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On the subject of the music in The Exorcist… has anyone ever obtained an English translation of the liner notes from that original “Music Excerpts From…” soundtrack album? Both the vinyl version and the CD were apparently released as Japanese imports only, and the text is therefore all in Japanese. As far as I can tell, it seems to have a song-by-song rundown of each piece, and how/where it was used in the film. The liner notes of the remastered version (that came with the 25th Anniversary box set) were really wonderful (as was the design of the booklet itself), but the details of where particular pieces of music were used in the film were largely inaccurate. Just curious…
As I recall there was quite a lengthy thread awhile back on the subject of the different DVD versions. Since I never weighed in on that one, here’s my take…
The 3 versions of The Exorcist available on DVD (with my own two cents on each) are as follow:
The first DVD (released in 1997, I believe) of the film in its original 1973 form: This, for me, is the true classic. Although perhaps a little grainier than subsequent releases, I feel that it best retains the rawness – and that indefinable ‘x-factor’ – of the original release as I first experienced it in the theater back in 1979. The colors are much more natural (a point emphasized awhile back when some wonderful soul posted side-by-side comparison screen shots in this forum of this version with the 25th Anniversary version) and I find the sound much more affecting as well. I don’t think this version is in print any longer, but I picked up a used copy at a fairly decent price through Amazon.
The 25th Anniversary Special Edition: The film itself has been remastered, and is indeed much “cleaner.†But is that necessarily a good thing? As for the tinting issue – yes, both this and TVYNS are obviously bluer than the original film and the first DVD release (I’ve never heard an explanation as to why). But this too is a version no true fan of the film should be without. It has the most stunning array of extras to ever grace a DVD (including the unparalleled documentary, “The Fear of Godâ€). Although the original box set it came in – including an excellent commemorative book by Mark Kermode, a remastered soundtrack CD (missing Tubular Bells and Night of the Electric Insects, but with the samples from Schiffrin’s controversial rejected score), lobby card repros and a matted cell – is out of print, the DVD itself is still readily available.
The Version You’ve Never Seen: This is the fulfillment of Blatty’s dream – and years upon years of lobbying – to have most of the materials that had been cut from the original film at the last minute by a nervous William Friedkin reinstated. I have mixed feelings about this version. On one hand, seeing scenes such as the first doctor visit and the priests’ stairway discussion was such a treat, and greatly enhanced the story and overall experience of the film. On the other hand, I think Friedkin went over the top in “enhancing†the film as a whole. Specifically, I feel that the added sound and musical elements were obtrusive and broke the “magic†he achieved with the original sound design. And the flash images of the demon he added here and there are just silly for the most part, coming across almost as a self parody of the more subtle and effective elements he created in the original film. And, of course, there’s the “spider walk.†I was excited as anybody to see this reinstated, but once I saw it I wished they just left it out. Although I actually prefer the cobbled together version in the “Fear of God” documentary, from what I’ve seen there was just no way to really make this seen work as it was filmed. Personally, I think they should have filmed it more like the scene in the book, where it was much more credible and chilling. In retrospect, I wish they would have just taken the original film (sans blue tint) and added the missing scenes in more organically, without all the extra dressings. But there’s still much here to admire.
As for box sets, if you don’t have the films on DVD, you can complete your collection fairly simply now by getting the Complete Anthology boxed set released last year (including the 25th Anniversary, TVYNS, and all the sequels and prequels) and buying the original 1973 version separately. That’s what I did.
There, for what it’s worth, is my take.
Yes, the “original” to which they are referring is actually the remastered 25th Anniversary version – which many feel is the ultimate version of the original film to have. I personally prefer the original (“untouched”) original ;P. But like I said, you can usually find copies of the original 1997 DVD if you search Amazon and other places on the web. Good luck!
Yes, I too have always been impressesed with the way the existing music and other sound materials were woven into the fabric of the film. My appreciation was especially bolstered when I watched the original, 1997 DVD version while listening with ear buds. I had been enjoying and studying the film ever since I first saw the film in the theaters in 1979 (I got my first VCR back in 1983), but *listening* to the film like this was a whole new experience. If you can, you should try to listen to the film with good quality ear buds or headphones. There is so much subtlety in the sound design that I’d never noticed in either the theater or the home viewing experience. Things like hearing the demon’s cry of “Merriiinnn!” in the cacophany of sounds during Merrin’s stand-off with the statue at the end of the prologue, then hearing faintly ambient sounds from the Iraq prologue as Chris is investigating the rappings in Regan’s bedroom the first time in Georgetown. The movie is just filled with stuff like that… and it’s taken over 20 years of experiencing the movie to pick up on it! I wonder if these types of sound techniques are a big part of why the film gets under one’s skin. Too bad they had to destroy this subtle magic when they “enhanced” the sound for TVYNS…
And yes, using Penderecki’s music was an absolute master stroke. But then, it seems like every time his music is used in a film it is special and highly effective. The Shining is a brilliant example, of course, and selected snipets of his music were also used to great effect in Fearless and the more recent Children of Men. Penderecki did one actual film score that I know of (an obscure Polish film called The Saragosa Manuscript, back in the 60s) which is supposedly pretty wild and wonderful from what I’ve heard. I wonder if he will ever do any others. I hope so. In the meantime, in addition to the avalaible Exorcist soundtracks (the original “Music Excerpts from…” and the remastered version included in the 25th Anniversary Box) I’ve collected recordings of just about all the Pendercki music that has ever been used in films. That’s why the release of The Devils of Loudun was so exciting to me. It’s great to have extended versions of the music that made The Exorcist so memorable and affecting.
Yes, it’s always been the subtleties of the film that have impressed me most and resonated over the years. For instance, the sounds and images of the brief linking scenes are so beautifully and artfully composed. I’m thinking here of the low shot of the house directly preceding Chris’ conversation with the operator in Rome (with the subtle howl of the wind and swirling leaves), Chris’ drive home from the doctor’s office the night of Burke’s death (with the prickly sounds/music perfectly conveying her desperate confusion and inner turmoil), Karras’ departure from the MacNeil house – and Kinderman’s glimpse of the shadowy figure in Regan’s window – after the priest’s first visit (with Jack Nitzche’s wonderfully eerie crystal glasses) and especially that wonderful montage beginning with the ride home from Barringer Clinic and ending with Kinderman finding Regan’s sculpture at the base of the steps (so effectively accompanied by the otherworldly drone from the intro to Penderecki’s Cello Concerto). Then, of course, there is Merrin’s arrival at the house – so exquisitely artistic, even poetic! Unfortunately, reviewers and commentators of the film tend to miss these subtleties somewhere amidst the shock and spectacle of pea soup, spinning heads and the like (elements which could have ended up coming off as downright silly were it not for the care and attention put into all the quieter little moments leading up to them). Pity…
