The Exorcist

[insa80]

Re: The Exorcist

I saw the movie when it first came out and yes, it is scary. I was reading the book at the time too. It was very disturbing and it wasn't funny at all.

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[Wirral Writer]

Re: The Exorcist

Yeah, horror certainly has got more extreme since 1973 (citing Saw, Hostel etc.). However, The Exorcist still has that deeply unsettling quality about it, when you think how it depicted the sheer horror of a demon possessing a young girl's body. The demonic, guttural voice and head spin, for example, still carries that nightmarish quality about it.

I saw it upon re-release in the early 2000's.

Over the years the hype machine had built it up to be something monstrous, it's not really that bad by today's standards.

I guess at the time it would have had much more of an effect as people hadn't really seen anything like it...

[Jedi Knight]

Re: The Exorcist

I saw it upon re-release in the early 2000's.

Over the years the hype machine had built it up to be something monstrous, it's not really that bad by today's standards.

I guess at the time it would have had much more of an effect as people hadn't really seen anything like it...

[philipdalton]

Re: The Exorcist

One man I used to know thought the film should be banned for its depiction of sexual behaviour on the part of a child.

[Wirral Writer]

Re: The Exorcist

Quotes from some who saw it:
"It was the most sadistic, evil movie I have ever seen. Leaving the theater afterward, I had a very uncomfortable feeling. I had remembered as a youngster studying in the Bible about the existence of invisible wicked forces."
“The movie had a terrifying effect on me. I had to leave before it was over because I was afraid I would be sick to my stomach and felt like fainting. For about two months after seeing the movie, I continued to be terrified and would have nightmares. I wouldn’t go anywhere alone, would watch over my shoulder all the time and was even afraid to wash my hair for fear something would be hovering over me.”
“It was the most terrifying thing I have ever seen. It was horrible. I could feel something was happening to me. I was shaking all over and could only just manage to pick myself up from my seat to walk out. But this was only the beginning of my troubles.
Returning home, I was ready to burst into tears. My husband offered me little comfort as he had told me not to go to see the film in the first place. How right he was! I could not sleep that night, dreaming about the film.
During the coming weeks things went from bad to worse. I was frightened to go to bed and when I did I would wake up in a cold sweat. I knew there was something in my house, as I could feel it with me wherever I went. I felt I was going out of my mind".

Yes, I have heard that it did have a very bad effect on some people. By the same token, I have also heard that many people just laughed at it, regarding it as ridiculous. I suppose, compared to the explict gore of today's horror movies, it could be regarded as rather tame. However, I do have to agree with you that it was very disturbing movie. The book was even worse though!

[philipdalton]

Re: The Exorcist

Quotes from some who saw it:
"It was the most sadistic, evil movie I have ever seen. Leaving the theater afterward, I had a very uncomfortable feeling. I had remembered as a youngster studying in the Bible about the existence of invisible wicked forces."
“The movie had a terrifying effect on me. I had to leave before it was over because I was afraid I would be sick to my stomach and felt like fainting. For about two months after seeing the movie, I continued to be terrified and would have nightmares. I wouldn’t go anywhere alone, would watch over my shoulder all the time and was even afraid to wash my hair for fear something would be hovering over me.”
“It was the most terrifying thing I have ever seen. It was horrible. I could feel something was happening to me. I was shaking all over and could only just manage to pick myself up from my seat to walk out. But this was only the beginning of my troubles.
Returning home, I was ready to burst into tears. My husband offered me little comfort as he had told me not to go to see the film in the first place. How right he was! I could not sleep that night, dreaming about the film.
During the coming weeks things went from bad to worse. I was frightened to go to bed and when I did I would wake up in a cold sweat. I knew there was something in my house, as I could feel it with me wherever I went. I felt I was going out of my mind".

[battyrat]

Re: The Exorcist

Not seen this film for many years.Surprised how many versions there are.It seems to be a majour problem with film collecting when you are looking for the original theatrical version.The surprising thing is that they seem to have only used fragments from an original 1973 35mm print.I would of thought due to the films notority even back in 1973/4 there would of been quite a few original copys floating around in collections that had somehow escaped from the numerous cinema chains.

[darren]

Re: The Exorcist

those bits are quite scary for sure.

also when she was talking but not with her own voice the voice of what was possessing her.
the soundtrack is rather unnerving as well but thats what i like.

also those pics i like some are rather frightening.

It is supposed to be the scariest horror movie of all time, but this is open to debate.

I have just started a thread on The Exorcist, as I did not know that this one already existed.

And as for scariest moments in this movie . . . well, the part where her eyes rolled up into her head was quite disturbing. And what about the part where she was repeatedly pulled up and down on the bed?

Did The Exorcist frighten you when it was first released?

It's supposed to be the scariest horror movie ever, but is it REALLY?

Your thoughts, please.

[Moondog]

Re: The Exorcist

only just watched it properly for the first time the other week lol, not bad

the reason it was classed as so bad, is back then the C word in films was pretty much unheard of, especially coming from a young girl's mouth, and the scene where she's shoving a crucifix into her vagina, telling Jesus to "f**k her" was obviously pretty graphic for the time.

[DemonEyeX]

Re: The Exorcist

Fans of the movie should look out for the 40th Anniversary Preservation edit by Dr. Sapirstein.

A 40th anniversary restoration of the ultimate horror classic, presenting the film in its original version as seen at the time of its 1973 release and... never since.

