The Exorcist
Theatrical release poster by Bill Gold
Directed by	William Friedkin
Screenplay by	William Peter Blatty
Based on	The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
Produced by	William Peter Blatty
Starring	Ellen Burstyn Max von Sydow Lee J. Cobb Kitty Winn Jack MacGowran Jason Miller Linda Blair
Cinematography	Owen Roizman
Edited by	Evan A. Lottman Norman Gay Bud S. Smith
Music by	Jack Nitzsche
Production company	Hoya Productions[1]
Distributed by	Warner Bros.[1]
Release date	December 26, 1973 (1973-12-26)
Running time	122 minutes (theatrical)
Country	United States
Languages	English Arabic
Budget	$12 million[2]
Box office	$441.3 million[2]

The Exorcist is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller, and Linda Blair, and follows the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother's attempt to rescue her through an exorcism by two Catholic priests.

Blatty, who also produced, and Friedkin, his choice as director, had difficulty casting the film. Their choice of relative unknowns Burstyn, Blair, and Miller, instead of major stars, drew opposition from executives at Warner Bros. Principal photography was also difficult, taking place in both hot deserts and refrigerated sets. Many cast and crew were injured, some died, and unusual accidents delayed shooting. Production took twice as long as scheduled and cost almost three times the initial budget; the many mishaps have led to a belief that the film was cursed.

The Exorcist was released in 24 theaters in the United States on December 26, 1973. Reviews were mixed, but audiences waited in long lines during cold weather; the sold-out shows were even more profitable for Warner Bros., who had booked it into those theaters under four wall distribution rental agreements, the first time a major studio had done that. Some viewers suffered adverse physical reactions, fainting or vomiting to shocking scenes such as a realistic cerebral angiography. Many children were allowed to see it, leading to charges that the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) had accommodated the studio by giving the film an R rating instead of an X rating to ensure the troubled production its commercial success. Several cities attempted to ban it outright or prevent children from attending. At the end of its original theatrical run, the film grossed $193 million, and has a lifetime gross of $441 million with subsequent re-releases.

The cultural conversation around the film helped it become the first horror film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, as well as nine others. Blatty won Best Adapted Screenplay, while the sound engineers took Best Sound. It has had several sequels and was the highest-grossing R-rated horror film (unadjusted for inflation) until It. The Exorcist had a significant influence on pop culture,^[3][4] and several publications regard it as one of the greatest horror films ever made. In 2010, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".^[5]

Plot

In northern Iraq, priest Lankester Merrin takes part in an archaeological dig in the ancient ruins of Hatra. During the dig, he finds a stone talisman of a winged being that evokes a concerned look on his face. He then has a vision in which a giant version of the same being appears nearby, silently confronting him.

In Georgetown, Washington, D.C., actress Chris MacNeil is starring in a film directed by her friend Burke Dennings. MacNeil, along with her 12-year old daughter Regan, rents a luxurious house with hired help. Meanwhile, Father Damien Karras, a psychiatrist who counsels Georgetown University priests, visits his ailing mother in New York. He later confides to a colleague that he is having a crisis of faith.

Chris hosts a party with Karras's friend, Father Dyer, who explains Karras's role as counselor and notes his mother's recent death. Regan, seemingly unwell, appears and urinates before Chris comforts her. Regan's bed shakes violently after Chris returns her to it. Later, Dyer consoles Karras, guilty at not having been with his mother when she died.

Regan's personality becomes violent. Medical tests find no physical cause. During a house call, Regan exhibits abnormal strength. One night, Chris finds the house empty except for a sleeping Regan; Dennings is found dead at the bottom of a set of public stairs that begin beneath Regan's window. Detective William Kinderman questions Karras, confiding that Dennings's head was turned backwards. Regan's body becomes covered with sores. Kinderman tells Chris that the only plausible explanation for Dennings's death is that he was pushed from Regan's window. As Kinderman leaves, Regan has another violent fit, stabbing her vagina with a crucifix and turning her head backwards. She is confined to her bedroom. Chris seeks out Karras, who visits Regan. The possessed Regan claims to be the Devil, and vomits into Karras's face while speaking in tongues. The demon says it will remain in Regan until she is dead. At night, Chris's assistant calls Karras to the house; he concludes that an exorcism is warranted. His superior grants permission on the condition that an experienced priest lead the ritual. Merrin, having performed an exorcism before, is summoned.

