Rating: 
Summary: A psychological scarefest!
Review: To call "The Exorcist" a horror film is a drastic understatement, selling it short on the actual purpose of its story about a young girl possessed by a demonic presence. It is a shocking movie in terms of content and certain physical attributes, but the real story that lies within the material is something much stronger than a simple tale of exorcism. It's a mind-opening film experience as much as it is an eye-opening one. In close collaboration with screenwriter William Peter Blatty, the author of the famed novel on which the movie is based, director William Friedkin brings to life the story of the lives of Chris Macneil (Ellen Burstyn) and her daughter, Regan (Linda Blair), who live in Georgetown. Chris is an actress, not completely well-known, but enough to throw expensive parties and afford some help around the house. All seems well until Regan begins acting out of the ordinary, behaving in ways that graduate from simple to outright shocking. Her bed rocks violently in the night; her attitude towards others becomes increasingly temperamental; her skin becomes placid and breaks out into legions, and things ranging from violent convulsions to masturbating with a crucifix push Chris over the top, causing her to enlist the help of Damien Karras, who is haunted by the memories of his mother, with whom we see him interacting in the beginning third of the film. It is at this point that the movie's true horror begins. The realization comes across Karras that in order to cleanse the young girl, an exorcism must be performed. Heading the ritual is Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow), who warns Karras of the psychological games played by the devil. The final act is a tour de force of horror at its most involving, as the devil possessing Regan becomes increasingly agitated by the ritual. As I have previously stated, "The Exorcist" is not a horror movie in the traditional sense. I watched the film hoping for something that would cause me to jump out of my seat, but what I found was something much more horrific and, at the same time, completely engrossing. The devil is portrayed as a relentless force of evil, and is everything we've ever been brought up to believe about him. He lies, and most importantly, he plays games of the mind by using Karras's mother as a ploy to make him weak. To watch the way in which Karras must resist these lies is compelling and masterful. And even the physical elements of horror are some of the most shocking cinematic moments ever. The crucifix masturbation scene is very disturbing and graphic, while the slow digression of Regan's appearance from a cheery little girl to a hideously deformed creature is slowly chilling. And those pea soup rumors you've been hearing... they're some of the biggest gross out moments in any movie. The movie is also not without its share of brilliant casting, boasting some stunning performances from Max von Sydow and Ellen Burstyn. Von Sydow gives Merrin's character a stable and forceful demeanor, while Burstyn's Chris Macneil is emotional while never becoming too whiny. she is able to sell us on her character's fear for her daughter's life. Linda Blair, in one of the most challenging roles in history, perfectly segues from cheery to eerie, with help of a little make-up, of course. If you were able to connect more with "The Silence of the Lambs" than "I Know What You Did Last Summer," then this is the movie for you. It is a psychological journey that is religiously truthful and revealing, while also dotting itself with small physical horror elements and twists. You can't really ask for a better scare or shock than this.
Rating:
Summary: Greatest Movie Of All Time
Review: Over the years, William Friedkin's 1973 masterpiece, The Exorcist, has earned the status: "The Scariest Movie Of All Time." While I agree the film is scary/shocking/disturbing, I feel that it is a more of a religious film that a scary film. In my opinion, The Exorcist is the most misunderstood movie ever made. The film gets criticism for being either A.) Not scary or B.) "Ridiculous" and/or "boring." Well, the film is absolutely not ridiculous - the events in the film are based off of a supposedly true story of a young boy being possessed in 1949. The film, at least in my eyes, is as about as exciting as a roller-coaster - you never know what's gonna happen next. As for the film being "unscary", well, that's a matter of opinion, I guess. It really depends on your personality - if you scare easy, the film will haunt you forever - if you don't scare easy, the film will probably just make you feel a little uncomfortable and disturbed at times. But the truth of the matter is, The Exorcist doesn't try to be a scary movie. It doesn't really try to entertain you, it tries to educate and enlighten you, and to enrich your faith in religion/God. The Exorcist is not a film you will watch and forget, it is a film you will watch and then want to see again and again. There is so much to ponder in the film...so many mysterious things that mesmerize me endlessly. The Exorcist has taken a lot of backlash over the years, first being that it was shunned out of best picture in 1974, the winner being the far inferior The Sting. Second, Ellen Burstyn, Jason Miller (R.I.P) and Linda Blair; all were nominated for their incredible performances yet lost...somehow. It's undeniable that The Exorcist is one of the most well-acted films of the 20th century; yet the academy acted as if they'd never seen the film, presenting it