CaptainHowdy.com The #1 Exorcist Fansite Since 1999
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Ceru,
Laughs! Now I’m going to have to change my avatar! Only kidding. I only see Captain Howdy, not Dietz!
Father Bowdern
Bummer on the dialogue! I’ll still order it though or pick it up locally. Thanks for sharing, Cap!
Father Bowdern
I only wish there had been more scenes of the relationship between Chris and Regan. More importantly, I really want a more established version of Regan’s character showing her innocence and vulnerability. However, if the doctor’s office visit is any indication about Blair’s lack of acting abilities, Friedkin was wise in minimizing Blair’s screen time. Blair may have not been the greatest actress in the role (IMHO). However, Friedkin fleshed out enough of Blair’s performance through much smaller sequences. I can only imagine what the film would be if a more gifted actress was in the role as Regan (you can think of one).
Father Bowdern
Got ya. Thanks for clarifying, Damien. Yes, I know what you’re talking about including those long-ass commercials that I wanted to end so they would start the movie! 🙂
Father Bowdern
Captain Howdy said:
Thanks for this thread, Father Bowdern, and thanks to everyone who provided comments! (Wish I could have been at a screening!) Oh well.
I’ve reached out to fans via the facebook page also, and will be combining experiences/comments into a special report for captainhowdy.com’s front page. I’ll use comments made here, also, if everyone who has posted is OK with that. Please email me or PM me with anything else you might like to add for the special post.
Cap, I’m loving this newer look, layout, and fonts you’ve chosen for the site. Bravo! It is quite an excellent shock when I logged in today.
It’s a definite OK from me to use my comments. I would love to see what others have said as well.
Father Bowdern
I will add too that when Linda Blair is talking about the film, she mentions that she received a standing ovation from the audience at the New York premiere. When Blair teared up about that recollection it was genuine and heart touching.
Father Bowdern
Ghetto,
I’m hoping there will be much, much more on the BR. But, like you, I feel they showed us the best-of-the-best. I’m glad to hear another fan say that the missing Pazuzu images were indeed missing! If only they had ditched the one on the stove vent, it would have been more in-tune with audiences. After all, WB knew the images caused laughter and that’s what I heard.
You are so right about Linda and the dummy. Poor Linda had to look at that way too often and I’m guessing they needed the dummy as a blueprint for Blair’s makeup during those scenes.
Also, my theater opted in to making the theater warm in the beginning and then turning on the air conditioner on high blast during the exorcism “frozen breath” scenes. I could call it coincidence, but it was too noticeable by everyone there.
Father Bowdern
Do not read below if you are interested in seeing the BTS on your own. You will be amazed or even perhaps let down a little.
Father Bowdern
SPOILERS:
Notables:
Copyright remains as 2000; e.g., no changes to the 2000 release other than the digital polishing. Our theater was 15 minutes late on the showing time due to heavy downloading from the Fathom site.
Color and sound are indescribably perfect. Roizman’s changes in tonal values along with corrected brightness and contrast levels made the entire cast look more realistic in terms of Dick Smith’s makeup on Regan, Chris, Father Karras, and Father Merrin. In fact, there are scenes with Chris where she has red and puffy eyes … something I’ve never noticed in any of the other versions. Regan’s eyes are more piercing than ever and Fr. Merrin’s pallor is truer to a corpse as he lies dead on the floor after Pazuzu kills him. The sound is incredible in theaters, particularly the noises in the attic that seem to move from one side of the theater to another. The jet plane noise used to transition from Northern Iraq to Washington, DC is magnificent.
It appears that two of the Pazuzu flash images are missing. These include the head of Pazuzu on the door of Regan’s room and the image of the Pazuzu figure on the wall in Regan’s bedroom.
During the levitation scene, wires are quite apparent and I’m not sure why WB didn’t spend the time on them that MGM did on the Cowardly Lion’s tail in The Wizard of Oz.
