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Warner Brothers Home Video have finally announced official details for the upcoming release of The Exorcist on Blu-ray. The two-disc Digibook edition will packaged with a personal letter written by director William Friedkin inside a 40-page booklet and contain both The Version You’ve Never Seen (2000) and the original 1973 theatrical cut versions of the film. Thankfully, the 1973 theatrical cut has been remastered from the original camera negative. Hopefully it’s just a touch up and not too much grading has been washed over it.
Acclaimed documentarian Laurent Bouzereau has produced three new documentaries exclusively for The Exorcist Blu-ray, mixing saved footage from the Warner Brothers archives with brand new interviews from some cast and crew. They did not provide specific details on what footage has been found or used. Jeff Baker, WHV Executive VP & General Manager, Theatrical Catalog, had this to say about the archive material:
Generally speaking, sourcing relevant and provocative film assets for older films (30 years and older), is difficult, and more often than not, proves to be unsuccessful. The never before seen behind the camera treasure trove of material that consumers will see in The Exorcist Blu-ray release is one of the great finds in modern day home entertainment history. Laurent Bouzereau, an acclaimed documentarian, has blended this archival rare footage with updated present day interviews to create a masterpiece that will be treasured and studied for decades to come.
All of this is coming your way on October 5, 2010. To ensure you don’t miss out, you can pre-order The Exorcist blu-ray from Amazon now.
Below is an official run-down of what each disc contains along with a glimpse of the cover art.
- Commentary by William Friedkin
- Raising Hell: Filming the Exorcist “ set footage produced and photographed by Owen Roizman, camera and makeup tests, and interviews with director William Friedkin, actress Linda Blair, author/screenwriter/producer William Peter Blatty and Owen Roizman (new; Blu-ray exclusive)
- The Exorcist Locations: Georgetown Then and Now “ Featuring a tour of the iconic locations where the film was shot (new; Blu-ray exclusive)
- Faces of Evil: The Different Versions of The Exorcist “ with director William Friedkin and author/screenwriter/producer William Peter Blatty discussing the different versions of the film and featuring outtakes from the film (new; Blu-ray exclusive)
- Trailers, TV spots & radio spots from the film’s 2000 release
- Introduction by William Friedkin
- Commentaries:
- William Friedkin
- William Peter Blatty with Special Sound Effects Tests
- The Fear of God: 25 Years of The Exorcist [1998 BBC documentary]
- Additional interviews with William Friedkin and William Peter Blatty:
- The Original Cut
- Stairway to Heaven
- The Final Reckoning
- Original ending
- Sketches & storyboards
- Trailers & TV spots from the 1973 version
Earlier this year, Warner Brothers removed all existing DVD copes of The Exorcist from stores in the hopes that it would help boost sales of this Blu-ray edition once released. It certainly does look like the complete package for any Exorcist/horror fan– it will be interesting keeping an eye on the sales numbers once released.