Merrin arrives at the house. As the two priests read from the Roman Ritual, the demon curses them. The priests rest and Merrin, shaking, takes nitroglycerin. Karras enters the bedroom where the demon appears as his mother, perturbing Karras despite his denials. Merrin excuses Karras and continues the exorcism by himself. Karras assures Chris that Regan will not die and re-enters the room, finding Merrin dead from a heart attack while Regan watches by and laughs. Karras beats the possessed Regan in a fit of rage and demands that the demon take him instead. The demon rips the medallion of Saint Joseph from Karras's neck and possesses him, freeing Regan in the process. Karras commits suicide by jumping out the window, tumbling down the stone stairs outside. Chris and Kinderman enter the room. Chris embraces the healed Regan, and Kinderman surveys the scene. Outside, Dyer administers the dying Karras last rites.

The MacNeils prepare to leave, and Father Dyer says goodbye. Despite having no memory of her ordeal, Regan, moved by the sight of Dyer's clerical collar, kisses him on the cheek. As the MacNeils leave, Chris offers Dyer the medallion found in Regan's room, but he refuses, telling her to keep it. Dyer briefly examines the steps where Karras died before walking away.

Cast

Production

Development

Aspects of Blatty's novel were inspired by the 1949 exorcism performed by Jesuit priest William S. Bowdern. It sold poorly until Blatty captivated The Dick Cavett Show's audience with a discussion of whether the devil existed.^[6] Soon afterwards the novel topped the New York Times best seller list.^[7]

Despite Blatty's previous screenwriting experience on Blake Edwards' films, studios had been uninterested in adapting The Exorcist before publication.^[7] Lew Grade made a modest offer for the rights that Blatty said later he would have accepted due to his difficult financial circumstances, but for his requirement that he produce.^[8] Shirley MacLaine, a friend of Blatty's,^[9][a] had been interested, but wanted someone other than Blatty to produce.^[6] A later agreement to co-produce with Paul Monash, producer of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,^[11] collapsed over script differences and Blatty's discovery that Monash was trying to wrest control of the film.^[12]

Writing

Blatty's screenplay follows the plot of his novel closely, but narrows the story's focus. Subplots like the desecration of the churches and the subsequent relationship that develops between Karras and Kinderman, Karras's efforts to convince the Church bureaucracy to approve the exorcism, and the ongoing medical investigations of Regan's condition are less prominent in the film, as are supporting characters including Chris's household staff, Dennings, and Regan's father. The overall time frame is condensed.^[13][14]

Some scenes, particularly those with sexual content, were toned down for the film adaptation since an actress of approximately Regan's age was expected to be cast. The scene where Regan masturbates with a crucifix was, in the book, more prolonged and explicit, with Regan seriously injuring herself yet attaining orgasm.^[13][14] The film also excludes the possessed Regan's constant diarrhea, giving her room a strong, foul odor.^[15]

Blatty also made the screenplay unambiguous about Regan's condition. In his novel, every symptom and behavior she exhibits that might indicate possession is counterbalanced with a reference to an actual case where the same phenomena were found to have natural, scientific causes. Aside from Karras' initial professional skepticism, that perspective is absent from the film.^[13][14]

Casting

The lead roles, particularly Regan, were not easily cast. Although many major stars of the era were considered for them, Blatty and Friedkin ultimately went with lesser-known actors, to the studio's consternation.^[16]

Chris and Father Karras

Jack Nicholson was considered for Karras, and Paul Newman was interested, before Blatty hired Stacy Keach.^[17] Three A-list actresses of the time—Audrey Hepburn, Anne Bancroft and Jane Fonda—were considered for Chris, but rejected the part.^[16][18] Friedkin also rejected Blatty's friend Shirley MacLaine since she had starred in The Possession of Joel Delaney, a similar film.^[16] After meeting Carol Burnett, Friedkin believed she had the range beyond her comic television persona. Blatty agreed, but the studio turned her down.^[19] Ellen Burstyn received the part after she told Friedkin she was "destined" to play Chris, discussing the Catholic upbringing she had later rejected. Studio head Ted Ashley vigorously opposed casting her, but relented after no other alternatives emerged.^[16][20]

Friedkin had first spoken to stage actor and playwright Jason Miller after a performance of his play That Championship Season, and given him a copy of the novel. Miller had received a Catholic education and studied to be a Jesuit priest for three years at Catholic University of America until experiencing a spiritual crisis similar to Karras's. Upon reading the novel, he told Friedkin " is me". Friedkin responded that Keach had already been signed, but granted his request for a screen test. During the test, Miller and Burstyn performed the scene where Chris informs Karras that she suspects Regan might be possessed. He then filmed Burstyn interviewing Miller about his life and asked him to recite Mass as if for the first time. After viewing the footage the next morning, Friedkin realized that Miller's "dark good looks, haunted eyes, quiet intensity, and low, compassionate voice" were exactly what the part needed. The studio then bought out Keach's contract.^[16]