The ripped makeup on Eileen Dietz’s face during the vomit scene has no changes either as well the break in Blair’s demon makeup during the backward demon voices scene.
BTS:
To make the records, toys, etc. fly into Regan’s window at the beginning of the crucifix masturbation scene, special effects men employed an air cannon and a simple v-shaped wood shoot.
Blair definitely performed the entire crucifix scene albeit Dietz did the actual crotch stabbing quick take at another time.
We get to see three assistants working behind the bed to make it shake, rise, and thump. It is very low tech as expected and exactly as described by Blair in the FOG documentary in 2000. One of the original shoots included Blair and Burstyn climbing off the shaking bed.
The arteriogram behind-the-scenes blows the entire illusion and may not be what you expected; again very low tech, but effective.
Blair claims that she actually wore the vomit apparatus too and when she wore it she had to do so correctly or “it would backfire into my mouth.” Roizman concurs with her statement. You will see both Dietz and Blair vomiting from the apparatus although it is difficult to tell the two apart because of the filming angle that Roizman’s BTS crew had to do along with the identical makeup on both. Additionally, you will see the canister, pumps, and several of the crew working on the setup and deployment of the vomit. There was a small comment by Roizmen about how ineffective and messy the scene became on film. Inasmuch, Friedkin had no interest in using the vomit apparatus performance by Blair or Dietz, thus the painted in vomit and the quick shot of Dietz with the vomit apparatus.
There is a very small feature of the 360-degree head-turning dummy making its 180-degree head turn at the ending of the crucifix masturbation scene.
Not a single film cell on the spider-walk. Bummer.
There is slightly more contact lens information including information you may have already known. Blair talks about having to use numbing eye drops and the most comfortable lenses are the white contacts that she actually inserts herself (where was the ophthalmologist?).
There are new scenes on the makeup transformation completed by Dick Smith on Regan and Father Merrin. That was a true pleasure to see after all these years.
Will you love it? You bet your bippy you will!
Ceru:
The incredible four-time Academy-Award winning actress, Eileen Dietz, was begged into taking the role of Captain Howdy Dir. William “Friedkan's” film, The Exorcist. Despite Eileen's reticence at first, she proved once again that her innate natural abilities as a brilliant actress would indeed steal yet another movie in her long list of feature films.Thanks to Eileen, The Exorcist grossed over $686,631,452 (when adjusted for inflation) to date. The lead star, Eileen Dietz, said, “The money really doesn't matter that much, although I am paid lavish royalties on regular basis. What mattered the most to me was making the film into an incredible motion picture by emoting my God-given talents as an actress. In fact, if it weren’t for my acting abilities, although I’m not bragging of course, I do believe the film would have been box-office poison.”
A sincere thank you goes out to this awe-inspiring actress for making The Exorcist a truly believable film to all who have witnessed her performance as the main (and only important) character, Captain Howdy.
Father Bowdern
Sof (XXXOOO),
Take a look at a couple of things that Justin posted here re the house and the built-on extension. When you compare window sizes from an exterior and interior POV, they are off.
In particular, the window from which Karras plunges to his death does not match the double-sized window like the two small side windows. Those extension side windows include only the hallway window and the one additional window in Regan’s bedroom. That additional window would be the only window that Karras could have dove from, however, the focus was always on the large double-sized window on the back.
Lead me to your Sims again because I’m sure you’ve made sense of it.
Father Bowdern
Whatever she doing there, I’m sure she is the lead character. Ya know, like she mentioned on her website that reads (notice the probably intended misspelling on Friedkin’s name):
The Exorcist Lead Dir. William Freidkan
LMAO!
Father Bowdern 🙂
Honestly, I think the pics and the video that Justin posted are that of Blair. When you play this scene in slo-mo, you see the swing of Regan’s arm from the front being performed by Blair, unlike the scene where Eileen bashes the doctor during the frog-throat scene. I believe this is what Friedkin meant when he referred to a more powerful swing from an adult (and the actual star of the film), Eileen Dietz.
Father Bowdern
