cross and a girl surrounded by brilliant light, accompanied by an ethereal chant, “For You.”(2)
Her family supported her as best they could; however, they were afraid of Anneliese. She was left under a table for two days, barking like a dog. She would defecate on the floor and be physically aggressive towards those attempting to clean it. However, eventually, she became too weak, and on July 1, 1976, she died of malnutrition and dehydration, weighing 68lbs, missing teeth, her body bruised and tattered from the constant convulsions she was subjected to by the demons that tormented her.
And yet, Father Alt and Renz believed Anneliese was finally free of her demons in death, a modern martyr and Holy saint. Authorities, however, charged both Priests and Anneliese parents with negligent homicide and went to trial in March 1978.
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A series of doctors testified to Anneliese Michel’s continued medical treatment and psychological diagnoses. They broke down how her epilepsy, coupled with a paranoid psychosis exacerbated by religious upbringing, put her in a unique position where she was easily persuaded to believe her condition was demonic in origin and, therefore, consenting to all the physical and mental torment she underwent. After the playing of over forty recordings of the exorcism, the main concerns became (a) was anyone encouraging Anneliese to eat or drink? and (b) Why wasn’t someone with medical training brought in to oversee the health of Anneliese during the rites?
The defense, helmed by both Church-appointed lawyers and defense attorney Erich Schmidt-Leichner, stood that there was reasonable doubt that her condition could have been brought on by demonic forces. Using anthropological evidence of successful exorcisms from around the glove, it was asserted that the Rites of Exorcism, when performed on a religiously inclined individual, can work in favor of freeing the possessed of their psychosis when proper rituals are performed. And if not psychosis, then freed of the very real demons themselves.
Only one medical doctor would testify on behalf of the defense, Doctor Richard Roth, who had witnessed at least one of the exorcisms early on. He claimed to visit Anneliese on request by Father Alt and saw the opportunity as a “scientific curiosity” and not for medical purposes. Roth claimed she did not appear physically injured and was in relatively good health at the time of his visit. However, seeing the events of exorcism unfold led him to understand there was nothing natural about Anneliese’s condition. To further refute the prosecution, Anneliese’s body was exhumed and supposedly displayed normal signs of decay. During her autopsy, it was reported that her brain displayed no signs of damage that would cause epileptic seizures, even on a microscopic level.
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The trial began to reveal a very real possibility that the suffering Anneliese went through was not medical at all. Her horrific experiences continued to be medically questionable, giving more clout to the demonic truths surrounding Anneliese in the final seven years of her life. However, as noted in a Washington Post article Cries of a Woman Possessed (1978), “A not-guilty verdict could be seen as opening the gate to more exorcism attempts – and possibly unhappy outcomes – in an area where a certain amount of superstition still lives.”
Ultimately, the priests and Anneliese’s family were found guilty of negligent homicide, with the lenient sentence of “time served” for the parents and three months probation for the Priests. Anneliese Michel’s body was reburied two years later, and her gravesite remains a Catholic pilgrimage in Friedhof Klingenberg am Main, Bavaria, Germany, to this day.
When it comes to tales of possession and the supernatural, it only takes one. One case, one sliver of proof, to open the reality that every terrifying tale is true. So, was Anneliese possessed by real demons? Or did she suffer from a horrifying combination of afflictions that were beyond the scope of 1970’s medical treatment? While the courts found the parents and priests guilty of negligent homicide, does that dismiss the possibility that the demons inside Anneliese Michel truly existed?
Other than the visions of Father Alt, the supernatural events surrounding the trial are unaccounted for and seem to be fabricated solely for the film adaptation. Director Scott Derrickson leaves the account fairly intact, truncated, and Americanized, yes, but serving to further blur the lines separating science and supernatural, faith and facts, and force us all to acknowledge there are some things in this world that may never be explained.
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(1) “Enter the Ghastly Faces.” The Exorcism of Anneliese Michel, by Felicitas D. Goodman, Resource Publications, 2005, pp. 15.
(2) “Physicians & Priests.” The Exorcism of Anneliese Michel, by Felicitas D. Goodman, Resource Publications, 2005, pp. 47.