Regan

Directors considered for The Exorcist doubted a young actress could carry the film;^[21] Mike Nichols had turned it down for that reason, but would later regret it.^[16][22] The first actresses considered had been in other successful films and television series. Pamelyn Ferdin was turned down as too familiar.^[23] Denise Nickerson, who had played Violet Beauregarde in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, said in later interviews her family found the script too dark.^[24] Janet Leigh would not let her daughter, Jamie Lee Curtis, audition.^[25] Friedkin was considering older actresses^[16] until Elinore Blair^[b] came in unannounced with her daughter Linda,^[26] whose credits were primarily in modeling and a single soap opera role. Friedkin later recalled her as "mart but not precocious ... cute but not beautiful. A normal, happy 12-year-old girl".^[16] He asked if she knew what The Exorcist was about; she told him she had read the book.^[c] "t's about a little girl who gets possessed by the devil and does a whole bunch of bad things." Friedkin then asked her what she meant. "he pushes a man out of her bedroom window and she hits her mother across the face and she masturbates with a crucifix." Friedkin then asked Linda if she knew what masturbation meant. "It's like jerking off, isn't it?", and she giggled a little bit. "Have you ever done that?" he asked. "Sure; haven't you?" she responded.^[16]

Blair was cast after tests with Burstyn.^[16] "After all these difficult scenes she'd tiptoe around and giggle, after every bit", Blatty recalled. Friedkin said "there wasn't one other I would have considered".^[28] He had planned to use Blair's electronically treated voice for Pazuzu's dialogue, but decided that a more androgynous voice was better, and cast experienced voice actress Mercedes McCambridge.^[26] McCambridge ate raw eggs, drank whiskey and chainsmoked cigarettes to make Pazuzu’s voice sound intimidating as possible. After filming, the studio did not credit her, until Screen Actors Guild arbitration.^[29] McCambridge's name was included in the credits on all but the first 30 prints, but the dispute prevented the release of a soundtrack album with excerpts of dialogue.^[30] Warner Bros. reportedly forced Friedkin to use Eileen Dietz, then Blair's senior for 15 years, as Blair's stunt double.^[27] She stood in for Blair in the crucifix scene, the fistfight with Father Karras, and others too violent or disturbing for Blair to perform. She recalled that Friedkin gave her no notes and said, "I wasn't playing a little girl, I was playing the demon that possessed a little girl." Dietz appears on camera as the face of Pazuzu.^[31] Blair, who recalls Friedkin telling her the film would not succeed if she was not in as many shots as possible, estimates that Dietz is in 17 seconds of the film. Dietz, angry that her contribution to the film had been minimized, claimed in the media to have performed all the possession scenes. The studio ultimately measured her screen presence at 28.25 seconds, but denied that her contribution was dramatically significant.^[30]

Supporting roles

Warner Bros. wanted Marlon Brando for the role of Lankester Merrin,^[32] but Friedkin refused.^[17] A Philippe Halsman photograph of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, one of Blatty's inspirations for Father Merrin, inspired Friedkin to cast Max von Sydow instead of Paul Scofield, whom Blatty had wanted.^[19]

The film's supporting roles were cast more quickly. At a play, Blatty and Friedkin ran into Lee J. Cobb, who was cast as Lt. Kinderman.^[16] Two priests were cast. Father William O'Malley, who had become acquainted with Blatty through his criticism of the novel, was cast as Father Dyer, whom he had considered clichéd in the novel.^[16] The Rev. Thomas Bermingham, a Georgetown professor who had assigned Blatty research on demonic possession as a student, took the role of the university president.^[33]

Jack MacGowran got the role of Dennings, which, earlier in the production, seemed to be going to J. Lee Thompson.^[34] A later cast listing adds Mary Boylan and The Rev. John Nicola, one of the film's technical advisors, in small roles.^[1] Greek actor Titos Vandis, cast as Karras's uncle, covered his face with a hat to avoid associations with his role in the recent Woody Allen film Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask).^[35] Friedkin cast Vasiliki Maliaros as Karras's mother after reportedly encountering her in a Greek restaurant.^[36]

