This movie is like the ultimate classic. A dream movie of all horror lovers and this is not a review. I just wanted to write about this epic movie so here it goes. Whenever i watch a movie again i always learn new things about it.(Im sure everyone else does too)i had watched THE EXORCIST before only because there was a lot of buzz about this movie among movie lovers and when i watched it i was beyond amazed. Last night i watched it again. It was an extended rip so I got to watch all the deleted scenes and boy did this movie scared the shit out of me.I wasnt just getting scared with every passing scene but was also getting impressed by the way the movie was written and shot. Though it was a first movie of its kind it wasnt made by amateurs. This movie was made by a group of geniuses who believed in what they were creating and that’s why THE EXORCIST became such a big success. Based on William Peter Blattys novel THE EXORCIST (William have written the screenplay as well)comes a disturbing true story of how a young girl was possessed by a demon and an exorcist was called to get rid of that demon. In reality it was actually a boy and this whole incident took place in a hospital but thats a story for another day. THE EXORCIST starts in a very off track way. We see a priest in Africa for first 10 minutes, in next 20 mins. we see a single mother and her daughters routine life. Instead of the young girl the movie follows her mother more. I was like “why they are showing all this? “but actually they were introducing other characters of the movie. The priest filming a movie, Jason Miller(Father karras the actual hero of the movie)is also in the frame. We also get a glimpse of father karrass personal life in which his mother is dying off a disease. After around half hour of basic story setup THE EXORCIST starts making its moves as the young girl Regan is seen playing with a Ouija board through which the demonic entity makes its way into our world. Slowly regans behavior begins to change. She starts cursing her elders, urinates in front of guests, starts talking in languages she never learnt and now we realize why director spent those first 20 minutes in describing their family life because this sudden transformation of regans character comes as very shocking because she was such a lovely innocent girl and now we have an emotional bond with her. We have huge amount of sympathy for her and we want her to survive out of this. This is the basic need of a horror movie. We have to be connected to the central character. So it was a great move by the writer to get us connected with the lead character of the movie. What i loved about this movie is that it has a very in depth medical angle. The mother of the girl doesnt instantly calls for a priest or doctors don’t lift their hands immediately saying “we cant help your daughter.” There were various medical procedures conducted on Regan. Even an operation as well. After all this treatment doctors come up with theories like multiple personality disorder which doesnt clearly explain regans erratic behavior but then they are doctors,They need to explain this in a medical term. After a lot of heated arguments with Sharon(regans mother)one doctor dares to go out of his profession and suggests for exorcism. That doctor gives a very logical explanation why an exorcism should be performed solving both problems simultaneously.(i.e. to introduce the concept of exorcism in the movie and also staying true to his profession)another brilliant move by writer. Because of this explanation by the doctor we dont find it odd that a doctor is suggesting these things. This makes the movie far more believable than other horror movies. Regans health keeps collapsing as now shes tied to her own bed with straps. Her clothes havent been changed in weeks and now her face is full of scars and doesnt even looks like the same regan anymore. There is great shock value in the movie which is totally incidental. Whatever things have been shown in the movie are totally incidental and director havent used any scare tactics with sole purpose of scaring the audience in every 10 mins. because of which the film is very normal in first half hour and as the movie progresses shocking things comes in the movie. Extreme cursing, masturbation with a crucifix, Regan forcefully making her mother lick her crotch. The exorcist shows you some things which you have never seen or even heard of.Ofcourse a lot of this stuff was censored from the movie and i got to watch it as it was an extended copy. Movie went through a lot of criticism due to scenes which were offensive for catholic community but the fact remains that it all did happened in those four walls. It wasnt writers fantasy to add these scenes in the movie. It actually happened. This makes THE EXORCIST stand out of the league of rest of horror movies. These scenes are such cult that they have been copied in more 10-15 minutes and in India they are being copied to this date. Movies like bhooth,1920 are its best examples. THE EXORCIST is undoubtedly the most shocking