If "The Exorcist" has been reviewed here, I hope I can get the link. I looked through this genre's topics but did not see it listed...

Released recently is the uncut version on DVD of this 1973 horror classic. The scenes missing are often of dialogue, but also some of Regan's/Pazuzu's antics...including walking down the stair's, belly-up, like a spider.

I did not notice many of the cuts until I listened to the companion track with director William Friedkin, pointing out where the original cuts had been restored. (He is clearly sorry for many of the cuts, and I do think the restored cuts fill-out the storyline.)

I had not seen "The Exorcist" in some time, and having the DVD made it less of a jerky-rough experience. (Did you know Mercedes McCambridge did the voice of Pazuzu?) The beginning of "The Exorcist" is different in the restored version as well...

I begin this topic feeling it must have been discussed before. If not, I hope others share my slightly guilty pleasure of "The Exorcist", and if it has, I hope to resurrect "The Exorcist"...I'd enjoy it...intensely.

-Doodles

This one's been out for years now; nothing new, although I don't recall us discussing it.

It must be noted that this isn't really a 'restored' version, but an expanded one. What was cut originally seems to have been for a)length, and b)in the case of the ending, there were several variants considered. For myself, I think they got it right the first time, with the 'new' ending, IMO, rather anticlimactic and overlong--not to mention pointless. It is nice, though, to have that 'spider walk' scene, it was good enough to include in the original cut, shame it wasn't(that cut, although OOP, can be easily found on DVD, also).

Much was made at the time of the inclusion of a small passage of Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells," which became a bit hit in edited 45 form in early '74. It really doesn't have that much impact in the film, since the impact is really visual, in the tradition of all great shockers. This one may not be great--and depending on your religious beliefs, even absurd and ridiculous--but it was a strong directorial work, a new wrinkle in an old tradition, though some of it was rather disgusting and vile in that permissive '70s way... ;)

ED B)

Beat me to it. I've had this version for a few years now.

It's an amazing version of my favorite film about demonic possession.

Can't say movies about demonic possession are much on my thoughts...fortunately, there aren't that many...are there? :o :blink: ;)

ED B)

You know...when I picked up the copy of "The Exorcist" I didn't think it was new...but the store had it listed on the shelf as such. (I think they were pushing horror movies for Halloween parties).

I'd forgotten that the music was so popular..."Tubular Bells".

"The Exorcist" is heavily dated, but in a sense, it claims an almost period piece feel to it now these 30 years later. Here in the states it was heavily influencial for my generation...and caused a stir for over a decade after.

I liked the additions of the scenes from Iraq. I think they added to the background story of the film. The book is better than the film, and makes more sense, and I wish there had been more of it in the film.

It was a shocking film for it's time. It's special effects are good. I like the very weird humor of Pazazu, and I am yet shocked some of the very horrid and graphic "deviltry" was allowed acted through a little girl. I still find it shocking today.

(And it is a good Halloween movie....)

I grew up exposed to much of the fundamentalist religion and it would be years later before I would see this movie.

I was NOT forbidden to see it, just never bothered. It had nothing to do with my religious input. As to my own personal religious indulgence, let's put it this way; with each year that I went to church, I would move one pew further to the back, until I went out the door.

Just don't want any conclusions that I was made to go to church and that I wasn't allowed to see The Exorcist or the Omen.

I would watch these movies on tv. Wasn't overly scared by them (Oh, you just have to see them on the big screen!), but at the time I saw the Exorcist, I really wasn't bothered by it.

I was a teen ager by then, had I seen the Exorcist as a ten year old, I probably would have been terrified, but then surely the audience was older than ten that was affected by the Exorcist.

I do have to agree with what Mercedes McCambridge said about the movie; if you were scared by it, then you brought that fear into the theatre with you.

In a religious sense, I think people who were intimidated by The Exorcist clearly didnt have the strongest sense of religious faith to begin with.

If a diehard Bible-thumper even entered a theatre in the early 1970s and watched this film, if their faith was strong, then he or she emerged from the theatre going 'it was only a movie.'

For me, the Exorcist watches like Lucy Ricardo getting drunk on Vitameatavegamin. You just watch how the situation progresses and breaks down, tho I wish there had been more to a conclusion than Jason Miller pounding on Regan like that.

I've seen various depictions of exorcism, clearly influenced by this movie; from a religious comic book where the exorcists calmly stood by and cast out the devil, confident in their faith, to Katherine Helmond on "Soap" who makes a defiant speech to the possessed and drives the demon out.

