Always be a classic but losing a bit of its notoriety

Rating: 8/10 (2 December 2013)

I was 7 when the Exorcist was first released and even at that age with no chance of seeing the movie I was aware of it,such was the frenzy surrounding it,thus it was going to be immortalised in history as the most notorious of all mainstream horror films. When the bbfc decided to ban it from video release several years later not on the grounds of extreme violence like the so called video nasties,but basically because they felt it was to scary for the common man,then it's long term reputation was cemented. To live up to the hype was always gonna be a big ask,and unfortunately it doesn't quite make it but makes a valiant attempt. The scenes of possession,head spinning,projectile vomiting and especially the shocking scene with the crucifix truly must have been disturbing to an early seventies audience,and also the opening sounds and first scenes in Iraq are unsettling which create a real feeling of evil and are all responsible for the almost hysterical reaction to the film. But times have changed,people like me of a certain age have witnessed so much horror since then both real and fictional that the mystique of the movie just doesn't wash anymore,worse still when I lent a copy of the film to some younger people during the time of its ban they found it laughable,that was probably more shocking! Overall the Exorcist is a brave movie it is still a classic but unfortunately like many things in Hollywood it is not ageing well. By the way there have been several sequels to this movie and one of them is a hidden gem possibly the real scariest film ever made! Please look at my top ten scary movies.