When the words “based on a true story” appear in a movie theater, it may spark a little more interest for non-horror fans, but not much else. For horror fans, these words carry much more weight than in almost any other scenario. Scary movies based on true stories have become some of the most successful productions in the genre, and that’s due to several elements. Either way, the idea of watching something gruesome (especially with the supernatural) actually happened has a lurid thrill to it.
Exorcisms have a way of upsetting people that no other device in horror stories has. Maybe it’s the idea that’s so terrifying: having your body taken over by a dark entity or the fact that so many exorcisms are reported every year, let alone in history, and that churches actually employ specialists in exorcism. Nevertheless, exorcism movies have been popular for almost as long as the horror movie genre itself. This passion led people to look for real life cases, and some stand out from the rest, as is the case with Clara Germana Cele.
Here’s why this particular story needs to be adapted to the big screen and why now might be the perfect time to do it.
What happened to Clara Germana Cele
The Exorcism of Clara Germana Cele happened in South Africa in 1906. Clara was a Kaffir girl born in 1890 and lived all her life in the Anglican St. Michael’s Mission. The girl was an orphan and there isn’t much information about her life other than her exorcisms, which are some of the most famously documented, mainly due to the number of people who reportedly witnessed them: 170, all of whom corroborated the incidents.
Clara was 16 years old when something changed about her. The first time it attracted attention was on August 20, 1906, when Clara ran through the vicarage taking off her clothes while having a conversation with someone who was not there. Seeing a nun watching her, Clara seemed to return to normal, but begged her to fetch Father Hörner Erasmus because Satan would kill her for what she had done.
Apparently Clara herself had made a deal with the devil. Reports say she could levitate, spoke several languages she never learned, and had clairvoyant abilities – she was able to tell things about the lives of people around her that she couldn’t have known. She made several animal noises at once, bent her body in humanly impossible ways, and became increasingly aggressive as soon as religious images were in the room. Once when Clara was asked what entity was inside her, she replied in a deep male voice, “I am Satan.”
A well-documented exorcism
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The exorcism took place on September 11 in front of a large group of people. At one point, she bit a nun who got too close to her. The bite mark reportedly had only two punctures, as if made by a snake. After the exorcism, everything seemed to be normal as Clara had regained her personality. However, her health was not as it had been. Then, suddenly, in 1907, Clara seemed better than ever before. That is, until a nun heard a strange noise coming from the girl’s lips. When the nun entered her room, she had a confirmation: Clara was floating again.
The second exorcism lasted two days. There isn’t much information after the second exorcism. Reports say the girl appeared to be back to normal and lived a demon-free life for nearly six years until she died suddenly of heart failure at the age of 22 in 1912. Her story is grueling and has some interesting cinematic aspects. . This would make a great horror movie, especially in the right hands.
Blumhouse and James Wan
The horror films of 2022 may be among the best of recent years for fans of the genre. Several well-made horror movies came out, from Smile until Barbarianand the surprise success of the slasher movie terrier 2 (earned more than $ 10 million at the box office with a budget of $ 250 thousand) testifies to the love for the genre. There’s even more to expect from the genre, especially after a possible merger of two major horror-oriented production companies early next year.
Blumhouse Productions has become one of the largest horror production companies to produce Paranormal activity, Out, the black telephone, and many other successful films. Another name behind one of the biggest horror movie franchises, Conjure it, is writer and director James Wan. Wan created the movie world of Conjure itwho currently has one film in development (The spell 4) and one in pre-production (The nun 2). He is also partly responsible for two other major franchises, Saw and Treacherous, and has often focused on possession. James Wan’s production company Atomic Monster has been involved in some of his projects.
One of the biggest news announcements of the year is that these two genre powerhouses are in advanced talks to merge their production companies. This can lead to an excellent production of horror films with their partner Universal Studios (who collaborated for Treacherous). The deal should close in the first quarter of 2023, which is the perfect time to make other horror films, especially those based on real life events, such as the Clara Germana Cele case.
It’s safe to say that Wan knows how to pick a real life based horror story (even exorcism, as seen in several of his movies) and make a great scary movie. Since nothing is certain, fans can only hope and wonder what this merger might mean for the horror genre and whether stories like Cele (which could translate exceptionally well to the big screen) will make it to the big screen next.