Direction

In addition to Nichols, many directors were considered, including Arthur Penn, Stanley Kubrick,^[37] John Boorman^[d] and Peter Bogdanovich.^[39] The studio finally hired Mark Rydell,^[e] but Blatty insisted on Friedkin, with whom he was acquainted, as he had been impressed by his film The French Connection.^[40][41] Blatty saw Friedkin, an acquaintance, as "a director who can bring the look of documentary realism to this incredible story, and ... is never going to lie to me." The studio demurred, until Connection was released to commercial success and a Best Picture Academy Award.^[19][41]

During his press tour for Connection, Friedkin began reading a copy of the novel Blatty sent him. After the first 20 pages he canceled his dinner plans and finished the book, finding the story so gripping that he did not consider any problems adapting it to film.^[19] Friedkin felt that the film should unfold slowly, with audiences seeing everything that happened to Regan and the unsuccessful attempts at treating her condition.^[42] An early clash during production led to Warner Bros. telling Blatty he could not take any action against Friedkin. Afterwards, Blatty informed the studio he could no longer have any responsibility for controlling the budget; while he and Friedkin reconciled, production costs soon exceeded the initial $4.2 million ($23.2 million in 2023^[43]) budget.^[44]

Friedkin manipulated the actors to get genuine reactions. Unsatisfied with O'Malley's performance as Dyer ministers to the dying Karras at the end of the film, he slapped him hard across the face to generate a deeply solemn yet literally shaken reaction for the scene, offending many Catholic crew members.^[44] He also fired blanks^[17] without warning to elicit shock from Miller for a take;^[6] Dietz recalls him also doing this during the scene where Regan assaults the doctors at the house.^[31] Friedkin also told Miller that the vomit, porridge colored to resemble pea soup and pumped through a hidden tube, would hit him in the chest during the projectile vomiting scene, and rehearsed it that way. But when filmed, the soup hit his face, resulting in his disgusted reaction.^[45][46]

Crewmembers found Friedkin difficult to work with. On the first day of shooting, he had a wall removed to create space for the dolly to back up from a shot of bacon frying, then sent the prop master to look for preservative-free bacon, difficult to find at the time, since he did not like the way it curled. Another crewmember recalled returning after three days of sick leave to find Friedkin still shooting the same scene.^[47] Dietz recalls the main delay being reshoots, even of scenes that had been difficult to stage and film the first time, such as Regan's bed shaking. "People were literally placing bets on what he would reshoot next."^[31] He also fired and rehired crew regularly. One crewmember recalls seeing Friedkin shake hands warmly with someone, and then seconds later tell a second person to "get this guy outta here", earning him the nickname "Wacky Willy".^[47]

Cinematography

Owen Roizman, director of photography on The French Connection, worked in this position again on The Exorcist. He was in charge of filming every scene except for the Iraqi prologue, shot by Billy Williams. Roizman and Friedkin wanted The Exorcist, like their previous film, to appear to have been shot in available light. The MacNeil house was, unlike house interiors in horror films such as Psycho, designed to look normal and inviting, but lit to suggest an ominous presence. Otherwise, Roizman said, Friedkin "demanded complete realism" and "wanted to see pictures with glass in them, mirrors on the walls and all of the other highly reflective surfaces you would naturally find in a house, we never tried to cover anything up, as we would normally do for expedience in shooting." This meant that the kitchen set, with much stainless steel and glass, was "virtually impossible" to light beyond the practical ceiling fixtures and whatever other lights they could manage to sneak in and hide. "e'd walk in, hit the switch and shoot—through not much choice."^[48]

Filming and locations

Principal photography began August 14, 1972.^[49] Although the film is set in Washington, D.C., many interior scenes were shot in New York City. The MacNeil residence interiors were filmed at CECO Studios in Manhattan,^[50] with Karras's confrontation with his uncle, shot at Goldwater Memorial Hospital, now the site of Cornell Tech, on Roosevelt Island in the East River between Manhattan and Queens; the scenes with Karras's mother in the hospital were filmed at Bellevue.^[51] The scene where Father Karras listens to the tapes of Regan was filmed in the basement of Fordham University's Keating Hall,^[52] where O'Malley was an assistant professor of theology.^[53]

The film's opening sequences were filmed in and near Mosul, Iraq, at a time when the U.S. and Iraq did not have diplomatic relations; Warner Bros. feared that Friedkin and his crew might not be able to return. He negotiated filming arrangements directly with local officials of the ruling Ba'ath Party, who required that he hire local workers as crew^[1] and teach filmmaking to interested residents.^[54] The archaeological dig site shown is Hatra, south-west of Mosul.^[55] Temperatures during the days reached 130 °F (54 °C), limiting shooting to dawn and dusk.^[56]

