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The Exorcist

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Title: The Exorcist

Tagline: Something almost beyond comprehension is happening to a girl on this street, in this house… and a man has been sent for as a last resort. This man is The Exorcist.

Genre: Horror

Director: William Friedkin

Cast: Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty Winn, Jack MacGowran, Jason Miller, William O'Malley, Barton Heyman, Peter Masterson, Rudolf Schündler, Gina Petrushka, Robert Symonds, Arthur Storch, Thomas Bermingham, Vasiliki Maliaros, Titos Vandis, John Mahon, Wallace Rooney, Ron Faber, Donna Mitchell, Roy Cooper, Robert Gerringer, Mercedes McCambridge, Paul Bateson, Elinore Blair, William Peter Blatty, Mary Boylan, Dick Callinan, Mason Curry, Toni Darnay, Eileen Dietz, Joanne Dusseau, Bernard Eismann, Beatrice Hunter, Yvonne Jones, Don LaBonte, Barton Lane, Ann Miles, John Nicola, Vincent Russell, Gerard F. Yates

Release: 1973-05-31

Runtime: 122

Plot: 12-year-old Regan MacNeil begins to adapt an explicit new personality as strange events befall the local area of Georgetown. Her mother becomes torn between science and superstition in a desperate bid to save her daughter, and ultimately turns to her last hope: Father Damien Karras, a troubled priest who is struggling with his own faith.


 
This is one movie that needs no introduction. Regarded for a long time as the scariest movie ever put to film, well I’ll have to disagree with that one. A lot depends on your religious views and belief systems and how easily you are offended. Some of the scenes and language may be offensive and distressing to some, but come on, the subject matter is demonic possession so you need to expect some messed up scenes. Compared to what we have today, this is tame by comparison.

As a piece of film making, this is quite good. The direction and set design is solid, the acting good, especially from young Linda Blair and the score is fantastic.

This is well worth a watch.
 
I went to see this at a Halloween midnight showing of old classics at my local cinema a few years back it was the first time I'd seen it . I enjoyed it but it annoyed me that people were laughing at some of the bits, as you say it is an old movie and i am sure in its day it was more shocking than perhaps now . The music is awesome as well.
 
I remember standing in a line to purchase tickets which was a block behind another line of ticket holders who were waiting for the earlier showing to end. It was winter and we were in Manhattan freezing out butts off. The movie had just come to our City and we wanted to be first to see it, so rather than waiting for weeks until it made it's way to the suburbs, we all made the trip into "the City."

I had read the book which was a real page turner and I was eager to see if the movie would do the story justice. I understand we saw the original version complete with subliminal scenes. Those scenes, I heard, were removed after complaints they violated the law. The premise is they go by so quickly you barely have time to comprehend what you just saw, but a subliminal message is planted in your brain. I heard many years ago advertisers experimented with projecting images of their products in such a fashion to see if people would buy their soda or snacks and people did rush to the concession stands suddenly craving those items. That practice was banned because it's like brainwashing.

I will say I watched every minute of that movie and even laughed at grown men who covered their faces with their coats when scenes became too intense and disturbing to watch. I was fine until several days later when I saw a priest from the Vatican on a late night talk show talking about how this was based on an actual case of demonic possession of a boy. He even played a recording made during that exorcism and advised people not to see that movie. Huh?? Wait a minute, this was just another made up horror story from a book. What do you mean people can be possessed? I was Catholic at the time and that revelation scared me very much. I got such a case of heebie jeebies that night that I had to sleep with the lights on for many nights after. I even feared a bulb would burn out and that scared me. I didn't even want to be alone in the house in the daytime. I was messed up for a while mainly because I thought to myself, dang, if priests can barely fight a demonic spirit, what chance would a teenager like me have?

Many years have passed and I have a whole new perspective on demonic activity. To quote author C.S. Lewis, "There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors, and hail a materialist or magician with the same delight." From the Screwtape Letters. 1941.

 
The Exorcist is one of my favorite movies in this genre. I don't know how many times I have watched the movie, but I still get scared watching this horror movie. Horror is my favorite genre, but I don't think there is a scary movie like The Exorcist.
 
I think it's interesting that this was based on a true story of a boy who lived in St. Louis (which I live about 45 minutes away from) who got possessed. Oddly enough even watching this movie as a kid it didn't scare me too much. It's still a classic, and is one of my favorite horror movies to date.
 
Knowing that it's based on real life events makes it really creepy. But for the most part I never really found it to be too scary, but that's also because I didn't watch it until probably my 30s and the movie had been out for a while. Maybe if I had seen it when it first came out I would think differently?
 
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