[Sofia]

“Mmmmh, I read the book again just last week and I don’t get at all at this intentional suspension of disbelief, sorry…”

Ummm, then maybe you should read it again. Blatty has written a lot of times that his intention for the novel was to keep a mystery of whether or not Regan was possessed.

Blatty:”… is this little girl possessed or is she emotionally unbalanced? In approaching it, my tactic was to work with an M.D. who was concerned only with ailments of the body and a psychiatrist.”

I started a thread about this in the book section, and as granville said, “part of Blatty’s art is to allow a modicum of multiple choice without forcing a conclusion on the reader. The book would have suffered if the author’s meaning had been chiseled in stone.”

From reviewers: (mostly from amazon)
“No matter what happens in the book, an alternate non-supernatural explanation is given with lots of research to back it up. That is the reason this book has been described as the Einstein of horror stories.”

“In fact, up till the novel’s conclusion, the author (Blatty) does such a superb job of describing the psychological aspects of Regan’s behaviour that we are continually caught between the belief that she was truly possessed, and the notion that she was mentally ill.”

“The book mentions many scientific theories on paranormal activities, they help to maintain an “investigative” style of storytelling that serves to heighten the drama.”

Like I said I love the mystery of whether or not she’s possessed and most people get enjoyment from it, as well. Too bad that you didn’t.

“mmmmhhh, And where is written that Regan went only that day in her room? You suppose it is like this, but it is not written in the book…”

That’s why I said, they probably didn’t go to the room. I was assuming. On the first draft screenplay, carpenters were repairing Regan’s broken window during the time she and Chris stayed there. So why would Regan go to the room? I’m sure she wasn’t interested in seeing carpenters working. 🙂 So it makes sense that she only went there to pack her bags.

[Sofia]

Maybe the carpenter was super sexy, lol.

I don’t know when the funerals took place. Blatty didn’t mention it.

Hmmm then she probably didn’t go to L.A or a hotel because people would see that there was something very wrong with Regan and it would get around. Remember when she went to the clinic in Dayton? She selected a wig to wear so people wouldn’t recognize her.

[granville1]

Hey, Blizzi and Ryan, thanks for your input. What with CGI’s current state, presumably this final shot would not be too difficult to achieve… wouldn’t need to actually go back to the cemetary and re-shoot. Although that would be very cool as well.

[Ryan]

That would be incredible.

[Blizzi]

Brilliant idea, granny! Sounds wonderful 😀

[granville1]

Speaking of funerals – off topic sort of – I would have liked to see Legion end in the cemetary with:

Long shot of cemetary;

Shot moving left to right thru headstones,
PAUSING

At Merrin’s grave (assuming he was buried in Georgetown);

At Paul Morning’s grave;
FINALLY

At Karras’s grave.

It might make a touching tribute to those three martyrs – all killed while combatting the demonic.

[hammer horror]

mmmh… no, I don’t agree… what happened in that house was simply too horrible…
it doesn’t work, with or without carpenter… no wait… if the carpenter was a super sexy carpenter maybe I could unterstand why Chris wanted to stay… ahhahhhhhhahhaah

besides… couldn’t she attend the funerals while living in a luxus hotel?
And I really don’t think the funeral were after six week!

[Sofia]

The first time I read the novel, I admit I thought about the same, that it would be weird to live there after what happened. But I changed my mind after reading about the carpenter and that Regan had to be sleeping with Chris. Also, during those 6 weeks, I’m sure Chris kept herself busy taking care of Regan so her mind wouldn’t think about the strange phenomena. I mean, she’s the kind of woman who would say, “I have to get on with my life not get stuck in the past.” She also wanted to attend the funeral of Karras and Merrin, maybe that’s why she didn’t leave for L.A sooner, too.

[hammer horror]

You make everything just too simple… you forget Regan has killed one man there, and two others have died… many strange phenomena have happened… I think Chris, in a real life, would have moved somewhere else in order to protect her daughter from memories…
I mean… people couldn’t sleep for months looking at this movie and you tell me it would be normal to sleep there???

[Sofia]

Oh, well, but Regan’s bedroom was the scary part of the house and if no one went there, except on that last day to pack, why is it so unbelievable to keep living there.

[hammer horror]

Today I read again the epilogue. Without any doubt Regan and Chris staied in Washington for six weeks and I suppose mostly in the house since Dyer went to visit them very often. if they were living somewhere else Blatty would have specified it. Probably Regan went to the hospital for one or two weeks and then she kept living one month in the house of horror, sleeping with her mother…
Mmmmmmh… Excuse but this part is more unbelievable than the spinning head…

[hammer horror]

quote lunuso:”Hmmm then she probably didn’t go to L.A or a hotel because people would see that there was something very wrong with Regan and it would get around.”

Yes, this could be possible. But I think in a real life Chris woul have brought Regan somewhere else… I don’t know, in the countryside or a farm with horses since Regan liked them so much… Just to help her recovery… There is no way she would stay in the house of horror for so long with the risk that Regan could remember something and be totally scared…

I really would like to know what Blatty thinks about the “six weeks issue”…

[Sofia]

I never saw Legion but since the idea comes from granny it would be a wonderful alternate ending.

hammer, I think the farm with horses would be lovely. 🙂 And I’d like to know what Blatty thinks of the six weeks, as well lol. Hey I thought of something else. Maybe Chris didn’t leave the house immediately because she was in love with it. I’m just kidding, he-he. But in the first pages, she thought about buying it and start to live there.

[granville1]

lunuso, thanks for the compliment… we might be a wee bit sentimental, but I for one might get teary-eyed when the three graves show up on screen…

[hammer horror]

Isn’t it strange that after the exorcism the mother and Regan didn’t leave the house immediately and stayed there for 6 weeks??? Just imagine you went through all that horrible things… wouldn’t you leave the house just in one second to protect your daughter even if you know that the demon is gone? I think Blatty just left them there to make possible the encounter with Dyer at the end…

[Author]

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