The exterior of the MacNeil house was a family home on 36th and Prospect streets in Washington.^[57] A mansard roof was added to account for the attic scene.^[58] The neighboring stairs were padded with a half-inch (13 mm) of rubber for Karras's death. The house was set back slightly from the steps, so the crew built an eastward extension with a false front to allow the stunt double playing Karras to fall directly down.^[59]

Many Georgetown locations, on and off-campus, were used. Burstyn's first scene, where she lectures the protesters, was shot on the steps of Healy Hall; she is also seen walking down the steps of Lauinger Library. Other scenes used the interiors of Dahlgren Chapel and the university president's office, used as the archbishop's office.^[60] One scene was filmed in The Tombs, a popular local pub.^[61][62]

Exorcism scenes

The exorcism scenes were challenging to film. Friedkin wanted the bedroom set to be cold enough to see the actors' breath, as described in the novel. A $50,000 ($276,000 in 2023^[43])^[1] refrigeration system was installed to cool the set to −20 °F (−29 °C).^[6][48][63] Since the set lighting warmed the air, it remained cold enough to film for only three minutes at a time.^[64] Due to frequent breakdowns,^[1] only five shots could be finished each day; the complete scene, filmed in script order, took a month to complete.^[65]

It was easier to film some of the other supernatural manifestations, such as the bed rocking and the curtains blowing since the walls and ceiling of the set were capable of being moved to accommodate a camera. After the scene where the ceiling cracks it was replaced with one attached to the walls, requiring a hole be cut in it for the rig to go through when Regan levitates, the most challenging shot in the sequence.^[48] The 80-pound (36 kg) Blair wore a bodysuit under her nightgown with attached hooks for monofilament wires.^[65]

Roizman had filmed similar scenes before, painting the wires to match the background so they would not show. This was difficult on The Exorcist because of the changes in background. "We had to practically paint them frame by frame", he said. While most directors would have been satisfied to smooth out the scene in post-production, Friedkin wanted it done in longer takes.^[48]

Friedkin did not want any scenes in the movie to have "any kind of spooky lights that you typically saw in horror films", so all the light in the bedroom comes from a visible source.^[65] The room's color scheme also suggested black and white film, with gray taupe walls, Regan's bedding a neutral beige, and the priests in black. According to Roizman, white would have been too dominant. "In toning everything down like this, the only real color in the room became the skin tones", he said.^[48]

Father Merrin's arrival scene

Father Merrin's arrival scene was filmed on Max von Sydow's first day on set. The scene where he steps out of a cab and stands in front of the MacNeil residence, silhouetted in a misty streetlamp's glow and staring up at a beam of light from a bedroom window, is one of the most famous scenes in the movie, used for film posters and home media release covers. It was inspired by René Magritte's 1954 painting Empire of Light.^[66] Friedkin wanted to evoke visually the language Blatty used in the novel for this scene, likening Merrin to "a melancholy traveler frozen in time", standing next to a streetlight in the fog when he gets out of the cab.^[65]

He gave the crew a full day to light the scene, using mainly arc lights and tripod-mounted Troupers, and boosting the brightness of the existing streetlamps.^[65] Roizman said this was the most difficult of all the film's nighttime exterior shots.^[48] In order to get the beam of light the way Friedkin wanted it, the crew had to take the window frame out of the facade they had attached to the house for filming, put it behind the window and then put the spotlight in between the window and frame.^[67] As they were shooting, Roizman said, the wind picked up, making it hard to hold the fog effect. By working quickly, he and the camera crew were able to get the shot,^[48] with Friedkin finding the first take satisfactory.^[67]

Head spinning

The scenes where the possessed Regan's head rotates so she appears to be looking directly backwards drew notice from audiences and critics. "All I can tell you is that the way you think I did it is not the way we did it," Friedkin told Castle of Frankenstein at the time.^[28] Like the film's other special effects, it was performed live. A life-size animated dummy of Regan was built.

