[Jason Stringer]

Great website, nice forum. I've always wondred, When Kinderman finds the small statue at the bottom of the stairs is it the same one that Merin found at the start of the movie?

I hope that's not a silly question!

[fatherbowdern]

 
Hi DeeD,

It does look that way. However, it is actually one of Regan’s artwork pieces made from clay and painted. Like the orange bird she presents to her mother in the basement, we see Regan’s crafts around the home, particularly in both the kitchen’s and Regan’s bedroom windowsills.

This small figurine adds more intrigue to the film because Burke Dennings fell to his death from Regan’s window and that particular figurine fell along with him. Kinderman was astute enough not to mention the figurine he found at the bottom of the steps, yet later confirms his suspicions by asking Chris who created the ones in the kitchen’s windowsill.

I hope that helps.

Father Bowdern

[Jagged]

It's a tortoise.

In the book he surreptitiously scrapes some paint from Regan's models in the kitchen to compare with the paint on the model found by the steps and the church desecrations.

[fatherbowdern]

Jagged,

Good points from the book. However, they never get the full justice they deserve in the film. For instance, Kinderman actually uses the scraping of the paint from under fingernail that he “accidentally” took from windowsill figurine to see if it matches the other two ominous crime objects.

Father Bowdern

[epicwin123]

In the movie they use the clay at the bottom of the steps to show how Kinderman got his clay sample instead od him scraping it off and so on. To same time in the movie.

 

I thought it was the Pazuzu head too when I first saw it. I was so deeply confused and freaked out.

[fatherbowdern]

Hmmm … you sure about that epic? It's seems that Blatty wrote that Kinderman scraped the paint from under his fingernail into a small evidence bag. The one-and-only Sofia can answer that for the book. However, the film hardly makes a dent in connecting the dots between Regan's bird figurine, the statue of Mother Mary desecration, and Burke's death. Like I said, if the film had been longer, we could have seen this “mystery” side, but the original cut is the best.

Father Bowdern

[Jason Stringer]

I agree, FB: The mystery sub-plot might work well in the rumoured mini-series. But it's too much for any feature film length.

[epicwin123]

FB, I just noticed I made that a bit confusing. Blatty wrote in The Exorcist Novel To Film, that the clay at the bottom of the steps was to take place of the whole paint scraping bird scene. I kind of think that certain things in the movie don't make sense unless you read the book.

[fatherbowdern]

That's true, epic. From a film stance, no one can tie Kinderman talking about the desecrations in the church with Karras and Burke's head being turned completely backward at the bottom of M street (the Hitchcock Steps) with both Karras and Chris … unless you read the book before seeing the film.

Father Bowdern

[Ttubretep]

For what it's worth, I don't think that the similarities are coincidental.  The bird certainly shares the posture and general shape of the Pazuzu statue, not to mention the aforementioned similarities between the tortoise scuplture and the piece that Merrin unearths in Iraq.

[Steve Dunlap]

Ttubretep said:

For what it's worth, I don't think that the similarities are coincidental.  The bird certainly shares the posture and general shape of the Pazuzu statue, not to mention the aforementioned similarities between the tortoise scuplture and the piece that Merrin unearths in Iraq.

---

WOW!  Now that is something I had not noticed before.  I shall have to watch the movie again.  That is an interesting point out you made there. 🙂

[fatherbowdern]

Ttubretep said:

For what it's worth, I don't think that the similarities are coincidental.  The bird certainly shares the posture and general shape of the Pazuzu statue, not to mention the aforementioned similarities between the tortoise scuplture and the piece that Merrin unearths in Iraq.

---

Oh, I agree with you. I thought the very same thing when I saw it at age 12. I actually thought that the Pazuzu head had somehow ended up at the bottom of the steps.

Father Bowdern

[dankogrg]

Can somebody please explain, why is the paint on the bird the same paint that was on the statue in the church desecration?
that wasn’t explained even in the books.
Does Karl have to do anything with it?
Is that side episode with his daughter even neccessary?

[miekeee2]

I had the same confusion the first time I saw that scene — thought it was the same statue too. While reading more about movie trivia and related topics during a trip to Greece, I came across https://www.mikis-crete.gr . The site had detailed articles about local culture, film locations, and hidden stories from Crete, which made exploring the island even more interesting. I ended up spending hours reading and connecting the dots between the movies and real-life spots. Greece has a way of making these small discoveries feel immersive and memorable.

• This reply was modified 2 weeks, 3 days ago by miekeee2.

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