RipDelight This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

lavatch "Audrey Rose" started well as a thriller in the mold of "The Exorcist." A child is possibly "inhabited" by another child named Audrey Rose, who died in a tragic auto crash wherein she was trapped in the car. The lost soul has now taken on a new life in haunting little Ivy Templeton.A good cast (Marsha Mason, John Beck, Anthony Hopkins) keeps the suspense going until the film falters by turning the case into a courtroom drama. It is when lawyers get involved and try to "prove" the existence of reincarnation that the film has a major meltdown.The second half of film also includes far too much pretentious dialogue about how the soul must be mended and this incident is but "one act in a cosmic drama of many lifetimes." Please! The early portion of the film was on stronger dramatic ground when Anthony Hopkins' character was comforting the child by saying, "Dada is here." The pretentious excerpt from the Bhagavad Gita ("the soul is eternal, ever-existing, undying, and primeval") appearing on the screen at the end gave the impression that the filmmakers were engaged in a documentary, not a horror film.The excellent performers, especially Mason as the vulnerable mother, was wasted in the film's conclusion that took the form of a long hypnosis session of little Ivy/Audrey. In the end, the filmmakers wanted this film to be a provocative learning experience about world religions, but the result was only disturbing and unpleasant.

gavin6942 A stranger (Anthony Hopkins) attempts to convince a happily married couple that their daughter (Susan Swift) is actually his daughter reincarnated.The film mixes horror and religion, but the typical Catholic religion of the horror tradition. Here it is Hinduism, with all the good and bad that can come of reincarnation. The movie even uses a quotation from the Bhagavad-Gita: "There is no end. For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does it ever cease to be. It is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval." This very much sums up the tone of the film.The film has been called a ripoff of "The Exorcist", and given it is the story of a girl in the 1970s who may have the spirit / soul of another inside her, that may be a fair assessment. New York Times critic Vincent Canby went through every effort to draw parallels between the two.In contrast, English professor Adrian Schober wrote that the film "is more a reaction to and reworking of The Exorcist than a 'rip-off', minus the sensationalism, special effects and vulgarity." This is more fair, because for those not watching the film in the 1970s, it may not be obvious how much this film could be compared to the "Exorcist".Comparisons aside, we get some good acting from Susan Swift, especially in the third act. This was her debut performance, and she has only acted sporadically since. Horror fans may know her from "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers", where she played Mary. Mark Hasan writes that the film "remains a fine example of horror conveyed through emotion, circumstance and atmosphere instead of visual and aural pyrotechnics."Unfortunately, the best home release available right now (2015) is from Twilight Time. Their Blu-ray is limited to only 3000 copies, which has the side effect of driving the price way up. Good luck finding one new for under $40, which is out of the price range for most fans (especially when it can be seen for free on Netflix).

jarrodmcdonald-1 AUDREY ROSE is a thoughtful and superb supernatural thriller about reincarnation (with some Catholicism mixed in). The picture is directed by Robert Wise, whose previous work with THE HAUNTING, proves he is no stranger to these types of stories. In fact, AUDREY ROSE is so well made it screams for repeat viewings. Anthony Hopkins is featured in a key role, years before his frightening turn as the cannibalistic Hannibal Lector. He plays a man that has become convinced his young daughter-- killed in a terrible auto accident-- was reborn to an unsuspecting couple (Marsha Mason & John Beck). When the girl in question begins to experience powerful sensations of a past life, Hopkins steps out of the shadows and into their lives.

AaronCapenBanner John Beck & Marsha Mason play Bill & Janice Templeton, a happily married New York couple with a young daughter named Ivy, who becomes the center of attention after she is repeatedly followed by a mysterious man, who eventually makes contact, and introduces himself as Elliot Hoover(played by Anthony Hopkins) who had lost his own daughter Audrey Rose 11 years ago in a car accident, and who is convinced that Ivy is his daughter Audrey reincarnated. The Templeton's are sympathetic for his loss, but scoff at reincarnation. However, when Ivy starts having horrible nightmares, Hoover gets directly involved and takes Ivy/Audrey out of their apartment, which prompts his arrest, and a trial involving the validity of reincarnation, which results in Ivy undergoing hypnosis, with unexpected results...Anthony Hopkins is excellent, and though director Robert Wise imbues the film with some atmosphere, it is unfortunately plodding and overlong, though does retain some interest in the premise, its conclusion is not very satisfying, almost becoming ridiculous.