CaptainHowdy.com The #1 Exorcist Fansite Since 1999
- This topic has 13 replies, 8 voices, and was last updated 12 years, 3 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
The new cover art for the 40th Anniversary Edition is a photo of the stairs? Meh. Of all the choices. To each his/her own as far as likes and dislikes, but if WB is hoping for an increase in sales, this isn't the route. To generations ages 30 and under, those stairs are no more iconic than the alley behind their local McDonald's. Nothing looming or spooky about them. I feel they've missed the mark. I hope they at least give a choice of cover art, as mine would be the original “Merrin Arrives.”
I like the cover art. Could it be better? Sure, but those stairs are iconic and I love the use of the opening title font. They need to fix that atrocious red text, though. Looks like it was added on in Microsoft Paint.
And it doesn't mention anywhere it's the 40th anniversary edition?
Like I said in my post on the main page, I like the use of the iconic steps and how the cover keeps an ominous tone. If they were definitely not going to use “Merrin Arrives” I'm glad they went with something symbolic and not a picture of Regan possessed or anything.
You're right, Justin, the red text is jarring– especially William Friedkin's name, it gets very convoluted against the background.
Not mentioning “40th Anniversary Edition” is surprising. I'd assume they've left it off on purpose to not date this particular release?
I am kind of bored with this cover. 🙁 wonder if the back cover is better? If that has a killer image then I may be more happy. But right now I am happy as Pazuzu Regan meeting a priest.
TEDDY HEADSPIN said:
This would be lovely on the top of the back cover…
That's the image I've always pictured for alternate artwork. Something like this cover for Blatty's novel would look really nice as a steelbook:
Are we absolutely certain this is the cover art? It's been monkeyed with … a lot. I don't recall the sulfur-bulb lamps at all although I do like them.
I can honestly see JSM's point here. This is iconic to those of us who know the film well. However, I don't see it (the artwork alone) being sensational or ominous enough to capture any new viewer's attention.
I do ask if we are certain about the artwork because leaving the words “40th Anniversary” off is quite a big marketing blunder.
Father B
Father Bowdern said:
Are we absolutely certain this is the cover art? It's been monkeyed with … a lot. I don't recall the sulfur-bulb lamps at all although I do like them.
I can honestly see JSM's point here. This is iconic to those of us who know the film well. However, I don't see it (the artwork alone) being sensational or ominous enough to capture any new viewer's attention.
I do ask if we are certain about the artwork because leaving the words “40th Anniversary” off is quite a big marketing blunder.
Father B
This is the final artwork, unless WB decide to revise it later on.
The lamps have always been there. The “fight pigs” graffiti has been removed, though, and you can see the bits of the image repeated at the top right where they've used the clone-tool in Photoshop to remove the parked cars.
Apparently leaving off “40th Anniversary” isn't strange for WB, they did the same thing with Enter The Dragon and just put a sticker on the packaging.
Thanks, Father B.
I remain that I respect individuals' preferences, but when a movie's cover has been the same for nearly 40 years, it truly is as much a part of the film as the movie itself. When you see the golden arches, you know it's McDonald's. When you see Coca-Cola's brand, it's much the same.
If this movie were, say, “Drowning Mona” or something, almost no one would really care WHAT the cover. This is “The Exorcist,” though, we're talking about. Ask just about anyone on the street what the cover of the film looks like, and they can tell you. It's ingrained in people. I simply feel it takes away a bit of the “bite” of the movie to change something so iconic to a flight of stairs that won't resonate with younger audiences (and many older). At least not heavily. “If it ain't broke, don't fix it,” I say, and will hold on to my “Merrin Arrives” versions as long as they're playable.
Justin said:
Father Bowdern said:
Are we absolutely certain this is the cover art? It's been monkeyed with … a lot. I don't recall the sulfur-bulb lamps at all although I do like them.
I can honestly see JSM's point here. This is iconic to those of us who know the film well. However, I don't see it (the artwork alone) being sensational or ominous enough to capture any new viewer's attention.
I do ask if we are certain about the artwork because leaving the words “40th Anniversary” off is quite a big marketing blunder.
Father B
This is the final artwork, unless WB decide to revise it later on.
The lamps have always been there. The “fight pigs” graffiti has been removed, though, and you can see the bits of the image repeated at the top right where they've used the clone-tool in Photoshop to remove the parked cars.
Apparently leaving off “40th Anniversary” isn't strange for WB, they did the same thing with Enter The Dragon and just put a sticker on the packaging.
Thanks, Justin. I was actually too busy to pop the film in to do a comparison. As many times as I've seen the film, I don't really recall a view from the top of the stairs in this configuration … I only recall views from the bottom looking up. Do you or anybody else know where this photo appears in the film?
Thanks!
Father B
Looks more like a production photo rather than a frame from the film itself, but there is a similar shot looking down at Karras' bloodied body and you can just see the lamps coming into the frame. I'm probably wrong but I don't think there's any other night shots of the stairs, at least from that view.
Thanks so much, Justin! I agree it's probably a promo pic. I completely forgot about this quick shot on Karras in the pool of blood looking down The Exorcist (sorry Hitchcock) steps.
I tried to do a Google Earth search of the steps to see if any was close to this and did a few searches but no really clear hits. I wonder if the pic is newer or simply a rehash from the film's 1973 production days. Again, thanks for sharing this capture, Justin.
Oh, quite honestly, WB missed their mark by not taking advantage of the clever work you could have done with this artwork. I don't detest it, but my eyes immediately focused on the oddball spot on the middle landing and the terrible clone tool work in the parking lot … looks like snow. 🙂
Father B
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.