Critic Mark Kermode says the scene's impact results from the audience not expecting it so soon after the crucifix scene. He believes its recurrence during the exorcism was added on set since it is in neither the novel nor the screenplay. Blatty had argued against it, telling Friedkin "supernatural doesn't mean impossible". Friedkin inserted a shot of Karras, suggesting the scene might just be a hallucination. When audiences reacted strongly, Blatty said Friedkin "prov me an idiot once again."^[68]

Special effects supervisor Marcel Vercoutere built the latex dummy with help from makeup artist Dick Smith. They tested its realism by putting it in the front seat of a taxicab and, when enough people were looking, turning the head.^[69] It was so realistic that Blair felt uncomfortable in its presence.^[27] They had given the dummy's face the capability to move and appear to speak, adding a condom so its throat would bulge. A tube was added for simulated breathing, which produced the requisite clouds of vapor.^[48]

Crucifix scene

While filming the scene where the possessed Regan masturbates with a crucifix, Dietz and Friedkin had "this long discussion about the right way to jerk off and I showed him why a woman has to churn her wrist ."^[31] At the time Friedkin said that the scene's power over audiences came from its unusual combination of sex and religion. To many viewers it lasted much longer than its 50 seconds. He had filmed much more, but ultimately decided that it was about "how much I could take".^[28]

The scene's power, Kermode writes, comes from Friedkin's head-on approach, centering it on a brightly lit screen, punctuating the thrusts with a stabbing sound. Blatty pleaded with Friedkin to stop "destroying the film"; Friedkin responded that the scene would be one of the film's biggest draws. When it turned out that it was, Blatty found it "terribly depressing."^[70]

Angiography sceneedit

The angiography scene, in which a needle spurts blood from Regan's neck,^[71] caused audiences the most discomfort, according to Blatty, who himself never watched it.^[41] Friedkin, too, has found its depiction of "medical science impinging upon the innocence of this little girl" disturbs audiences the most, more than any of the film's possession scenes.^[42]

It has been criticized as "unappetizing",^[72] the film's "most needless scene",^[73] and "revolting".^[74] British comedian Graeme Garden, who has a medical degree,^[75] agreed the scene was "genuinely disturbing"; in his review for the New Scientist, he called it "irresponsible".^[76]

Critic John Kenneth Muir wrote in Horror Films of the 1970s that the scene draws its power by merely recording what occurs and not adding anything. "It looks, sounds and feels totally real ... For a time, it is medicine that possesses Regan, not the Devil".^[77] In a 2021 article in History of the Human Sciences, Amy C. Chambers of Manchester Metropolitan University makes a similar observation.^[78][f] Finnish media professor Frans Ilkka Mäyrä notes how the scientific suggests the spiritual here as "the violent movements and noises of arteriographic machinery reach diabolical dimensions."^[79] Kermode likens it to torture, "horribly sexual in its execution."^[80]

Medical professionals have described the scene, not in the novel but added to the film to reflect changes in technology,^[80] as a realistic depiction of the procedure. It is also of historical interest, as radiologists were increasingly using a more distant artery instead of the carotid for the puncture.^[81][82] It has also been described as the most realistic depiction of a medical procedure in a popular film.^[83] In his 2012 commentary on the DVD release of the 2000 cut, Friedkin claimed that the scene was used in radiological training film for years afterward.^[71]

"Spider-walk" sceneedit

Stuntwoman Ann Miles performed the spider-walk scene after two weeks of practice.^[84] Vercoutere had designed a special harness, but she did not need it due to her college gymnastic experience.^[85] Friedkin cut it, over Blatty's objection, just prior to the premiere, believing it came too early in the film. Whether the scene had been shot at all was debated by fans for years afterwards. Friedkin denied having done so until Kermode found the footage in the Warner Bros. archives in the mid-1990s while researching his book on the film. It was restored in the 2000 director's cut,^[85] albeit with a "muddy, grainy" look that one critic said made the scene seem superfluous,^[86] using an added shot showing Regan with blood flowing from her mouth.^[87]

Miles was not credited. Websites devoted to the film in the early 21st century gave credit to Sylvia Hager after the 2000 re-release. This confusion may have arisen from Vercourtere's website, where he credited her and described the harness he had designed. He said the scene was cut because the harness could not be erased in post-production. According to Miles, Hager, her lighting double,^[84] could not do the scene even with the harness, which Vercourtere had hoped to market afterwards. Since Miles was able to do the spider walk without it, she believes he left her out of his account for commercial reasons.^[85][g] The misidentification, Miles said in 2018, cost her jobs afterwards since some producers believed she was falsely taking credit for Hager's work. Since then, with the intercession of SAG, she has been properly credited.^[84]

Special effectsedit

Smith, the makeup artist, created some key special effects, particularly to make von Sydow look 30 years older in facial close-ups.^[28] Many viewers did not realize he was made up at all; critic Pauline Kael, in her generally unfavorable The New Yorker review, called it "one of the most convincing aging jobs I've ever seen"^[88] It took four hours to apply the makeup every morning. Friedkin speculated that if there was a regular Academy Award for makeup, Smith would have received it.^[28]

