The Exorcist

A movie so scary, it’s own Atheist director began to believe in demonic possession.  

The 1973 American supernatural horror film, The Exorcist is the definition of a controversial classic.  To this day, it still consistently disturbs audiences and influences filmmakers.  It’s said that the original spectators of the film were so traumatized by what they saw, they became ill, fainted, went into hysterical fits, or raced out of the theater in shock – there are even reports of institutionalization and one miscarriage that was caused by the film.  Certainly, the theme of demonic possession wasn’t something that 1973 audiences were used to – however, this feature presentation may have been extra horrifying had viewers known the story was a little more accurate than they were aware of.  

Both the film and the original book (by the same name) revolve around the plot of a young girl becoming possessed by a demon – but the real story deals with the response and reception of this crisis from the viewpoint of two other characters.  Chris McNeil (Ellen Burstyn) is a famous actress, residing in Georgetown, Maryland.  She seems to lead a very happy and prosperous life with her 12 year old daughter Regan (Linda Blair), her personal assistant (Kitty Winn) and their two house servants.  Father Damien Karras (Jason Miller) is a priest and psychiatrist who is plagued with guilt over the recent death of his mother.  He is distraught and has lost his faith in god.  Not before long, Regan begins showing concerning signs of a serious ailment – she appears comatose at times, uses foul language, has a rapid heartbeat, gains exceptional strength, has pungent breath, causes the temperature in the room to drop, self mutilates and even has multiple personalities.  Chris grows frustrated as doctors cannot solve Regan’s illness, suggesting the girl should be prescribed ritalin (the doctors assume epilepsy in the book).  She turns to the only place she believes to have left, the church.  Damien Karras reluctantly agrees to help give the grieving mother what she wants – an exorcism for her daughter.  Already struggling with his own faith, Karras knows that an exorcism is not easy to come by in the Catholic church – rules must be met and possessions must be proven.  He will need permission from the bishop.  He will need a priest of much stronger religious conviction than himself.  He will need Father Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow), the exorcist.

Minus a few small details, William Friedkin’s 1973 horror film and Peter Blatty’s 1971 novel are almost exactly the same.  Which isn’t surprising, considering Blatty adapted the screenplay.  His book was inspired by the 1949 exorcism of “Roland Doe”, a young boy from Cottage City, Maryland.   Doe was said to be able to levitate and move furniture on it’s own.  In fact, besides the victim’s gender, the location and the color of the vomit - everything else in the story was essentially true, head spinning included.  That is sincerely the scariest thing I have ever heard… as if the movie wasn’t scary enough.  When making the film, Friedkin was allowed to look at the diaries and notes from priests, doctors and nurses of the original case.  As previously mentioned, the director studied the case in such great depth, that even as an Atheist, he began to believe in demonic possession.  Think about that the next time you watch this film.  

Combine frightening true accounts with gorgeous cinematography, newfangled special effects, a dedicated director and an honest, proficient cast, and you’ll get the greatest horror movie ever made.  I can’t even begin to describe the beauty in this footage.  The image above is one of the most iconic moments in cinema.  This shot alone took 24 hours to achieve, being shot in both the daytime and nighttime.  If adjusted for inflation, The Exorcist would be the top grossing R-rated film of all time.  It was the first horror film to ever be nominated for Best Picture, along with 9 other nominations and 2 wins.  

The first time I watched this film, I was a teenager, alone at home in my parent’s basement during a thunderstorm.  I was watching it on some random TV station – they weren’t even showing the gorey or disturbing parts due to television ratings.  Even so, I was terrified enough to have a friend come pick me up and protect me from the possession of Pazuzu…  Everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing the first time they watched this movie – and that is why The Exorcist is Can of Worm’s number 1 pick.  

You can digitally rent The Exorcist on Redbox Instant or Target Ticket - or rent via DVD on Netflix.