'Deliver Us From Evil' Delves into Child Molesting

In the history of documentary making, Amy Berg takes a step forward and pushes the envelope to such an extent that it is yet unsure how many will have the courage to sit through this shocking movie. The daring director not only delves into child molesting by Catholic priests but even managed to get the man known as the greatest pedophile ever to speak about his crimes.

To see Oliver O'Grady, whose victims are supposed to easily surpass hundreds, an old man, freely roaming among children, talking about how he gets aroused when he sees kids in their underwear, and all the time feeling (more than visually perceiving) that twinkle in his eyes and that crooked smile that lingers at the corners of his mouth is not unsettling. It's positively outrageous.

Amy makes up her 101-minute story of two juxtaposed narrative threads, one being O'Grady's side of things and his apparent lack of remorse at having destroyed the lives of so many families, while completely shattering their belief in God, the other being the side of the victims, still incapable of moving on from the priest's monstrosities, even if so many years passed by.

The documentary tells the story of corruption in the most unlikely place. It is all about the Catholic Church harboring a monster, a wolf in sheep's clothing, for more than 30 years. O'Grady was repeatedly moved from one parish to another when the rumor that he was molesting children became too strong, with the aid of Archbishop of Los Angeles, Cardinal Roger Mahoney. Every time word got out that the priest was molesting infants (his youngest victim was barely nine months old!), the Archbishop made it his job of replacing him in another place, where his reputation was yet unknown.

Ironically, O'Grady spent only 7 years (out of 14) in jail and then was sent to Ireland, his native country, where he was virtually a nobody, where he lives now freely, surrounded by children. It is mainly that aspect that the documentary is trying to stress, besides that the Church is in most cases aware of what is going on amidst the clergy and is willing to do nothing to prevent and/or stop it.

'Deliver Us from Evil' can be seen in cinemas starting from October 13, if the MPAA will find a rating suitable for it. The trailer (click here to see it) is currently running without the MPAA approval, standing good chances of being yanked from the screens. All in all, not advisable to children or teenagers, a proof that, sometimes, Evil is out there, living among us and not some obscure force that watches silently, waiting for us to have a misstep.