An Intriguing And Thought-Provoking Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (27 September 2010)

Having viewed this movie many times over the years in various forms, and reading many reviews both negative and positive, I felt compelled to share my own views.
Firstly, in my opinion it is incorrect to categorize this movie in the "horror" genre. Granted the events that occur in the movie are disturbing and downright scary at times, but to me the classic "horror" movie formula consists of gratuitous slicing and dicing with a one-dimensional plot. And while some of these movies can be enjoyed superficially, The Exorcist delves deeper and attempts to unsettle the viewer on a more psychological level. Willam Peter Blatty's script is based on a true story from an incident in 1949, and is a true masterpiece of creativity and imagination showing the effects these events would have on a normal family. When compared with today's modern releases, his writing style shows the inadequacies of today's movie script writers.
Due to the fact this movie has been available to watch for so many years, the majority of people reading these reviews would have seen it in some form or another, so I don't feel it's necessary to document the storyline yet again.
The slow pacing of the movie is extremely important, which of course goes against the conventions of current cinema releases. This is one of the points that draws the most criticism from the modern audience, most of which may have only seen the movie once, possibly twice. The exorcism scenes at the end move along fairly rapidly, and the manner in which the first half on the movie is paced is necessary to establish the "normal" surroundings of Regan and her mother. This gives the movie credibility rather than a slow pace, and the necessary violent and graphic scenes are crafted into the script perfectly by Blatty, rather than an incoherent blood-fest which seems to be the norm these days for movies now classified in this genre (again I still don't believe The Exorcist should be classified as "horror", but unfortunately in this day and age, everything needs a category).
I first viewed a heavily edited TV version of this movie in my early teens, and still found it disturbing, but highly intriguing. After viewing an uncut version years later, it still had a similar impact. Again modern audiences now feel the need to apply a "scare factor" to any material that is classed as "horror", and due to the fact there was no CGI in 1973, they instantly dismiss the older effect techniques as dated, or laughable. If you are paying that much attention to the effects and not the storyline of the movie itself, then you are bound to have an extremely insular and limited understanding of what an intelligent movie actually is.
Linda Blair is exceptional as Regan in the lead role, and from all accounts, this movie took it's toll on her and other members of the extended cast. The results show on screen, and William Friedkin did an outstanding job constructing some of the most memorable scenes and imagery to ever grace the big screen.
Having viewed both versions many times now, I still prefer the original in most respects. The new ending is a source of constant debate, again I feel the original ending was much more appropriate to the overall direction of the movie. Having said that, the Spider Walk scene was a welcome addition.
Overall, this is an extremely intriguing and thought-provoking movie, and some of the imagery will stay with the viewer years after first watching it. This will always be one of my favourite movies, and is unfortunately extremely underrated by many modern viewers today.