CaptainHowdy.com The #1 Exorcist Fansite Since 1999
- This topic has 16 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 18 years, 5 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
I’d like to move the attic scene to its original spot like in the novel and see how that works out. And also add the original spiderwalk + ending.
What you say does sound very interesting. I also thought these subliminal Pazuzu additions were kinda silly. They don’t match the level of the film.
Could you please post a link to your YouTube videos?
Changes:
THE ORIGINAL: Delete Karl’s “She is going to be well?” from the staircase “crucifix interrogation” scene – it doesn’t make much sense unless you’ve read the book, and it’s misplaced. Ditto Karl’s “It wants no straps” – most folks don’t put this line together with the soon-to-follow “You might loosen these straps, then”. The audience doesn’t know what on earth he’s talking about unless they catch on when Karras is asked to loosen the straps, but even then, the first line is obtrusive… If audio-technically possible, re-voice Karras’ dialogue in the tavern from, “I think I’ve lost my faith” to “I think I’m losing my faith”. This would permit an ember of faith to remain in Karras, and explain why he still says Mass, wears clerical garb, and has not dropped out of Church and priesthood altogether.
TVYNS: Delete Pazuzu on the bedroom wall when Chris finds the open window – it looks like a slide projection… The “lights-out” kitchen doesn’t need the Howdy faces… Delete the bloody-mouthed spider walk and replace it with the long-tongued spider walk – the latter is spookier, and very close to the scene in Blatty’s novel… If audio-technically possible, delete Sydow’s wheezy nasal exhaling on the “stairs conversation” scene – for me, it distracts from his dialogue… Delete the Moslem prayer chant from the final scene: leave it without music or put another track in.
There is a really creepy song on the soundtrack that is sung by a little girl. I can picture this playing instead of the Muslim chant then the original music kicks in during the title credits. In Blatty’s novel Regan sings this. It is from an unused score by Lalo Sschfrin for anyone who owns the soundtrack.
I modified the ending theme if you want to hear a sample go to the link below
[audio src="http://www.freefileupload.net/file.php?file=files/181206/1166472561/newendingsample.mp3" /]
I’ve learned throughout my editing experiences that silence can be the most powerful tool in crafting someone to be evil. My new edit would have Regan talking very little while she’s going through her initial possession stages except for the “Mother what’s wrong with me” line. I dunno it just seems creepier with silence. The “fucking bastard” line is almost kinda cute it retrospect like aww a cute little girl is trying to act tough. I just think it works better with the spit and doesn’t even give you enough time to think about it and just changes to the next scene. What does everyone think about the new ending music?
The problem really is that the audio track has been lost for the last 30 seconds or so. If you watch the 25th anniversary it shows the original ending with Kinderman’s dialogue being drown out by the traffic and things going in the background. I think Kinderman’s last line where he quotes Casablanca is extremely important as the exorcism has brought together two people who probably wouldn’t have met. The Muslim chant at the end really doesn’t provide any insight so I think it is a huge flaw on the editor’s part by re-inserting it onto the end for anything more than bookending the film.
Ghetto
I applaud your re-scoring, but if I may be so bold, I think the audience may experience it as intrusive. Since Regan has not done any of the singing in the movie that she did in the novel, folks might wonder “who” is singing and what it signifies. I recognized it as the “Tantum Ergo” from the Benediction service in the Catholic Church on Fridays during Lent. As such, for me and other ancient Catholics and ex-Catholics, it may seem not so much creepy as nostalgic. (It may have been creepy if it had been used in the film and Regan was singing it. Like Douriff’s singing in Legion. But if it had been used by the possessed Regan, it probably would not be suitable for the finale, since that might imply that she’s still possessed).
But I think your use of it points in the right direction, because it frames the film between two prayers, namely, the Moslem chant and the Tantum Ergo.
Granted, TVYNS does frame the film between two prayers, but the re-use of the Moslem chant at the end does not indicate any change in direction for the story and characters. I personally always experienced the Moslem chant at the beginning as part of the eeriness and alien-ness of the subject matter, which sets the mood for the entire film (Moslem audiences would probably experience this differently, of course). So repeating the Moslem chant – for me – does nothing but bring back the terrifying mood of the film’s opening – which is clearly not Friedkin’s intention.
If the finale’s Moslem chant could be “mixed” with some of the other used or unused scores – music that would perhaps contain an unobtrusive major chord that would modify the “tone” of the chant – then the ending Moslem chant might be “tilted” toward a positive interpretation.
I hope you don’t think I’m being overly critical – thanks for doing the new scoring and sharing it. I think TVYNS’s ending created musical and context problems anyway.
I liked Kinderman and Dyer getting together, and the continuance of Karras’ joke “I’ve seen it” – but I wish Kinderman’s dialogue about who’s starring in the play had been different. Anyway, thanks for your contributions.
Thanks for the links, Ghetto. I thought the edits were pretty good, especially that silent doctor exam, it was chilling(:
Do you yourself laugh at that “fucking bastard” line? It would be silly to remove it just to please others. 😮
Thanks for the insightful comments… yeah, the Casablanca quote is crucial and unfortunately is “missing”…
Another possible idea I have been kicking around is using a few good snippets from The Exorcist II and show the movie as a flashback of Regan’s. It could possibly work if I could find the right footage. It would be more of a student project than a legitimate cut but I would be curious to see if I could do it.
Well the movie is almost perfect but…
I would delete for sure that really short cut with Eileen Dietz vomiting after Linda Blair because you can clearly see it is not Linda. I find it really disturbing. I would redirect the spiderwalk scene exactly like in the book: Regan walking like a spider and hissing like a snake after Sharon for the whole scene (and not turning straight like the version you can see in the fear od god)… I know it is diffuclt to realize but with the special effect we have nowadays…
The problem is to give an end to this scene… An idea would be to stop it with a close-up of Sharon screaming with her face against the door …
The other thing I find really disturbing is the dummy.. So probably I would change it and make it “real” with modern special effects.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.