For the look of the possessed Regan, Friedkin and Smith drew inspiration from the crucifix scene. If she had injured herself masturbating with it, they reasoned, it was likely that under Pazuzu's control she might also have deliberately scourged her face. "So we decided to have the makeup grow out of self-inflicted wounds to the face that become gangrenous so that there was an organic reason for the change in her facial features, which might certainly be demonic possession, or self-immolation", Friedkin later explained.^[42] Blair wore green contact lenses meant to give her eyes a bestial appearance.^[65] A latex stomach was built for the scene where the words "HELP ME" appear on the possessed Regan's body. The letters were scratched in, and then heated to make them disappear. This was reversed in post-production so the letters seemed to appear.^[28]

Production difficulties and purported curseedit

Due to production problems and accidents on set, The Exorcist, originally scheduled for 85 days of principal photography,^[89] took over 200 days to wrap. The film went $2.5 million ($13.8 million in 2023^[43]) over budget,^[11] ultimately costing the studio $12 million ($66.3 million in 2023).^[2] Early on, shooting was delayed six weeks after a bird flew into a circuit breaker on the house sets, starting a fire that destroyed all of them^[90] except for Regan's room. Later, another set was severely damaged by the sprinkler system. The 10-foot (3.0 m) statue of Pazuzu was shipped to Hong Kong instead of Iraq, causing a two-week delay.^[11]

Injuries to cast and crew also affected production. Burstyn and Blair have lasting consequences from back injuries. Burstyn's occurred during the scene where the possessed Regan throws Chris backwards; the take used in the film left her unable to film for two weeks and on crutches for the rest of the shoot,^[91] with a fractured coccyx.^[h] It has caused her chronic problems due to inadequate early treatment.^[94] Blair fractured her lower spine after being too loosely strapped to the rocking bed, a take also used in the finished film.^[95] She developed scoliosis,^[96] with long-term health effects,^[27] as well as a lifelong aversion to cold from all her time in the refrigerated bedroom set wearing only a nightgown and long underwear. A carpenter cut his thumb off and a lighting technician lost a toe in different accidents.^[11][6]

Other people connected with the film, or their family members, died, MacGowran a week after completing his scenes as Dennings.^[11] Maliaros also died, like her character, before the film was finished.^[90] Deaths among the crew or those close to them included: the night watchman, the operator of the refrigeration system for Regan's room and an assistant cameraman's newborn.^[11][6] Blair's grandfather died during the first week of production, and von Sydow had to return to Sweden after his first day shooting when his brother died, further delaying shooting. One of Miller's sons nearly died when a motorcycle struck him.^[11][6] Several years after the film's release, Paul Bateson, the technician in the angiography scene, was convicted of murdering journalist Addison Verrill.^[83] In 2015, Hatra, the World Heritage Site where the prologue was shot, was damaged by ISIL militants.^[97]

Friedkin believed there might have been some supernatural interference. "I'm not a convert to the occult", he told the horror-film magazine, Castle of Frankenstein, "but after all I've seen on this film, I definitely believe in demonic possession ... We were plagued by strange and sinister things from the beginning."^[11] Vercourtere said he "felt I was playing around with something I shouldn't be playing around with." To mollify the crew, Friedkin asked Father Bermingham, the film's technical advisor, to perform an exorcism on the set. Bermingham instead blessed the cast and crew, believing that an actual exorcism would only make the cast more anxious.^[6]

British film historian Sarah Crowther believes stories of the curse were disseminated by the studio, likening it to horror producer William Castle's elaborate marketing gimmicks.^[90] She believes most of the aspects of the curse are really just the result of Friedkin's driving, relentless production.^[90] Blatty agreed, telling Kermode that Friedkin had started the "curse" story with an interview during production in which he blamed "devils" for the film's many delays. "If you shoot something for a year," Blatty said, "people are going to get hurt, people are going to die."^[98] Blair told Kermode that stories of the supposed curse circulated because viewers "chose to see a scary film, and maybe they wanted to believe all those rumors because it helped the whole process", she said.^[30] In 2000, Blatty joked that "There is no Exorcist curse. I am The Exorcist curse!" when asked if the death of Blair's pet mouse was related to it.^[41]

