'The Deliverance' Is A Mess Of A Movie
Netflix’s “The Deliverance” is one of those films that leaves you with a lot of questions — and not in a good way. The horror movie, directed by Lee Daniels, boasts a star-studded cast that includes Andra Day, Mo’Nique, Glenn Close, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Omar Epps and Caleb McLaughlin. Tasha Smith, Demi Singleton, Miss Lawrence and impressive newcomer Anthony B. Jenkins also appear.
Much of the press around the movie notes the reunion of Daniels and Mo’Nique, who ended their yearslong feud after he publicly apologized to the Oscar-winning actor in 2022. Octavia Spencer, who was originally cast in the film, had scheduling conflicts, and Daniels asked Mo’Nique to replace her in the movie. The duo also worked together on another horror flick, “The Reading,” which was released on BET+ in 2023.
However, there’s a lot more to say about “The Deliverance.” The film is loosely based on the true story of Latoya Ammons and her three children, who claimed to be possessed by demons in Gary, Indiana, in the early 2010s. Their story — which started with flies, just like in the film — was deeply reported by The Indianapolis Star. Initially, few wanted to believe Ammons.
The plot of the film is almost just as bizarre. Set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 2011, Day portrays Ebony Jackson, a struggling single mother of three kids (McLaughlin, Singleton and Jenkins) who recently moved from Philadelphia into a house haunted by an evil spirit. Close is cast as Alberta, Ebony’s churchgoing mother who, as Danielssaid, personifies the white woman “every Black person knows.” She has cancer, wears a cropped mop of a wig and looooves her a young Black man. (We’ll get into more of that later.) Mo’Nique’s character, Cynthia, is a social worker who is tasked with checking in on the Jackson family since their absent father/husband has petitioned for custody of the children. Ellis-Taylor plays the Rev. Bernice James, who is determined to help the family exorcise their demons.
The horror-thriller is not particularly scary nor thrilling, but somehow we got through it all to tell you more about how absurd it is. In this chat below, we discuss what makes “The Deliverance” one of those films that you can’t believe ever made it to the screen.
OK, So First Let’s Give Our Initial Thoughts On The Movie
I didn’t have high expectations going into this film. I watched Lee Daniels and Mo’Nique’s previous foray into horror with “The Reading” last year. It’s been odd to watch the conversations about “The Deliverance,” as they are being framed around this reunion, when … “The Reading” came out first. Now, there wasn’t as much promotion for that film, which doesn’t surprise me since that seems to be par for the course with BET+ productions. Anyways, the cast is what pulled me into this film: I find Andra Day’s Hollywood trajectory to be fascinating; I love seeing Mo’Nique on-screen; Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor is a real force. Caleb McLaughlin and Demi Singleton are young and talented. And Glenn Close is GLENN CLOSE. But the writing on this film does not come together at all, and the plot is pretty flimsy. The religious framing of it all is just … snooooooze. I finished the film with so many questions, and I hate that. — Erin
I went into watching “The Deliverance” only knowing that it was a horror flick starring Andra Day, Glenn Close, Mo’Nique, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Caleb McLaughlin. (Omar Epps in that role was quite a shocker.) No shade, but I didn’t have high expectations for a Lee Daniels movie in this genre. However, I knew it’d still be entertaining on some level, and I was right because I found myself laughing way more than I should have at a “scary” movie. At one point, I wasn’t sure what film I was watching anymore because the plot drags so much in the beginning and nothing remotely terrifying happens until Anthony B. Jenkins’ character climbs up a hospital wall backward. (Even that was mild jump scare.) The movie overall doesn’t offer a good enough setup for a suspenseful horror film to revive my faith in the genre, and the writing itself is oftentimes too cringe to take seriously. I’m also not a fan of scary movies that try to wrap everything up with a happily-ever-after ending after a hellish climax. The most enjoyable part of “The Deliverance” was Mo’Nique, which is sad when you have greats like Ellis-Taylor and Close who were grossly miscast. Perhaps knowing it was based on a true story before the end of the movie would’ve lured me in more. — Njera
I went into this with very low expectations, considering much of Lee Daniels’ track record — “The Paperboy” and “The United States vs. Billie Holiday,” for example, are both outrageously awful movies — and, honestly, I can say that those expectations were met. Included in this potpourri of terrible storytelling and directorial choices are caricatures instead of actual characters, bearing no resemblance to how human beings actually behave. I watch a lot of horror and realize modern American horror is not in the greatest place right now. So some of what happens here (totally expected plot twists and a hyperfocus on message instead of story) is stuff I’ve seen in other films. But, it’s the caricature part of it all that really stands out to me.
I also have to point out that David Coggeshall and Elijah Bynum co-wrote this disaster with Daniels. So, he can’t bear all the blame for what we see here. Coggeshall does not have the greatest track record either. (His credits include the ill-advised “Scream: The TV Series.”) And as one of very few people who actually watched “Magazine Dreams,” Bynum’s last directorial effort, at the Sundance Film Festival last year, I can kinda see that he has really great ideas. But they don’t always come together. I’m not sure which idea(s) in “The Deliverance” is/are his, but man … it’s just a bad look all around.
