Okay, here's the deal. I've debated on whether or not to talk to you folks about this, or whether this is the proper venue for such a discussion at all. Finally, I decided that it was my duty as a critical mind to share with you a story. It involves kids, religion, and the first time I saw The Exorcist.
I guess I was about twelve or so. I had heard everything about this movie that was out called The Exorcist. It was in all the papers, in all the magazines, and, being twelve, I said to myself, "Self, you have to see this for yourself." Problem was, I couldn't get into the blasted theatre to see it. All the publicity had jacked everyone up in the South to keep "young minds" from seeing this film. Didn't keep them from showing it, mind you, just kept them from letting everyone in. I tried it the legit way a couple of times, buying a ticket and all, but that got me nowhere. Miss Purdue, the ticket lady at the Regal, Carver Point's sit-down movie (as opposed to the drive-in where I was born...) wouldn't sell me a ticket. I tried the old "sneak in the fire exit" thing, but Mr. Lankshire, who ran the Regal, busted me three times and called my daddy on me. Finally, I had a brainstorm. I called my Uncle Carl.
Uncle Carl was my daddy's only brother, and Carl was a teacher of English Lit over at Carver Point High. The thing was, though, Carl, bless his soul, loved literature so much that he didn't get a lot of reading done on current events and such. He was more into Shakespeare than he was Time and Newsweek. So, Uncle Carl met me at the Regal; we bought our tickets and went in. Two hours and one minute later, Carl and I walked out and went directly across the street to the drug store. Sitting at the counter of the drug store, slowly drinking Cherry Cokes, we agreed that we would not tell my momma and daddy that either of us had seen that movie, and that we'd be in church that next Sunday, and many Sundays in a row thereafter.
I didn't miss a Sunday for five years...!
The Exorcist scared me worse than I'd ever been scared before. It literally scared me so bad I couldn't breathe. There were grown people in that theatre weeping in fear. One person ran out. And, as scared as I was, I loved every minute of it. Nothing had ever done that to me before, and I'd never seen how a film could affect people like that. I was amazed, I was in awe, and I was convinced that Satan was waiting under my bed, biding his time until he could crawl up and make my head spin and my bed bounce all over the place.
The Exorcist is out in theatres again, with footage added -- sort of a "special edition," if you will. I kinda cracked up when I read the rationale for the "R" rating. It says that The Exorcist has "strong profanity and disturbing images." That's like saying jalapeno peppers sting a little if you bite into them....
It seems silly to try to walk you through the plot, because there's not too many of you that don't know it. Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn) is a Hollywood actress living in Washington D.C. with her 12-year-old daughter Regan (Linda Blair). Regan has found out how to play with a Ouija board, and has somehow contacted a "friendly spirit" named Captain Howdy. Turns out ol' Howdy ain't all beer and Skittles. He's actually from Hell itself, and takes control of Regan. Father Karras (Jason Miller) is a local priest that recognizes what's going on, and calls in Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow), a senior priest who specializes in the exacting art of demonic possession removal. In short, Merrin is an exorcist.
That's it. It's basically that simple. But it is so much more than simple. The first half of the film is a textbook example of slow-building tension. The images that the ratings board find "disturbing" are still shocking, and they only push you further into the story. As shocking as they are, you can't help but watch. The second half of the film involves the "effects" portion -- the exorcism itself -- where we get the head spinning, puking, and levitation, all the things that are now considered the classic scenes.
While it is true this film is a classic, it earns this title for many reasons. Yes, The Exorcist opened the door for special effects artists everywhere. The makeup and effects by Dick Smith were practically invented just for this film. Personally, though, I think the first half of the film also pushed the envelope further. Nobody had ever made a film that was that tense, that demanding, that hard to watch. And, furthermore, the most ominous music to reach filmgoers since Psycho was present with Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells". The simplicity of the music itself is plain, but the combination of tones set your ears a bit off, made you uncomfortable. It built with speed and tempo, but the rhythm didn't change that much. It was like Oldfield was capturing a tonal form of insanity. It drove into your head and stayed there.
Whew! Got carried away there for a sec. Pleasure makes me ramble.
So, does it stand up to the test of time, some 27 years later? Most definitely. It is still one of the most perfect films ever made for what it was intended to do, namely scare the ProKeds off an audience. The performances from everyone in the cast are tight, and Little Linda, well, sad but true, this was the performance her career will always be compared to. Von Sydow is wonderful, Ellen Burstyn is great, and Miller is phenomenal. Miller was a successful playwright, and did not act much after this. It is a shame, though, because he could've remained huge in the business had he chosen to stay in. His son, Jason Patric, carries on the family acting now. This was also one of Lee J. Cobb's final roles, as a detective named Kinderman who gets involved when a dead body winds up outside Regan's window, and he has to figure out if this little girl could've killed him.
Saying that, though, I have to say that the extra footage that director William Friedkin and writer-producer William Peter Blatty wanted to add after all these years really doesn't help anything to be better. If anything, it almost detracts from the film. There are really only about five scenes added in, and only one is truly worth adding. The rest jumble up the timing of what was already perfect. After much debate, I have decided not to tell you which scenes are added, 'cause I don't want to spoil anything for the purists who want to experience everything for themselves. You'll know, though, because the added stuff is where the film seems to hiccup out of rhythm for a minute.
Now, on to the difficult part -- do I recommend this movie? Definitely, I say go see The Exorcist. The added footage can be a hindrance, but folks, allow me to be the purist for a minute. Many of you out there have seen this movie more on your television sets than you have in the theatres. If you think this thing made you nervous sitting on your sofa, you should see it in a dark theatre, full of other scared people, all of you white-knuckled and chewing the inside of your mouth. In this way more than any other, I highly proclaim this film as a classic to be seen again. And, like our "new-wave Exorcist", a.k.a. The Blair Witch Project, it loses nine-tenths of its force and power on a small screen.
Look, people, it's the month of Halloween. Forget all that Urban Legend crap. You want a good scare, a good old-fashioned scare, for Halloween? Get in the car and go see The Exorcist. You'll never ever forget seeing it, no matter how many times you've seen it on tape or TV. This time, it's for real...and forever.
Image copyright Warner Bros.
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