Even saw a Josie and the Pussycats comic book, where Josie was possessed and the demon was driven out by Alexandra forcing Josie to hold the Bible.

At the time of the first Exorcist, my church was subjected to an exorcism.

It was the mid-1970s.

Near thirty years later, I reflected back on that incident, which was witnessed by four siblings, and I interrogated them about it.

It was the mid-1970s.

It now seems apparent that drugs played a part in what we witnessed (the 'possessed person' was on drugs), and I have to say it was for alot of attention. Clearly he went to see the movie.

It has raised alot of doubts in my head about this film.

I don't think anyone will be able to find an actual videotaped exorcism or anything that won't mimick Linda Blair to a T.

One of the tabloid shows carried on about a videotaped exorcism a couple of years back, and I don't know what we were supposed to be seeing, but in truth, the guy just looked like Jason Miller with a moustache sitting there, sulking, brooding, and you heard others praying around him.

As to that Spider-walk scene, I saw that years ago. Apparently the scene always existed.

I saw it on a news show or something, but always thought I had seen it within the movie, but I saw that scene a long time ago, close to about the same time that I would see the movie on the tube, or not long after, before vcrs, dvds, or even cable became so common.

Certainly one of the best horror films.... I saw it in the theatre in 1973 and was scared witless..... I remember the woman next to me--a total stranger--squeezing my hand. She was terrified. I can't ever remember a similar experience in a theatre. The audience was caught from the opening scenes....

I'm sure now we'd get tons more special effects, but the original of this film is pretty damned good as is.

I remember the argument of the day being that William Friedken had loaded the film with subliminal messages--visuals--that the eye didn't catch but the brain did. I don't know if this was ever settled one way or another. The hysteria this film caused in 1973 has never been equalled.

Solid cast with Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Jason Miller, Kitty Wynn, Jack MacGowran, etc.

:lol: Richardjf, I laughed out loud at the comment about moving back a pew until you were out of the church. That's funny.

About the Exorcist. It's based on a true story. It took place in St. Louis Missouri.

(I'm telling you the story as it was in the newspapers that we read aloud, several times.)

It was in the late 40's if I remember correctly. It took place at DeLodge Hospital down on South Grand Ave. It was in our papers, the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The entire story should be somewhere in the Post Dispatch archives.
It was a boy, not a girl, and neither the priest nor the boy died, but the demon most certainly left the boy.
The boy (the article would never tell where he originally lived) started to go nutso, many years before, at times foaming at the mouth, growling.
Finally someone told the parents to take the boy to the local church. The Minister at the local church tried, but could not get the demon out. They tried several churches with no luck to calm the boy.
At some point, some Minister told them they had to take the boy to the Catholic Church as Catholic Priests were the only ones that could still perform the rites of Exorcism.

The parents brought the boy to St. Louis, Mo. and before they could place a call to the Catholic Church Chancery to ask for these rites to be performed, the paper said the boy took to violent behavior and got sick.
The parents took the boy to the closest hospital. There, they placed the boy in a single bed room. When the boy was in the bed and things calmed down the Dad mentioned he was going to call the Priest.
Instantly objects started flying around the room driving everyone out... and no one could get into the room.
Everyone was freaking out, which I would be doing too. Anyway, the Dad went down to the Nurses desk and called the Chancellors Office. The Dad told his story and asked if they could send over their oldest most experienced Priest to deal with this demonic force in his son. Obviously, not to be upset by a demon, the Chancellor said, he had a young new Priest just out of the Seminary and he would send him over. The Dad, the newspaper said, was panicky that the young new Priest would not be able to handle the demon. The Chancellor said, yes, he can handle the demon. He will be over with-in the hour.

Someone at the hospital had called the newspapers because of the flying objects in the room. When the Priest arrived, everyone, doctors, nurse, parents and newsmen were in the hall watching the objects flying around. The Priest went into the room and stood by the door. They said you could hear screams from the boy when the Priest went in that sent shivers down your spine. They heard the Priest tell the demon he was going to be removed out of the boy and he was to do no harm to the boy. The Priest laid down his Bible and Holy Water, picking up,kissing then putting around his neck a beautifully colored and designed thin strip of cloth. The strip of cloth hung down past the Priests beltline. As the Priest picked up the Bible, everyone witnessed the bed rose up like six foot and started to circle around inside the room. This was seen by the door being held open a small space for those outside to know what was going on. (sorry his head never turned completely around.)Objects all over the room were thrown at the Priest who simply stood by the door. The Priest started to read the Prayer to the Rites of Exorcism. The boy screamed till every one in the hospital had to have heard him, they said.
Well, the Priest, just started sprinkling holy water - continued reading - and the screaming slowed, the bed came down from being in the air, the objects ceased flying around the room. When the Priest went over to the bedside and told the demon to be removed, never to enter into the boy again in the name of Jesus Christ, it was gone. The Priest then blessed the boy, anointed him with Holy Oil and told the parents to come in. The Priest talked to them a little, blessed them and left.

