CaptainHowdy.com The #1 Exorcist Fansite Since 1999
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This discussion got me thinking about my introduction to The Exorcist and why it has the impact on me that it does.
First and foremost, Im Catholic, so nuff said.
As a child I can still remember how scary I thought the commercial for the movie was. I guess they were playing it on whatever movie channel we had, and although it never showed anything, I was disturbed by that one scene where Chris runs up to the room-the camera freezes on her face and you here Regan’s possesed voice.
I asked my mom about the film andfound out that her and my father went to the theater to see it and it had the effect on her that you always read about…it deeply scared her and she absolutely wanted nothing to do with ever seeing it again. A funny side note: this answered a question for me…when I was younger still, when I would have a nightmare, I would wake up and call for my mom, because I was to scared to get out of bed. I would lay there and call out “Mommy…mommy” and she would not come, she would always call to me to come to her room. Even as a child I thought it was odd that I had to come to her. Years later, I realized that she had just seen the Exorcist and there was no way she could bring herself to walk down a dark hallway to a kids room. It makes me chuckle now.
My mothers experience and what she would tell me about how the film was too terrifying to take began making the film into a sort of boogie man for me. I remember when it would be on TV I would flip the channel real quick to it, just for a second, to see if I could take it. Usually there was nothing happeing of consequence…except one time when I flipped to the scene where Karras meets Regan tied to the bed for the first time. I didnt leave it on long enough to even completely register what I was seeing…but it was long enough to feel like I had seen something a kid shouldnt be seeing.
Ah, to be able to be that frightened my a movie again…anyway it was years before I officially sat down and watched it-aware the whole time that this film was “the boogie man”Unfortunately these days most ‘Horror Fans’consider blood and guts to be the scariest thing imaginable.Saw was just plain outright cuelty and nothing more.A real horror movie should have you lying in bed wondering what is causing all those strange noises in the room,while being too scared to move.There’s no way any of the main characters from Saw or any other similar films will be lurking in the closet, but when it comes to Supernatural possibilities, then you can’t be as certain.I’d rather be stuck in a room with Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers and Jason instead of being in Regan’s bedroom for even a few minutes.But the gore fans will no doubt disagree.
I don’t know about Wicker Man because it’s my not bag. I don’t watch “trying-to-be” horrors films without substantial direction, writing, and editing. If I see a box cover or ad like that of Wicker Man, I have no interest at all.
The only film that I personally compare to the psychological horror like The Exorcist is Silence of the Lambs. Of course there are a few others like Psycho, but I give “raspberries” to the slasher, hatchet, ax, blood-and-gore fest of films.
Just as karras13 writes, if a film envelopes you into the film as if you are a part of the action, it’s worthy of great American Cinema.
The statement that there is evil in the very celluloid itself is reminiscent of the idea of the film bringing bad luck don’t you think?
dsea, you’re pretty on track with the statement that Graham made. Here’s what a blogger wrote directly to William Friedkin regarding it’s 25th Anniversary:
IRVINE, CA: What made you make a film like that? It was just pure evil.
William Friedkin: That’s what Billy Graham said at the time. I think you’re both wrong. To me, “The Exorcist” is a story of the eternal struggle between good and evil in which the forces for good, in this case, win out.
You read even more here.
Yes I do- I kinda always liked the statement as a powerful part of the “legend” of the Exorcist…for someone as well known (and in some circles quite well respected), to say that gives the film that much more…i dont know…weight I guess.
Less encouraging was the reaction of the evangelist Billy Graham, who saw The Exorcist as somehow aligned with the forces of darkness, and took to enthusiastically denouncing it in public. “Billy Graham said something like, ‘There is a power of evil in that film, in the fabric of the film itself,'”recalls Blatty with a genuine sense of bemusement. “Now I don’t know what he was talking about. I mean, I have great respect for Billy Graham, but I thought that was one of the most foolish statements I have ever heard. I would have attributed it to senility except he was only 39 or 40 at the time. But to this day I still have no idea what he meant by that. I mean, obviously there is a power in the film to move you, to have a disturbing effect upon the viewer which is greater than the sum of its parts. It’s mysterious, yes. But my God, it’s not evilÖ”
Hey guys! It’s my first post here 🙂
I’m 14 years old and I have no idea how I stumbled across this website xD
Anyways, I’ve been interested in the paranormal/scary stuff and all of that for years now. I’ve watched A LOT of scary movies but none have really scared me :/ I’ve heard that this movie was one of the scariest.. Is it true? I don’t really think I get scared easily.. And I’ve seen all kinds of EXORCISMS from shows, and read stories, and I know all about it.. Blood and gore don’t scare me either. I get enough of that from Saw, lol.
I’ve also played the Scary Maze Game numerous times 😀 .. And it doesn’t freak me out.. The face is a bit creepy though..
I’m going to watch this movie today.. Think I’ll get scared? Rate it out of 10 for scariness and give me feedback please!
Hmmmm … does this mean The Passion of the Christ is on a level playing field with The Exorcist? If so, does that mean that Mel Gibson delivered a message of “good” in every single frame of the celluloid he produced? Both films are “moving.” However, to denounce or praise that evil or good is a part of a film is asinine. Again, just MHO. 🙂
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