Once I read that the character of Alberta is entirely made up and not in the true story at all, which was after I watched the movie, I got irrationally upset about it. So, you just add a white trailer-trash mom rocking Kate Gosselin’s old lopsided do, who walks around in clothes that no one else in the movie wears, and randomly has all the Black dudes INCLUDING ONE PLAYED BY OMAR EPPS on the block sprung over her — for funsies? I’m insulted on behalf of the poor white trash community. — Candice
Old. Lopsided. Do. I am screaming!!!! — Erin
Did The Cast Perform Well, At Least?
You know, I actually thought Andra Day was really good in this movie. She was bringing everything she possibly could to the role, despite how weak the plot is. The youngest son, Dre, portrayed by Anthony B. Jenkins, was pretty phenomenal in this as well. I was legit scared of him and his character when he gets possessed. Caleb McLaughlin and Demi Singleton were just … there. They didn’t seem to have much to work with other than McLaughlin’s character getting bullied and then both of them being possessed later on in the film. I’ll save all my thoughts for Glenn Close in this next section. She deserves a lot of words. — Erin
For a cast full of buzzy names, “The Deliverance” doesn’t make much use of them. The only real standout in the movie is Day, whose performance wasn’t half-bad despite the writing not being up to par. Again, Mo’Nique was a favorite, but only because she was her usual funny, no-nonsense self — I refuse to believe a social worker actually behaves like that when checking on a family. I still have many questions as to why Epps was cast to play the nurse/boo thang for Close’s character because … why? Wasting Epps’ talent as a weak supporting character was just a stupid decision. Same for Ellis-Taylor’s character, who gets no clarity until the latter half of the movie. I’m starting to believe most of these actors were cast to make “The Deliverance” sound better than it actually is. Whatever the plan was, it wasn’t a success. — Njera
The cast is really great — 10/10 on the cast. Lots of great talent here, including Day, who I think is a much better actor than she might be given credit for — but she really needs to stay away from Daniels’ movies. They’re not doing her any favors, obviously. The performances … I have to blame the director for each of them, because there is just no way this film should have wrapped when you got Close acting like a whole cartoon character, Day’s Ebony half-written and almost completely confusing, and Ellis and Mo’Nique looking like spoofs of clergy and social worker characters. I do not believe their performances for one moment, and only because none of their choices makes any sense. And their trajectories, especially Cynthia’s, don’t make sense. They all deserve better. — Candice
Yes, that’s a good point about Ebony. We never really learn what all of her demons are and what kind of trauma she experienced. We only hear Ebony constantly telling Alberta how she didn’t raise her right, let bad things happen to her and wasn’t a great mom either. I kept wanting one of the many flashbacks to actually explain what’s really going on. — Erin
We Have To Talk About Glenn Close And... That Wig
You really have to laugh at this to keep from being enraged about it. As soon as I saw the trailer for this film, I was like, “What is Glenn Close doing here?” She’s in this blond wig that looks like it came straight off of a beauty supply store mannequin. She’s wearing shirts with the cutoff shoulder parts AND AND AND jeans with ripped holes throughout them. Her character, Alberta, is the mother of Ebony; she loves to smoke cigarettes (though she has cancer), and she loves Black men. (She’s dating Omar Epps, who is also her nurse at the clinic where she gets chemo. Suddenly he’s at her granddaughter’s birthday party, and he and Alberta are a thing.) Like, Candice said this person was invented for this movie (there is no Alberta in the real story), and the fact that she’s a caricature of a person is just … too much to handle. Again I ask, why???? — Erin
When I read that Daniels described Close’s character as the white woman that “every Black person knows,” everything I witnessed in “The Deliverance” made total sense. From the blond asymmetrical haircut to the lust for Black men, she played a caricature that added not an ounce of depth to the movie — which, again, makes sense considering that she’s not based on an actual person, but rather an idea that Daniels felt compelled to bring to life, although the director does the opposite. Alberta acts so ridiculous throughout the movie that all you can do is laugh through the nonsense. — Njera
Mo’Nique Is A Very... Scary Social Worker
I don’t know much about social workers. But I felt like Mo’nique’s portrayal felt … like a bookie looking for her money more than anything. I kept thinking she was about to shake down Ebony for cash at any moment. When she leans back in that reclining chair and props her feet up, I was like, what is going on here? — Erin
I kept thinking a lot about one of my friends, who is a social worker and would likely be very offended if she saw this. Not all social workers are the same. But I think I can say confidently that they don’t roll up into people’s homes like corrupt cops looking for a drug fix. Why is Cynthia so mean? So unprofessional? And, like, maybe borderline criminal with some of the things she does? Maybe she needs to be investigated? Hello, five-O? — Candice
I imagine if my mother, a former social worker, behaved the way Mo’Nique’s character, Cynthia, did on the job, she would no longer have one. I’ve never known a social worker to act like a loan shark collecting debt when on a family visit, so I truly wonder how Daniels and Mo’Nique arrived at this portrayal for “The Deliverance.” The few moments where we see Cynthia show some compassion toward Day’s character prove that some thought went into Mo’Nique’s performance, but it still wasn’t convincing enough. — Njera
What’s Up With Ellis-Taylor’s Character?
