BASED ON A TRUE STORY: THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE
It's not at all uncommon for horror movies to claim they were based on actual events. Particularly in the last 20 or so years, the tagline 'based on a true story' seems to have become a really popular marketing ploy. I often find myself questioning with these movies, however, exactly how accurately they really portray the events upon which they claim to be based - and I'm sure you do too. That's why I've taken it upon myself to research into what really happened to inspire these films, and whether or not they can accurately make the claim to be 'based on true events'. And what better place to start than with my own favourite film - 2005 demonic possession flick The Exorcism of Emily Rose. A couple of words of warning - this post, as with the others in this series, will likely contain spoilers to some extent, so proceed at your own risk. This post in particular also contains some disturbing images and links to disturbing audio involving death and apparent demonic possession. Please be aware if you are sensitive to such material that you ought to continue reading with caution.
To give a rundown of the film, The Exorcism of Emily Rose follows a court case surrounding the death of a young woman - the eponymous Emily Rose. Emily has passed away from a combination of self-inflicted wounds and malnutrition following a series of Catholic exorcisms, and the jury is left to decide whether or not Emily was ever really possessed or whether she was severely mentally ill and in need of psychiatric care with which she was not sufficiently provided.
The film claims to be based on the true story of Anna Elisabeth "Anneliese" Michel, a young German woman who similarly passed away following a series of exorcisms.
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Anneliese Michel, shortly before her apparent demonic possession began. |
Aged sixteen, Anneliese suffered what would be the first of many episodes of losing consciousness, blacking out during school and wandering around in what friends and family would later describe as a 'trance-like' state. Michel claimed to remember nothing of the event, but reported later that night she felt pinned to her own bed by an invisible force on her chest.
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| Diagram highlighting the area affected by temporal lobe epilepsy |
Eleven months later, Anneliese experienced a similar episode, during which she entered a similar 'trance-like' state, convulsed and wet the bed. After this second occurence, her mother Anna took her to be evaluated by both the family doctor and a neurologist, who diagnosed her with temporal lobe epilepsy, a neurological disorder which can cause epileptic psychosis, which is categorised by memory loss and hallucinations, both auditory and visual. Perhaps interesting to note, temporal lobe epilepsy has also been known to cause Geschwind Syndrome, whose symptoms include hyperreligiosity - that is, increased, intense and sometimes abnormal religious beliefs and experiences.
In June 1970, Anneliese was a resident in a psychiatric hospital, where she experienced her third seizure. It was at this point that she was first prescribed anti-convulsant medication, namely Dilantin. However, this did little to alleviate the symptoms of her condition. Anneliese also began to complain of seeing 'devil faces' at various times of the day. For these apparent hallucinations, Anneliese was prescribed the anti-psychotic medication Aolept, which is sometimes used to treat psychoses associated with some types of schizophrenia.
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| Anneliese was prescribed Dilantin for a number of years in a failed attempt to alleviate the symptoms of her epilepsy. |
Despite her condition, Anneliese enrolled in the University of Würzburg in 1973. Classmates and friends stated that she was a withdrawn and deeply religious young woman, preferring to stay in her room and pray rather than partaking in the various social activities that university had to offer. However, her withdrawal was perhaps not devout in nature - Anneliese was rather effectively masking a serious decline in her mental health, suffering from rather severe depression. It was also around this time that she claimed she began to hear voices taunting her while she prayed, telling her she was 'damned' and ensuring she would 'rot in hell'. Despite extensive psychological treatment, Anneliese's mental state seemed only to deteriorate and she eventually began to attribute her condition to demonic possession. She became intolerant of religious symbols, such as the Madonna and the crucifix and is reported to have complained that the "soil burned like fire" on a religious pilgrimage to San Damiano with a friend. In late 1973, she was taken off Dilantin on recommendation of a Freudian psychologist, and instead prescribed Tegretol, a much stronger anti-convulsant which is also used in the treatment of schizophrenia.
Upon believing herself to be possessed, Anneliese began seeking a priest who would perform an exorcism. Anna Michel claimed that they sought a Jesuit on the advice of neurologist Dr Luthy, however Luthy has fervently denied this claims in the years following Anneliese's death, and it is unknown whether or not the family truly acted on his recommendation or of their own volition. Regardless of their reasoning, the family were rejected on their first two applications for exorcism, with clergy insisting that Anneliese seek medical help instead. During this time, Anneliese suffered from intense psychotic episodes and exhibited bizarre behaviours, including eating insects and drinking her own urine. The Michel family also reported supernatural activity in their home, including swarms of flies and flickering lights. Psychiatric treatment seemed to no longer be of any use to Anneliese, as nothing seemed to improve her condition.
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| Bishop Stangl |
In 1975, the Michels submitted their third application for exorcism, which was approved by Bishop Josef Stangl of Würzburg. He appointed local pastor Father Ernst Alt and former missionary Father Arnold Renz to carry out the exorcism, which they began on 24 September 1975. During the exorcism, it was revealed that Anneliese was apparently possessed by six entities - a disgraced priest, Roman emperor Nero, Hitler, Cain, Judas Iscariot and even Lucifer himself. At one point, it was believed that Anneliese had been rid of all but one of the entities - only for the other five to return the very next day. When questioned why Anneliese was being possessed, the entities replied that she was being punished for her mother's infidelity.
Prior to the exorcism's beginning, Anneliese had claimed on several occasions that she had been visited by Mother Mary. During a quiet period the rites, in October 1975, she claimed to have experienced another such visit, in which Mary asked her to do penance for lost souls. Anneliese agreed, and thereafter her apparent possession intensified. Due to this event, some regard Anneliese as a saintly figure.
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| Anneliese, pictured here with her mother, deteriorated physically as well as mentally during her exorcism. |
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| Anneliese's partner, Peter, alongside her parents and Father Renz at her funeral |
Following Anneliese's death, her parents and the priests were harshly criticised; medical specialists and religious skeptics alike argued that Anneliese had not been possessed but, rather, severely mentally ill and suggested that referral to a psychiatric hospital would have been preferable to the exorcism rites that she went through. It was also suggested that had she been force-fed even a week before her death, she likely would have survived the exorcisms. Even Bishop Stagl noted that he had not been made aware of Anneliese's prior psychiatric issues, and claimed he would not have okayed the exorcism had he known.
The case went to trial in March of 1978, where the Anna and Josef Michel, as well as Fathers Alt and Renz, were accused of murder by gross negligence. The defence argued that all four should be protected by German constitution, as exorcism could be considered a protected religious practise. They also played tapes of Anneliese during the exorcism (which can be heard here - be warned, they are very unsettling), claiming them as definitive proof that she was possessed. The prosecution, however, argued that the priests may have subconsciously encouraged the type of psychotic behaviour required to be possessed. After three weeks, all four were convicted of negligent homicide and sentenced to six month's prison time. The sentence was suspended, however, with three years probation and the prison time was eventually dropped with both the Michels and the priests being fined.
Whether you believe Anneliese was truly possessed or that she was suffering a severe form of epileptic psychosis one thing is plainly clear - she was a kind and selfless young woman, who dedicated her short life trying to atone for the sins of the lost. Her premature death was a tragedy, and one can only hope that wherever her soul is now, she is resting in the peace she so sorely deserved.
As for the similarities between the real case and the film - they're not exactly few and far between, but they're hardly exactly the same story either. Is it fair to called The Exorcism of Emily Rose 'based on true events'? Perhaps loosely, but it is by no means an accurate retelling of Anneliese Michel's story.
Special thanks to the following sources which I used for my research:
Keep it weird,
Jazz xo
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