A chilling classic

Rating: 9/10 (8 September 2010)

For everyone born after 1973 the experience of the movie's debut in theaters is something you cannot imagine. Nothing like it had ever been made before, or since. The essential element in this movie is it could happen to you. That stays in the back of your mind throughout the movie. A non-religious family, divorced parents, a newly single working mom, and a naive pre-teen daughter. The movie weaves a web in your mind. How could something like this happen? A innocent girl playing with a Ouija Board because she had nothing better to do, and her mother was hardly around due to her busy career. There is a disconnection in their relationship. Perhaps the divorce of her parents left her emotionally vulnerable... and Regan is a very vulnerable character. The characters are more connected than they know. There is an underlying plot that it was a trap for Father Merrin. How the possession began, the mother went to a priest for help, and he was an acquaintance of Father Merrin. Perhaps he knew it would come back into his life, and was waiting. Nothing is explained, but you can guess this demon and the priest have met before. What made it so amazing is they did not hold back. It's not the book version because that would be too outrageous even today. An NC-17 rating to say the least. When the movie ends there is still a black cloud over the family. She decides to move, but it seems they are running away. Who could stay in a house where so many unimaginable things occurred? This movie leaves a lasting impression in your mind.