Review of The Exorcist (1973) by Jeremy K — 19 Feb 2014

"Psycho" may be the most famous, most critically-acclaimed horror movie of all-time, but when you look at 1973's "The Exorcist," it's often referred to as the scariest movie of all-time. At the time, it was certainly the most shocking in its subject matter, special effects, language, use of religion--everywhere you look, audiences were both stunned and entranced at this film. I feel like people look down on this film a little bit nowadays, but don't underestimate the power of this film. It's completely remarkable.

I know I'm not the only one to think this; this is one of few horror films to garner widespread attention from certain awards. It won Best Sound and Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards, and got a bunch more nominations in acting and filmmaking categories. Why is that? Why has this movie gotten so much more acclaim than other films in this category? It probably has something to do with the fact that the acting is so top-notch and the special effects serve to contribute to the plot rather than just be distracting.

But what about the plot itself? Well, it stars Ellen Burstyn as actress Chris MacNeil; her 12-year-old daughter Regan (Linda Blair) has been behaving very strangely after finding a Ouija board in their basement. Her behavior consists of a distant gaze in her eyes, urinating in front of people after saying, "You're gonna die up there," and spewing obscene curses. It's mostly unsettling because of how random it all seems; we don't quite know what she's going to do next, and we've seen that she's a child of divorce, so even though there exists a certain dark reality within this character that exists from the beginning, she seems sweet and adjusted.

At some point, Regan goes to the doctor, and eventually to a psychiatrist; the doctors find nothing seemingly wrong with her, and she assaults the psychiatrist. And this is when the film starts to become not just a great horror film, but an extraordinary piece of cinema. It's hard to even discuss the upcoming supernatural scenes; suffice it to say, they're creepy when they need to be, and nearly terrifying when they need to be. A lot of it has to do with Linda Blair's facial expressions and the makeup. Of course, as her "attacks" become more extreme, her voice is replaced by Mercedes McCambridge, who might have one of the most amazing voices in any movie, period. This could've been the point where "The Exorcist" just became a special effects show, but there are reasons why the effects don't take over. One is Blair, of course. Then there's Burstyn, who is strong and convincing in her role as Regan's mother: appropriately caring, but also appropriately stressed and scared over what's happening. Finally, there's the authenticity of the effects themselves. They don't look cheap, out of place or unnecessary. The more extreme the action gets, the darker and uglier the effects become; before long, you're completely immersed in the horror.

Eventually doctors recommend an exorcism for Regan. In comes Father Damien Karras (Jason Miller), a priest at Georgetown University who, while experiencing a crisis of faith, has to deal with putting his sick mother in a nursing home. He considers that Regan is merely suffering from psychosis after calling herself the Devil, but she references his mother, speaks in backwards English and reveals the words "help me" on Regan's stomach in her handwriting. Karras brings in Father Lancaster Merrin (Max von Sydow), who we first saw at an archaeological dig in Northern Iraq finding a stone amulet resembling a bestial creature buried in the dirt.

At this point, the film enters the realm of legendary with an epic battle of good vs. evil between Karras and Merrin, and the thing inside Regan. I like how Karras has his faith to battle against, while Merrin has his physicality to battle because of his age. Everything about this whole sequence is memorable, from the dialogue to the effects to the lighting, etc. When we see how cold it looks in that bedroom with the puffs of breath coming out of their mouths, it's real; they cranked the temperature down well below zero. They strive for the authenticity in this movie to achieve the purpose of making the idea of a possessed little girl entirely plausible. It's an unbelievable climax to an unbelievable movie.

There's something about "The Exorcist" that almost feels otherworldly, like whatever this movie has to offer is almost too much to handle. People in 1973 couldn't handle it; there were movie-goers that fainted or went into hysterics while watching the movie.

Not only is "The Exorcist" scary in what's happening, but also in the issues it deals with subconsciously. And like I said, the particular reason why this film works so well is its authenticity. Everything that happens feels believable, which, again, makes it feel like more than just a movie. It's what I think of when I think of the term "horror film." Innocence and purity warped by sinister forces into a pawn of Satan; that's horror in and of itself. "The Exorcist" an extraordinary piece of cinema; simple as that.