Post-productionedit

Editingedit

During principal photography, the editor then hired had no prior movie experience and was not allowed to cut the raw footage.^[99] Friedkin hired three editors—Jordan Leonduopoulos, credited as "supervising editor"; Norman Gay, and Evan Lottman. A fourth, Bud Smith, recalls Friedkin asking him to work on The Exorcist after shooting wrapped, telling Smith he would be the lead. Smith asked Friedkin to let him edit one large rack of footage from the Iraq sequence and worked through a weekend to recut it to a rhythm based on the sound of a blacksmith hammering an anvil near Merrin.^[100] He also created the "flash face" trailer for the film, with a montage of faces making a strobe-like effect, under tense string music, ending after almost 90 seconds with the title. In 2018, Friedkin said that Warner Bros. feared it would scare audiences too much. He considers it the film's best trailer.^[101][i] Smith and the other three shared the film's Academy Award nomination for editing.^[99]

Friedkin felt the 140 minute-long cut was perfect, but the studio insisted he trim it to two hours to allow for more daily screenings. Blatty was willing to fight for the whole film as it was, but over his objections Friedkin cut roughly 10–12 minutes. Some of the excluded scenes were Blatty's favorites, including the original ending, with Dyer and Kinderman connecting and agreeing to go to the movies in the future,^[j] and a scene where Karras and Merrin take a break from the exorcism and discuss the demon's motivation for possessing Regan.^[k] These scenes had been in the novel, and he believed that in the movie they made it clearer at the end that good had triumphed.^[104]

Sound effectsedit

Ron Nagle, Doc Siegel, Gonzalo Gavira, and Bob Fine created the sound effects,^[105] mixing bees, dogs, hamsters, and pigs into the demon's voice.^[106] The sound of Regan's head rotating was made by twisting a leather wallet.^[106][107]

Friedkin was personally involved in the four-month sound process, the last aspect of the film completed, finished just before release. Jim Nelson, whom Friedkin had hired to supervise the mixing, recalls the director being particularly demanding, treating his then-girlfriend, who was among those assisting in the process, "like a dog".^[108]

Alleged subliminal imageryedit

Wilson Bryan Key devoted a chapter to the film in his book Media Sexploitation, alleging repeated use of subliminal and semi-subliminal imagery and sound effects. In addition to the Pazuzu face, he claimed that the safety padding on the bedposts was shaped to cast phallic shadows on the wall and that a skull face is superimposed into one of Father Merrin's breath clouds.^[109]

A 1991 Video Watchdog article examined the claim, with stills of several uses of subliminal "flashing". "I saw subliminal cuts in a number of films before I ever put them in The Exorcist," Friedkin told the authors, "and I thought it was a very effective storytelling device ... The subliminal editing in The Exorcist was done for dramatic effect—to create, achieve, and sustain a kind of dreamlike state."^[110] In a 1999 interview, Blatty said "there are no subliminal images. If you can see it, it's not subliminal."^[111]

Title sequenceedit

The title sequence was the first major project for film title designer Dan Perri, whom Friedkin sought out after seeing his work on Electra Glide in Blue. His plan for the titles evolved as the film progressed. For the words themselves Perri chose to keep the Weiss Initials typeface used on the cover of Blatty's novel. The filmmakers wanted them in red, but it was hard to choose an exact shade since red tends to spill on a black background.^[54]

Perri's input into the film's opening extended beyond the credits. Friedkin told him he wanted the film to begin with a sunrise, which he had not filmed while there. The closest shot he had was one at midday, of the sun in an orange sky, with rising heat visible. Perri suggested an "implied sunrise", fading in on the sun and going from black and white to color over 30 seconds, giving the film a sense of beginning it had lacked, he said.^[54][l]

Musicedit

Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells became very popular after its use in the film.^[114][115] Friedkin recalled in 2015 that he had wanted something like Brahms' "Lullaby" with "a kind of childhood feel". He had gone to see studio head John Calley, who directed him to the company's nearby music library. There he found Oldfield's record and persuaded the company to buy the rights.^[42]

Lalo Schifrin said that after he had written six minutes of music for the "flash face" and a working score, trailer executives told Friedkin they wanted softer music but Friedkin never told him; Friedkin rejected the score. In 2005 Schifrin said this was in retaliation for an earlier "incident" between the two.^[116] Schifrin denies claims he used his original Exorcist music several years later for The Amityville Horror.^[117] Friedkin threw away the tapes of Schifrin's score in the studio parking lot.^{[26]: 1:00:50–1:01:35 [118]} In an interview shortly after the film's release, Friedkin said he had hired an unnamed composer "and he did a score all right, and I thought it was terrible, just overstated and dreadful." He decided instead to use the music he had given the composer as inspiration.^[28] Bernard Herrmann turned down the job after viewing a rough cut.^[119] In 1975, Herrmann said that Friedkin objected to his intention to use an organ and insisted on sharing composing credit.^[120][m] Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=The_Exorcist_(film)
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