NB - this edit is a restoration of the original theatrical release of The Exorcist. The abominable 2000 extended cut - aka ‘The Version You’ve Never Seen’ - is not referenced at all. If you hope to find the infamous spider-walk or demonic CGI inserts, you’ll be disappointed.

At the time of its initial release, The Exorcist had a very distinct visual and sonic aesthetic. The colours were muted and the dominant tint was green. It was visually dark. The blaring mono sound mix was revolutionary at the time and won the Academy Award for best sound. But this original theatre version has never been released on DVD or BluRay, despite the plethora of Exorcist releases made available in recent years.

Having made over $100 million in its original run, The Exorcist was re-released in 1979 as a blown-up 70mm revised print. This version had a much brighter, up-to-date and colourful picture with heavy colour alterations/saturations, contrasts and so on. The dominant green tint was gone. It also used a different sound mix - this time Dolby Stereo. This is the version that was used to create the Telecinema that would be used for every home release (VHS, LD, DVD) up until the year 2000. Most of these releases were presented in 1:33 pan & scan, but even the few letterboxed 1.85 editions were slightly zoomed-in. A few seconds of footage were also missing during the bed-shaking scene. But the worst was yet to come...

2010 saw the release of the BluRay / DVD 2-disc set of the ‘Version You’ve Never Seen’. The second disc was supposed to feature a remastered version of the original theatrical release. No such luck. This ‘original’ version was given a strong blue tint more reminiscent of ‘Avatar’ than the dark 70s horror atmosphere it merited. This version also included a few novelties (as seen in the 'Version You've Never Seen'), such as a CGI morph on Karras’ face during his possession, instead of the original jump-cut. The ‘original mono mix’ included on top of the newly mixed 5.1 soundtrack was also heavily modified and, it transpired, was actually a 2-channels recomposition of the 1979 Dolby mix. Overall, the release was a bit of a mess and particularly disappointing in light of the obvious time and effort that had been expended on the BR / DVD release. The audience response was unequivocal and almost unanimous - extreme disappointment.

NOTES ABOUT THIS PRESERVATION
Many sources were used to determine how the film looked and sounded in 1973. Once the aesthetic of each individual scene had been determined, the 1080p BluRay edition was used as a basis (with, occasionally, the odd SD shot inserted from the '97 DVD) and completely reworked (colours, tints, definition, grain and contrasts/lightness) to obtain a faithful recreation of the original theatrical release, as it looked before the powers that be decided to give it the George Lucas treatment.

Restored picture : The whole film has been modified shot by shot to recreate its original definition, green hue and overall aesthetic.
Restored shot : Original Warner Bros 1970s logo (intro + outro).
Restored shot : The intro shot of the sun in Iraq has been restored in full colour.
Restored shot : The infamous, non-CGI jump-cut of Father Karras' possession has been cleaned and restored.
Restored audio : The original, Academy Award winning mono soundtrack has been restored (track 1). The original 1979 Dolby remix is featured on track 2, and a new DTS 5.1 mix, created from both the '73 mono mix and the 2010 remaster, is featured on track 3. The original French dub from 1973 (mono) is also available on track 4.

SOURCES USED
For setting the look of this release :
* the 1997 DVD (USA).
* the 1982 VHS release (UK, PAL).
* the 1987 VHS release (USA, NTSC).
* a VHS recording of the film from TV (1986).
* the Japanese NTSC laserdic (1998).
* the official 8mm digest (1978).
* short bits from a 1973 damaged 35mm print.
* various photos and 35mm slides.
Elements used in the actual edit :
* the 2010 BluRay edition (disc 2, "original cut" remastered).
* the 1997 DVD (USA) (original cut).
* the 1982 VHS release (UK, PAL) (original cut).
* the film soundtrack on CD (Japan).



It's as close to the original release as we are ever likely to see.
It's definitely my preferred version of this classic movie.

[Wirral Writer]

It is supposed to be the scariest horror movie of all time, but this is open to debate.

I have just started a thread on The Exorcist, as I did not know that this one already existed.

And as for scariest moments in this movie . . . well, the part where her eyes rolled up into her head was quite disturbing. And what about the part where she was repeatedly pulled up and down on the bed?

Did The Exorcist frighten you when it was first released?

It's supposed to be the scariest horror movie ever, but is it REALLY?

Your thoughts, please.

[philipdalton]

Re: The Exorcist

Perhaps this may be of interest:
http://isisinvestigations.com/Exorci...sed_movie.html

[ayrshireman]

Re: The Exorcist

The film has been called 'the greatest ever advert for the Catholic Church'.

[ayrshireman]

Re: The Exorcist

To be honest, I think all these stories are nonsense. We heard the same with the Omen. Or The Amityville Horror.

If The Exorcist had been the excellent film it is, but had been a flop, nobody would be telling these stories.

[darren]

Re: The Exorcist

ive heard that this film has had bad effects on people.
which im not surprised at.

i think i heard that story somewhere before mate.

definitely one of the most frightening films ever up there with the first 2 omen films.

I read about a 16-year-old boy who was supposed to have committed suicide after seeing this film. Also, I remember my dad saying he'd heard they'd had to stop the film on one occasion because of weird things happening in a cinema where it was being screened, like fire extinguishers going off on their own and the curtains swishing back and forth, things like that.