It was over from beginning to end in hours. The only reason it hit the newspaper was because of the flying objects that the hospital witnessed and someone called to the newspapers to come see. They did their story, had pictures of the very young Priest, who, when questioned as to why they sent a new Priest to do Exorcism instead of an older, wiser experienced man to do the Exorcism, the young Priest said, "Why? It was just a demon." HA! easy to say I guess if you got the book with the written Rites in it!

We got to read about it the next day in the newspapers and the boy and his parents had already left the hospital. We never were told, to this day, where the boy lived....but you should be able to find the accounting of this event somewhere in the newspaper archives.

It was not that big a deal...until Hollywood got a hold of it...and made it into a Hollywood story. From the stories I have heard from people that they have experienced in real life with demons, the made up Hollywood story is nothing. When you hear people that are on television that came up against Lucifer, that is scary. I guess one better know who they are if your going to face off with any demonic influence.

So, the Hollywood Exorcist, "Scary?" not on you life. The head going around..hahahaha.. that's Hollywood!

Wonder what the boy this happened to thought of the movie? Think he would think the movie scary when he had to live with a live demon taking over in his person? Now that would be scary. :bang:

Right it was based on a true story. One of my fave films with cool effects w/o a computer.

The stranger squeezing dredm's hand. I went to see ALIEN with a pregnant friend & during the [BIG moment not to give it away] I'm not kidding the baby almost was born. She jumped right out of her seat.

Yes, I've heard about the true story that the Exorcist was based on before.

I was surprised when I heard that Psycho and Texas Chainsaw Massacre were based on the SAME true story, when neither movie was anything close to what actually happened.

Amityville Horror is based on a true story, but I still recall when the early 1980s tv show, That's Incredible, showed the house. The door was solid and so was the doorframe, while they were shown ripped out in the movie, the upstairs window that was broken out in the movie was still intact, but most of all, a teen aged girl who had been friends with one of the DeFeo daughters showed the 'red room' which was a simple brick room painted red with the door covered in paneling the same as the walls around it and all you could see was the doorknob, but there was no hidden room behind a stone wall as the movie depicted.

Artistic lisence? Probably.

The most interesting thing about the Amityville Horror is I've seen George and the late Kathleen Lutz talking about what happened, but you never see the kids talking about what happened.

As to my reaction to church, I'm just being honest as to how it happened, all over a ten year period.

B) I have to admit, before all the super tech that helps the movies today, they did some really great special effects back in the earlier days. One has to admire the extent they were able to carry the scary images over to the screen ...considering they were were under such limited conditions.

I remember seeing, "The Univited." Scared me to death... and how they did that ghost - I don't know, but it was good, like really good. <_<

I recently watched a documentary on The Exorcist (1973) and apparently Linda Blair was pretty roughed up during some of more intense scenes in the movie. At least you got the real thing and not some obviously fake special effects...(which kills the movie experience for me, personally)

I went to see the Exorcist when it was re-released in theaters...I believe it was in like 2001 or so. I was 19 at the time and it was my first watch of the movie...I guess I was somewhat effected by it. I wasn't really scared, but some of the content was disturbing...even for today's burned out standards. B)

The key to THE EXORCIST is that the evil is never seen except as manifested via Linda Blair. The scariest films are those in which you never SEE the "monster."

The film also succeeds because the evil is seen happening to normal people. There is no alien invasion, atomic blast, etc. The evil simply IS and chooses a relatively normal family through which it makes itself known.

The idea that evil can manifest itself in normal everyday people is much scarier than some hyped up "event" or man-created monster.

Stephen King understood this conecpt in his best stories.

Actually you do see Pazuzu's face in the film, but only for a few seconds.

Is it??? Or is it just another manifestation??? I've never been sure.....

It could go either way, I suppose. Being that Pazuzu was a demon, it would make it seem like a manifestation; being that demons aren't tangible beings like humans.

I concur with your point though. The invisible evil is what really scares people. Too many Horror films today don't subscribe to that logic.