The Exorcist it is not. The Exorcism of Emily Rose, while it deals with the esoteric topic of exorcism, bears little relation to that other movie.

What you don't learn from the commercials on TV is that Emily Rose is a courtroom drama. About half of the action of the film takes place in a courtroom, at the trial of Father Richard Moore (Tom Wilkinson), who has been accused of negligent homicide; that is, by not doing something, he contributed to someone's death. And whose death is it? Yep: Emily Rose has died. The very first thing that happens in the film is the medical examiner coming to the Rose family's house to determine a cause of death. The story of Emily Rose's exorcism is told in flashback during the course of this courtroom drama. Some people think she was psychotic; others think she was possessed.

First, this isn't your average horror movie. The first half of the movie contains a lot of "jump" moments and a lot of creepy moments. You have to ask yourself: is Emily Rose possessed? What's going on, here? While the flashbacks -- which are subjective -- definitely presume demonic possession, the objective parts of the film aren't so sure. There really is a serious question as to whether or not Emily Rose was possessed, even if the movie's tone comes out in favor of possession, not psychosis.

The second half of the movie focuses more on the trial. If you like Law & Order, you'll like this movie. Otherwise, you'll be bored in between the horror moments. Emily Rose would like to be a big, important debate about spirituality. It even brings up an interesting point: demons exist whether you believe in them or not. Maybe God exists. Maybe I'll remember where I left my pants. The movie tries for the profound, but gets mired in the fact that it's a horror movie.

Tom Wilkinson is great, as always. Laura Linney is adequate, as always. In fact, everyone in this movie does as good a job as can be expected in their respective roles. But ... it's a horror movie! By the end, when the film gets to its most profound, you'll find yourself saying, "Are you kidding? This is a horror movie!"

"But, Mark, you shouldn't pigeonhole this film into a particular genre." That would be a great statement to make, except that the movie pigeonholes itself. It makes use of the conventions of the horror film -- the jumps, the creeps, the hand-held camera during the creepiest parts (brought to you by The Blair Witch Project) -- but wants to be more than a horror film. That's great, but it would require writing and directing of tremendous, maybe superhuman talent. In the end, Emily Rose is a horror movie, and it's a pretty good one if you want a few scares.