[fatherbowdern]

I think the disappoint in the documentaries is that they used the “Roizman Tapes” and stills from various sources. It's the old substance vs. shadow. I'm happy to see them, but I wholeheartedly agree they were all too short and sometimes just a rehash or a slightly extended/different version of the FOG interviews.

Roizman talks about Friedkin kicking the WB documentary folks to the curb because it just work for him. What a shame. Mr. Friedkin's ego got in his way (as usual) and we are left with just the “Roizman Tapes.”

It would be nice if each main player (with the exception of those who had already passed on) talked about their experiences on set; i.e., more from Burstyn when she's pulled by the wire into Regan's bedroom wall.

Father Bowdern

[Ceru]

If anything, I was surprised by the general light-heartedness in the BTS footage.  There was me previously thinking everyone involved had to be on tippy-toes, walking on eggshells, all serious and not making any kind of jokes, for the entire shoot.

Then for the most part, it's Blair all smiles, waving to the camera, Friedkin being comforting, and the crew “showing the magician's tricks”, as it were.  Definitely a contrast from the moody Fear Of God doc. (well, it *is* called “The Fear Of God”, what would you expect??)

That one shot of Linda looking at the Regan dummy, then looking at the camera and grinning… still cracks me up!

[fatherbowdern]

I'm sure they had a blast filming while Friedkin cursed everyone out and shot off the guns to get startled reactions. I also think the Regan/Dummy is funny and had to weird Blair out.

Father Bowdern

[Jason Stringer]

Like she said, she didn't enjoy having to look at it every day. No wonder people want to believe she became disturbed by her experience. So unique, especially for the time.

[fatherbowdern]

Indeed, CH. I was thrilled to see how sound of mind Blair was and the ways in which she handled herself on an unusual film set.

All of which makes me think about the masturbation scene in the “Roizman Tapes.” At age 13, I can't imagine that Blair was totally naive especially since we both grew up in the same neighborhood setting. You couldn't board public transportation in certain parts of the city without seeing the foulest language spray painted on every surface while “that weird dude in the corner” was wanking off with a smile that ended with a grimaced look of pleasure upon climax. If you didn't ask what this or that meant, or your parents didn't tell you (almost always the case), one of your siblings or friends would surely offer up the meaning of the word masturbation along with the other urban dictionary synonyms.

Inquisitive 13-year-old children, regardless of how sheltered they are, would ask, “Why am I slamming this cross where my privates are located while I’m screaming, “Let Jesus Fuck you?” Blair often claims she could never tell her mother what she just for the audition. Come on, Linda, your mamma bear was right there in the background protecting her most valuable commodity.

Father Bowdern

[TheCheetahwings]

I asked for the bluray  for my birthday, its funny because I asked for a portable bluray player specifically for this bluray, lol, I was never planing on getting a bluray player, until dvd bacilly died, like VHS did, but when I saw the preview,  I said bacilly “Great now I HAVE to get a bluray player,” and then I heard the reviews I can't wait till tomorow my birthday! 🙂 Finally I can hold it after watching the preview and unboxings on you tube. lol

 

By the way this is my first post as a member 🙂

[epicwin123]

I learned of masterbation when I was, what, like 10 or 11. I'm sure she must have known what she was doing. Even the sheltered kids know by age 13.

[TheCheetahwings]

Even in the 1970's plus Im not trying to be sexist, but I would think girls would learn about it later

[DamienKarras]

This one's turning creepy

[Jason Stringer]

I just wanted to welcome TheCheetahwings to the forum. I'm not going to divulge my masturbation discovery timeline. DK is right, this thread is turning creepy!

[fatherbowdern]

Welcome Cheetah!

Ah, we're just “diddling” on the masturbation topic.   I don't see it as a “creepy thing” at all … I'll leave that to the Delaware Senate candidate, Christine O'Donnell.

If it wasn't for a scene like this being filmed and shown to audiences, motions pictures would have stagnated. It was a bold move on Jack Valenti’s part to allow this film with that scene to receive an R versus an X rating (now known as NC-17). In fact, knowing that Midnight Cowboy (1969) and Last Tango in Paris (1972) both received an X rating meant that The Exorcist was the real turning point in U.S. rating’s cinematic history.

Father Bowdern

[Jagged]

I still say there is no way that scene in the movie can in any way be described as masturbation.

That's how they got away with it.

[fatherbowdern]

Technically, I agree with you Jagged that the scene is much more brutal than just masturbation. It is the highest level of demonic assault on a young virgin with the most sacred of religious iconography: the crucifix. Regardless of the name of the scene, it is the juxtaposition of Jesus Christ's bloody impalement. It also reflects the incredible genius and higher level thought processes of William Peter Blatty.

Father Bowdern

[Jason Stringer]

I've always found the term 'masturbation scene' an off-putting and somewhat inaccurate way of describing the scene. In the film, at least, there's very little eroticism (unless you're completely sick), it's all brutal.

Okay, maybe it goes 'there' with the whole “Lick me… lick me!” moment.

[fatherbowdern]

Exactly, Cap. When Blatty made decisions about wording, he was precise and on target to get us to think about how vile and disgusting the *”bloody vaginal stabbing with the cross” scene could be imagined in his readers’ minds. When put on film, it was in your face thanks to film's helmer skills.

As I grow older, I will never understand how newer and younger audiences can laugh at what they are seeing. I can recall how the scene played out in the 1970's versus 2000 and 2010. I was much younger than the typical theater members in the 70’s (thank to my father, no less) and I assure you no one laughed or even chuckled. Today, laughter fills the air and I don’t want to guess at what or why visceral and emotional senses are so dull now.

Father Bowdern

PS: This is not insult to anyone’s age or interpretation of the scene. Period.

* From the booklet that comes with the Blu-ray edition: “Picture for a moment the immaculately photographed late-night arrival of Father Merrin outside of the MacNeil home, fog enshrouded, eerily silhouetted, and recalling Rene Magritte’s famously atmospheric painting L’Empire des Lumieres. Now, consider the stomach-churning geysers of pea soup, the gruesome head spinning, and the bloody vaginal stabbing with the cross. The Exorcist is a film of both elegance and extremity, of class and, simultaneously, of crass.” 

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