My opinion? The Exorcist explores medical, psychological and scientific explanations for Regan's behavior throughout much of the movie. Even the subplot involving the police investigation of the lethal fall down the stairs next to the townhouse is methodically based in the explainable. Every aspect is examined to the smallest detail. Nothing about the supernatural is accepted by anyone...
...until the final 1/4 of the movie when nothing else makes sense except what cannot be explained. Now, they, and audience, must accept evil in its truest form. And some of the audience, like myself, get caught up in a what if they cannot escape despite knowing none of it is real.
No other exorcism-themed movie has ever come close to duplicating that feat in my opinion.
The Curse of the Exorcist Documentary - E Hollywood
This is the document that probably best suits up and explains what made the Exorcist so uniquely extraordinary.
- Listen to the doc in what the movie did to viewing luring audiences in the 70's that dared to watch this film, with lines around the city blocks, created fainting
and nausea, brought paramedics to theaters, even shock folks to the hospital yet theaters was influenced to keep it many weeks over.
i was just a baby at it's 1973 release so i missed out on the mass hype and live hysteria of it's time.
- i believe The Exorcist ...to this very day, is the only horror film movie in Hollywood that was nominated for Oscar Academy Awards.
- i think what draws so much attention to it's hysteria, even
over 30 years after it's release, is the religious spiritual beliefs,
spiritual battle of good vs evil concepts, And it was based off true actual events,..
- Plus add the creepy elements it possessed, the dim light atmosphere. dark lamp corners, ..and yes even the
theme music and scores
was very unique, (even nominated for Oscar as well) plus the disturbing, shock value scare scenes such as crucifix stabbing, the pea-soup spewing
and the head spinning. The screenplay writing, directing, the Regan special effects facial make up, and actor performances was remarkable.
- More so ... crazy unexplainable events were happening during the filming of the movie,