So, I watched “The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat” the other day, and it reminded me how much I looooove when Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor gets in her bag in a really, really good role with a built-out character. She’s phenomenal in that film. But in “The Deliverance”? Her character, Bernice James, is introduced in the oddest way. She just kind of lurks in the background with Ebony questioning who she is, once Mo’nique’s Cynthia leaves the house. Then she explains the backstory of that haunted house the family lives in, with some confusing-as-hell flashbacks that don’t really help me fully understand what’s going on. THEN, she half-handles the exorcism — excuse me, the deliverance — before dying in the middle of it all. What a waste of her talent. — Erin
Not a damn thing with her character makes sense. And you know right away that there is no way she can actually survive this foolish plan. — Candice
I’ve always been a fan of Ellis-Taylor as an actor because her film performances never disappoint. However, and to no fault of hers, her character in “The Deliverance” left much to be desired. It doesn’t help that the movie fails her from the jump by introducing her as the strange woman lurking outside Ebony’s house with no context. Even the McDonald’s scene and the flashback story she tells don’t fully explain who the hell she’s supposed to be and why she’s drawn to Ebony. Killing her off during her hero moment was just a waste of time since Ebony ends up being the one to save the day. On behalf of Ellis-Taylor, I’m offended that her time in this movie was completely wasted. — Njera
There Are Very Few Moments That Work
The special effects moments were pretty good. Dre walking up the wall backward was wild; Ebony bending over backward with every joint in her body basically cracking one by one was great. And I was surprised by how good Day was in this considering the material. That’s probably all I got for what actually worked. — Erin
I was honestly going to skip over this section, because I don’t think any of this works. But Dre flipping up the wall like that was DOPE. — Candice
It was the one moment that made me go: “Oh, shit! Now we’re talking!” — Erin
I’ll give it up for some of the scene transitions because they actually felt somewhat true to the horror genre tone. The special effects didn’t look cheap either. But other than Day’s performance and the few unintentional laughs the movie offers, it’s hard to say what else actually worked in its favor. — Njera
There Are Some Truly Crazy Lines In This Movie
So there are SEVERAL lines in this film that make you say, “Now who the hell wrote this?” Some of them are so bad they’re laughable, like when Ebony’s evil spirit is pleading with real Ebony and says, “We all we got, girl!” Like, actually evil Ebony, you gotta go! Then there’s the random racist-as-hell line that Ebony says to an exterminator who is Asian. I won’t even repeat it here because it was so unnecessary. Then there’s Alberta doing this after she dies and inhabits the evil spirit of Dre (I guess that’s how the plot is going at that point?): “I can smell your nappy pussy,” she says to Bernice James. “And you, you fucking half-breed whore, I should have flushed your ass down the toilet when you were just a blood clot.” When I find out which of these male writers wrote that line about a nappy pussy? I need him to be investigated. — Erin
I fully forgot every single line in this movie, including those! The “nappy pussy” line was so incredibly stupid, now that I recall. — Candice
There are several ridiculous lines in the movie that either made me cackle or gasp. I’m not of the generation that curses at their parent, so Ebony telling her mother to “shut the fuck up” at the dinner table and that she’s “knocked bitches’ teeth out for less” took me aback for a second. Cynthia telling Ebony and her “cockeyed mother” to have a good day made me holler. However, “nappy pussy” definitely takes the cake. — Njera
The Ending Is Awful
I rewatched the beginning of this film last night. And I couldn’t believe I didn’t put it together that this movie was definitely going to have a huge religious slant to it. The opening song is the gospel hymn “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow.” And by the end of the film, they might as well have put all the kids on a cross like Jesus because there was so much resurrection energy happening. The ending was perhaps the biggest eye roll. The movie never fully reached the darkest depths it could have gone, but then wrapped up with this happy-go-lucky ending where the whole gang is getting back together again. We never even really found out what was going on with the missing dad/husband. A mess. — Erin
I do not believe that a man who refuses to talk to his wife for reasons that are never explained, and won’t even see his kids — like, he can’t even be bothered to show up one time in this film — ends up inviting them all back into his life at the end of this movie. No. Get out of here with that. — Candice
There’s nothing more frustrating than a movie ending that leaves you with too many unanswered questions. After rewatching the conclusion of “The Deliverance,” I still have no idea why Ellis-Taylor was brought in to perform an impossible exorcism that Ebony was magically able to pull off, or why her youngest son was chosen as the demon’s host. Don’t even get me started on whatever the other kids are going through while all that is happening. The odd religious undertones and that weird crucifixion reference only left me confused about how the film would end. The written update about Ebony eventually getting her kids back felt too good to be true in this series of strange and unfortunate events. It’s still hard to believe this screenplay is actually based on a true story — I suggest Googling “Latoya Ammons” before tuning in. — Njera
“The Deliverance” is now available to stream on Netflix.