There’s something inherently cursed about Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist, and not in the way it intends. As the first attempt at an origin story for Father Merrin’s battle with Pazuzu, Paul Schrader’s take on the material is a sluggish and misguided affair that never finds its footing. It exists in a strange limbo—not as outright ridiculous as Renny Harlin’s Exorcist: The Beginning (the studio-mandated reshoot that replaced it) but just as devoid of true terror. The film fumbles in nearly every aspect, weighed down by a plodding script and woefully outdated CGI that undermines any atmosphere it tries to build.

Stellan Skarsgård does his best to elevate the material, but even his presence as a younger Father Merrin isn’t enough to salvage a film that constantly fights against itself. Schrader leans into psychological horror over cheap thrills, which in theory should work—but the execution is flat and lifeless. Key moments that should be disturbing are instead unintentionally laughable, thanks in no small part to the distractingly bad effects work. The demonically contorted bodies and spectral visions come across as half-baked, robbing the film of any lasting impact.

One of the film’s biggest sins is how it fails to generate any real tension. Despite Schrader’s more introspective approach, the pacing is painfully sluggish, and the horror elements feel like an afterthought. There are glimmers of intriguing ideas—the exploration of faith and guilt, Merrin’s past trauma, and the horrors of war—but they’re buried under lifeless dialogue and stiff performances from much of the supporting cast. The possessed Cheche (Billy Crawford) should have been the film’s terrifying centerpiece, but instead, he’s saddled with effects so poor they make The Scorpion King look like cutting-edge CGI.

The Exorcist franchise has always struggled with its sequels, but Dominion proves that sometimes, an origin story just isn’t necessary. It lacks the primal terror of the original and even the bizarre charm of some later entries, leaving it as a dull and frustrating misfire. While it’s marginally better than Harlin’s chaotic take, that’s hardly a glowing endorsement. In the end, Dominion is a film that never should have been resurrected.

• Saul Muerte