CaptainHowdy.com The #1 Exorcist Fansite Since 1999
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^^^ Sof, great thoughts and commentary. We've talked offline a lot about the “real Chris and Regan” being Shirley and Sachi. Blatty was MacLaine's neighbor at the time he wrote The Exorcist. In fact, the Irish “Mac” prefix in the names of his characters is no accident, but some people just don’t know this or often fail to recognize the association between Shirley MacLaine and Chris MacNeil if they do.
I agree that an actress with Regan's description from the novel does matter, especially if you read the novel. At the time, Blatty's book shot to the New York Times bestseller list and stayed there for over a year. Harper hadn't even translated the novel into multiple languages, yet it raked in more millions than anyone could have imagined for a novel of its type.
As far as Blair’s acting, you see the same things I do when it comes to her performance. Blair was lucky to have on-set coaches like Friedkin and Burstyn to aid her. It’s a rare thing to get both a best director and a best actress to assist with your on-camera actions. The good thing I can say about Blair’s acting abilities is that she was excellent at imitation and never let the camera stand in her. Beyond The Exorcist, Blair is more like a lip-syncing Milli Vanilli who’s just been ousted by a piece of audio equipment that just went awry. Watching her performance on Supernatural was so stilted that I felt embarrassment for her.
Father Bowdern
But then we've have to admit that Pazuzu could have made the straps disappear around Regan's wrists, right?
On that note, Blatty was wise in his writing abilities. That doesn't hold true for the sequeal writers who tried to desperately grasp to shine just as brilliantly as the master. It will never happen, no matter the number of sequels.
Father Bowdern
I also agree that Ellen had a role in how the performances turned out. I'm a huge Ellen Burstyn fan, kind of since I hail from the Detroit-metro area and I like to support local talent, but mainly because she's one of the greatest living actresses today. Seriously, I haven't seen a movie of her's where she hasn't dazzled me. I read Lessons in I think three days. She's such a fascinating person, and it's even cooler because her childhood homes are less than a 2 mile radius from where my (maternal) grandpa and my dad's side of the family grew up. She might have known my grandpa, who knows!
straw, I can't agree more with you. Burstyn is one my favorite actresses and she was gypped in her performances in both The Exorcist and Requiem for a Dream. I feel the Academy and the voters knew they were wrong by not giving the Oscar to Ellen for her role in The Exorcist and later justified it for her performance in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. What other great actress could be nominated for an Emmy for just two lines of dialogue and 14 seconds of film time in the HBO special, Mrs. Harris?
The Academy just awarded Friedkin as Best Director for The French Connection and the old farts on the AA panel couldn't see giving him another one at his young age … too many politics, as usual.
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Father Bowdern
Father Dietz … tsk, tsk.Â
Anyway, it's actually interesting to hear comments about other scenes in the film that you guys think that Linda acted poorly. Her performance doesn't distract from the film at all. Friedkin made sure of that by editing it very nicely.
We have to remember that Friedkin intentionally chose mostly unknown actors for the parts. He didn't want association and he got it and it worked to the film's benefit. Look at how cleverly Ridley Scott went the same route as Friedkin for his film Alien. It worked geniously, too.
I believe that what Blair had in terms of acting abilities is the result of Friedkin and working with the incredible actress Ellen Burstyn who guided Blair just as she did Jason Miller. It isn't so much that children are not good actors, e.g., Ricky Shroder, Natalie Wood, Haley Joel Osmet, Jodie Foster are great examples and the list goes on. However, Burstyn trained under Lee Strasberg and she was more than happy to help fellow actors then and now. If you read her memoir, Lessons in Becoming Myself, you'll see why Burstyn championed her co-stars without the ego that a lot of actors have. This, Steve, may be why you enjoy the “mother/daughter pillow talk” scene so well.
Father Bowdern
Simmer down guys. I have an opinion, too. … probably a little more seasoned at my age, but a different opinion than those of yours. I enjoy reading your opinions and reflections and I'm not objecting so vehemently because you have another angle.
To go further, I never gave any thought to Linda's acting performance in The Exorcist until the release of TVYNS. That's when I realized that Friedkin made the wisest decisions for the original release by cutting out the less-than-favorable performances by Blair. This includes the doctor's office visit and probably many more scenes that we are not even aware of despite BTS footage and other scenes that couldn't be used due to sound issues.
Linda Blair didn't win the Oscar because she did not perform the part in the holistic acting sense as I said above and that you pointed out by quoting me regarding Mercedes McCambrige. Without McCambridge, the part of the demon never existed until her vocal acting talents came into play. I remember the controversy all too well back then about this very issue. Ten-year-old Tatum O'Neal won the Oscar that year over Blair and other adult actresses. Neither went on to great careers. However, going back a little to other threads, to blame The Exorcist II: The Heretic as a pivotal collapse of Blair's career does not compute because she simply does not have the talents required to pull off anything other than what Friedkin let us see in his masterpiece.
This is yet another reason why TVYNS is a fiasco over the original. TVYNS, now EDC, cheapened, weakened, and made a modern mockery of a classic motion picture. On that note, I agree with Roger Ebert's critique that Friedkin was happy with his fim for 25 years and the release of TVYNS was nothing more than a marketing ploy that added 11 minutes of agonizing cutting-room fluff and unnecessary CGI elements.
Father Bowdern
I think Blair's lack of vocal abilities for the part of the demon coincides with her inabilities to perform various scenes that Friedkin surreptitiously edited prior to the film’s release; i.e., the awkwardly overacted doctor’s office visit.
Blair’s Academy Award nomination truly goes to Friedkin for his skills versus the totality of Blair’s acting performance. Holistically, Blair did not have the goods to deliver the in-depth demands of the demonic role without the vocal performance of the great actor Mercedes McCambridge. I believe if Friedkin had not thought of McCambridge, The Exorcist would have been a disaster on a comedic level regardless of the child actor chosen.
Father Bowdern
Perhaps under Friedkin's direction, Scott's performance would have been better. In III, it was like watching Rod Steiger in The Amityville Horror … way overacted.
Father Bowdern
This question recieved posts in the past, but we haven't seen a Greek language interpretor on here yet to figure it out.
Father Bowdern
Bad odors manifest the victim through the demon, such as sulphur or rotting meat/fish. I don't recall if Blatty wrote about the actual smell other than it is am overwhelming, foul-smelling stench. Basically, Regan smelled like shit.Â
Father Bowdern
Yuck, Justin! Now I see why you were so convinced about the bloody spiderwalk. I just kept thinking along the lines of all the CGI stuff we've seen over the past decades and how well it's done; e.g., Spielberg and Cameron films or even Gollum/Sméagol.
You should PM people to see if they are interested in collaborating on a book/DVD/BR combo. One thought: if you approached the project from a truly educational level, it would work for fans and it could fall into the hands of colleges/universities that teach cinema. I know the Cap would definitely know a lot about that.
As usual, thanks for always sharing. I always look forward to the “Justin” posts!Â
Father Bowdern
Thanks, Justin. Can you imagine how difficult it was to match the superimposed vomit mattes without CGI? I got it! Justin, you showed the shot from Tumblr of Blair imitating the vomiting without the vomit. Do you have anything showing us what it could like today with CGI? Just a thought.
Anyway, it would be very nice if someone bought this and shared it.
Father Bowdern
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Edit: Justin … you have a massive amount of stuff on this film, have you considered writing a BTS book like Travers & Rieff? It could be expensive upfront, but I believe there are enough of us crazy fans to recoup and make $.