with 2 measly awards when it should've won at least 7 of the 10 it was nominated. Again, this takes me to the criticism the film is plagued with. In my opinion, people (mostly teenagers) who go to see the film, have one thing in mind: "I wanna be scared - bad", and when they're not as scared as they thought they would be, they slam the film. Well, they didn't even truly see the film - they just saw the scary parts and weren't scared of them, leading them to believe that the film was a bomb. If half the people who saw the film had an open mind, and didn't even think of being scared, then they would most likely be impressed with the superb acting, cinematography, pacing, editing and overall appearance of the film. The Exorcist is by no means a horror film - there is hardly a drop of blood in the film, nor is there any nudity, axes, guns, knives or the usual horror stuff - there is a story. A very compelling story that doesn't involve half-naked girls running through the woods at midnight being chased by an ax-happy lunatic. I am surprised, actually, at how many people see it as a horror film - I see it as an epic, timeless, dramatic tale of good vs. evil, the ultimate evil, at that. When I think horror - I think of Freddy Krueger or Jason or Michael Myers - when I think drama or suspense, or classic - or masterpiece - I think of the greatest film of all time, The Exorcist. BTW, I'm not 1 years old. I don't have an E-mail adress to write a regular review, so I had to choose a kid's review section in order to get my views on The Exorcist across.
Rating:
Summary: As a little girl, I remember crying.
Review: The first memory I have of this film is at my grandmother's as a little 7 year old girl and crying because I was so scared of the scary little girl I saw on The TV. Ever since then (when I finally had the stomach to watch it all the way through) I've been fascinated with this movie. Recently when I saw the updated film at the theatre, it moved me even more. As a 24 year old I didn't think it could scare me but after I bought the 25th anniversary edition and tried to watch it at home alone. I did actually have to turn it off and switch on all the lights. It's very hard to shock me but this movie does. I Love the adrenalin rush! The spider walk was chilling, but what freaked me was the opening of her mouth and the blood that gushed out. Gross, I loved it!
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Movie Ever Made
Review: Saying that William Friedkin's 1973 masterpiece, The Exorcist, is the greatest movie ever made, does the film no justice; I just can't describe in any other way the greatness and the beauty of this film. I myself am an avid Exorcist fan, and have been fascinated and mesmerized by the film for years. Here is the story: a sweet, twelve year old girl (Linda Blair) becomes increasingly ill. Her mother, (Ellen Burstyn) takes her to countless doctors and psychiatrists to try to find out what's the matter with her. When the psychiatrists and doctors find nothing psyically wrong with her, they tell Chris (the twelve year old Regan's mother) that she should maybe look in to getting an exorcism for her daughter. Chris is not a religious person, and has no real religious beliefs, so she summons a Jesuit priest, Father Damien Karras (Jason Miller)to take a look at her daughter. Damien does so, and at first he thinks it may just be a severe illness the girl is suffering from. His mind changes, however, when the words "help me" appear on Regan's stomach. He quickly concludes that the girl is genuinely possessed. After getting permission from the Catholic church to perform an exorcism, Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow) is summoned to aid Damien in the ritual. Merrin arrives at the possessed girl's house and he and Damien perform the exorcism on the little girl. I will not spoil the ending, but I must say that this is an absolutely stunning film. The Exorcist is generally regarded as the scariest movie ever made, and while it is very scary/shocking/disturbing I find it to be more dramatic and spiritually and religiously uplifting than all-out scary. Many people who criticize the film think that just because it wasn't as scary as they thought it would be then automatically assume that it was terrrible. Well, The Exorcist wasn't made to scare people, it was meant to make people question their faith in religion. I mean, there is so much more to the film other than the girl getting possessed by the devil (or a demon). It is mainly, I think, a film that deals with a man's struggle with faith in God, and renews that faith by driving the demon out of the little girl. The film also carries a good message: good can truly triumph over evil. If good can triumph over the embodiment of all evil, then good can triumph over anything. The Exorcist (and it's incredible cast) have taken a lot of backlash over the years (it's ridiculous that The Exorcist didn't win best picture in 1974) mainly due to its controversial subject matter. People tend to be so frightened by the film that they think recognizing it or praising it is a sin. Well I am recognizing and praising the majestic The Exorcist, because if there is any film in cinema history that deserves recognition or praise, it's The Exorcist. And that is not a sin. So to all the people out there who have seen The Exorcist and disliked it, watch it again with a different perspective - don't look at it as a scary movie, look at it as a serious, religious film. I think you will be pleasantly surprised when the credits roll.
Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: The Exorcist was the first Horror Film I saw fifteen years ago in my mother's new video. And, until this day, the scariest one. (If I may add, nothing scares me anymore....) I went to see the Director's Cut without any question, in a large theatre with TXS sound system. But this time, I was different. And I was not scared, although I jumped at certain points. The added scenes are really good. My thoughts: Back in 1985, I was Christian. Now I'm not. I don't believe in the Devil, so any of his manifestations are completely unreal for me. Furthermore, I was amazed on how weak Christian Priests are. The Devil had no difficulty on playing on their doubts and guilt. On a religion based on Guilt, this is just natural. But in this film, the priest seems to be lacking the basic principals of faith. Maybe they didn't love their God as much as I love my cat. And the Evil is defeated not by virtue or faith, but by another mortal sin: suicide. And that scene with the cross as a masturbation instrument...sigh... They don't make such movies any more. Political correctness has taken everything over. I just loved that film. And what I just typed is my humble opinion.
Rating:
Summary: Chilling 2 the Bone!
Review: This is by far the most frightening and disturbing film ofall-time. Such infamous scenes as the girl's head spinning will scarethe [stuff] out of u. It was so terrifing in fact that some parts I just had to fast-foward past. (Though I'm going to try to watch it straight through next time I decide to watch it) So if u want to attempt to give yourself a heart-attack, raise blood pressure, and stay wide-eyed 4 the next few weeks, I highly recommend buying this unbelievable horror film from 1973!
Rating: 
Summary: Spanish subtitles? Where?
Review: The movie is great, deservers 5 stars, this new version is cool, a bit longer but cool... The thing I hated a lot was you see in the back of the package: english, french, spanish and portuguese subtitles.... So i bought it to see the movie with my mon (she doesn't speak spanish) but when I went to my home I was surprised when I found only english and frech subtitles. I think this is terrible to announce something and don't include it in the DVD. They think that just saying: return the DVD and we'll return you the money everything will be alright.
Rating:
Summary: Spanish subtitles? Where?
Review: The movie is great, deservers 5 stars, this new version is cool, a bit longer but cool...
Rating: 
Summary: Buyer Beware: Misleading info on packaging!
Review: ...One of the reasons I purchased this DVD was for the Spanish subtitles advertised on the back cover. When I tried to select this option on my player, I was very surprised to discover that it only gave me TWO options (English and French) instead of the FOUR languages advertised on the packaging (English, French, Spanish and Portuguese).... Another thing I noticed was that the "restored" Dolby 5.1 soundtrack was sadly lacking. As a test, I decided to raise the volume on my TV quite a bit during the more terrifying moments of the soundtrack, and the sound that emanated from the TV sounded much more Mono than Stereo. I have to admit that my judgement regarding the sound may have been biased because of my discovery of the false advertising I just mentioned. But, overall, I regretted purchasing this DVD. Another minor disappointment (although this may matter little to most) was that being able to more easily analyze the "spider walk" scene on the DVD, I realized how little the stunt person in that scene resembles Linda Blair. To me, this discovery softened the effect of this scene, in comparison to the very first time that I saw that scene in the theatre with that terrifying and unnerving accompanying soundtrack. Oh well, you can't win 'em all.
Rating:
Summary: The most scariest and shocking movie ever made!!
Review: Words can't explain how disturbing and shocking this movie is!! this movie will chill your bone and leave you breathless and shocking! Who really cares about all the features you can get becuase the movie is all you need and you will know what I mean when I say shocking, scary, and disturning! watch this movie and you will know what I mean! The Exorcist is one of the greatest movies ever....!! read the book as well!! it too will take you on a ride you will never forget!
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