movie in terms of content. My brother has been my lifelong companion of movies. We have watched 100s of movies together and as i was watching Regan going through this terrible phase and her mother being totally helpless i turned to my brother and asked, Is it just me or you also feel like being a part of this movie? Like we know this girl and we can feel what her mother must be going through seeing her daughter slowly turning into a monster“? And he said, “Totally“ Audience is 100% emotionally invested into the movie which is a victory in itself. Now comes the real exorcist father merrin into the frame which we saw in first 10 mins of the movie. The priest from Africa. The whole procedures of getting permission for exorcism from the church have been shot very well. This was again the first ever sequence of its kind(No need to mention this scene was also copied in several movies where a priest is asking for permission of exorcism and the church either denies it or grants it after a lot of persuasion)In this scene also THE EXORCIST feels very realistic as church not only allows exorcism but also the higher authorities suggests a priest who holds vast experience in the field of exorcism. Father merrin. He arrives on the scene and immediately takes command of the whole situation. Explaining trades of the demon that has possessed Regan and telling father karras to not to hear a word that this entity says as it expertise the art of playing mind games with humans. This scene brings instant credibility into the character of father merrin as we see a light of hope in this old man. We feel like, “yes! This is the man who can do it. A major plus from the point of storytelling. The environment created in the movie is just amazing. The temperature of regans bedroom is much lesser than all other rooms in the house as there is a thin layer of fog in the room and it felt very scary. THE EXORCIST is very effective in the psychology department. The scene where father merrin agrees for exorcism. We get a close up of his old wrinkly but determined face and in next second we see regan with her greenish eyes, she have a strange smirk on her face as if shes waiting for the fun to begin. The iconic scene where father merrin arrives at Regan’s house in a cab. He gets out of the cab wearing a hat with a briefcase in his hand. A very foggy scene where the only light is the street lamp in which we see father standing,approaching the house. Man! it gave me Goosebumps. I’m having Goosebumps as I’m typing this. It was like the beginning of a war and it was a war once that process began. Regan speaking in voice of father karasss dead mother blaming him for her death it just added to the shock value of the movie showing what depths the demon can stoop to,to stay in body of Regan. The makeup effects were outstanding and so were the techniques used to shoot the difficult scenes like the long puking sequence or the 360 degree rotation of Regan’s head. You can watch the making of the movie on YouTube. William Friedkin have kept the film very basic and natural. It comes off as a real incident. You dont get a feel of filminess or fakeness during movie. Like the scene during exorcism. After spending a long duration in the bedroom father merrin asks father karass to take a break and continue the procedure after a break. I havent seen such scene in any other movie. Generally directors keep the climax very dramatic and doesn’t kill their own momentum by taking a breather during an exorcism but that break brought the movie very close to reality because that’s what real people would do in such situation. After a very dramatic event the movie ends and we give a sigh of relief that it’s finally over. All the actors have given amazing performances specially the young Linda Blair who was given death threats after the release of the movie by religious zealots who believed the film was glorified Satan. It was a really difficult role but Linda acted very well at that young age. There is almost no background score in the movie, may be to make it look realistic. Film is really ahead of its time not only with the story but also with the technology used in the movie to create such disturbing scenes. It’s a horror masterpiece that changed the course of cinema forever. A combined effort of visionary director William Friedkin and ace writer William Peter Blatty. Filled with outstanding performances and some visuals you will never ever forget. For world it’s the scariest incident ever occurred, for me it’s a an emotional story of an innocent girl who went through hell. A story of a helpless mother who witnessed her daughter slowly turning into a monster. A Story of two priests who desperately tried to help this child regardless of their own safety .It’s a story of good vs the evil. THE EXORCIST in my mind is the best horror movie ever and it’s a movie that you should totally watch at least once before you die because not watching it would be a sin in itself.
Posted on: Wed, 16 Jul 2014 17:00:49 +0000
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