The Exorcist (1973)

I expected much more, because I saw this film on many toplists and heard great things, but in the end I got disappointed. Maybe I've seen too many good horrorfilms, but this one left me cold and killed my hopes.

What do you write about a movie that pretty much created modern horror? Sure, you can point to Night of the Living Dead and even Carnival of Souls as starting points, but from a mainstream blockbuster perspective, this is where the rules of modern supernatural horror begin.Inspired by William Peter Blatty's 1971 novel, which itself was inspired by the 1949 exorcism of Roland Doe ("The Pope's Exorcist" Malachi Martin claimed that he was the inspiration, a point that Blatty denied) the legends around this film - it was a cursed set, it's filled with subliminal messages - supersede a very simple fact: this movie is frightening as hell, even 40 plus years later.Do I even need to tell you the story of how Pazuzu finds its way into an Ouija board and into the soul of the daughter of an actress? Probably not. What's striking is that how long the movie takes to get there. Scenes of Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn) acting take precedence over the sad life of Father Karras, who has to deal with the death of his mother and his increasing lack of faith.When do we realize something is wrong? When it is too late. When Regan (Linda Blair) intrudes on one of her mother's boring parties, pisses on the floor and tells an astronaut "You're gonna die up there." Science can't solve these issues. Detectives cannot. Only the Church can help.What follows is a haunted house of scares that have been imitated ad nauseum (pun intended) so many times that we know the beats: head spinning, pea soup vomit, masturbation with a cross, blood, strange voices, levitation. A priest must show weakness before showing great sacrifice. And in the end, two old men find friendship in the aftermath.As for viewers today, they may be surprised at the sinister power that this movie still holds.

Every little thing about this movie seems to have had a purpose, creating the perfect mood. Even just the first scene with the boy running is perfectly crafted. The way that the camera follows him and switches angles gives the audience a nervous feeling to dive into the movie with. The beginning of the movie is incredibly well-done in terms of sound as well. The diegetic commotion surrounding Father Merrin followed by almost complete silence until the non-diegetic, intense music is played when he faces the demon statue works very well to create an uneasy feel. The play with sound to create a mood is apparent throughout the film, especially with Regan's different, haunted voices and noises. It is not just sound that makes this movie extraordinary. The cinematography and editing are incredible. As the audience, we experience everything from excellent moving close up shots like in the subway with Father Damien walking to incredible, very quick editing to create a creepy feel to Father Damien's dream. The lighting throughout the film is also impressive and gets progressively darker following Regan's psychological state. Of course, the exorcism scenes themselves are also very well-done, combining all of the aspects previously discussed to create a terribly intense, horrific feel. I appreciated how this film actually followed a story unlike many horror movies today that really just feature jump scares. We are immersed in Regan's life as she battles what is inside her, and we become invested in the well-being of the characters we see. As a horror movie lover, this movie leaves me wanting to watch it again and again, appreciating the incredible artwork that made it the haunted film it is.

After many years, watched it again (since it just appeared on HBO).Was very much looking forward to the horror it inspired 20 plus years ago.1st, the good: The acting is fine. Polished professionals.OK, now the "horror".When Regan threw up, her head turned 180 degrees, lifted the bed, said nasty things, etc...sorry, I laughed. Mild terror for a second, but then, amusement.Now in fairness, I'm a cafeteria Catholic (I believe in some aspects of religion, and at the same time know the earth to be billions of years old, not a the few thousand as the Bible claims).I don't believe in a Devil or evil spirits, and find possession as real as the alien in the movie "Alien". Prove it. "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof".