30 More Days of Movies: The Exorcist

Alright- it's been years since I've seen this movie and I didn't like it all that much. Keep in mind- this movie scared me all through my childhood and I watched it when I was in my early 20s or late teens and I watched it pretty late at night... so I definitely don't think that's the best way to judge a movie... and I was trying to look at it from a fresh perspective.

So I also don't think I'm the biggest fan of exorcism and possession movies... the concept scares me but I think there haven't been a lot of movies that have gotten it right since this movie came out. A lot of them rely on jump scares, gross out scenes and cheaper tricks... This one does that but in a better way. It's also telling a very human story about people that feel like real people that the audience actually cares about. We see Regan before she becomes possessed and we see how excited she is about things and how much her mom really cares about her. We also see Father Karras's grief after losing his mother and his struggle keeping his faith. The demon possession comes very late on in the movie compared to everything and I think the build up really adds to the suspense of the movie.

I watched the theatrical cut of the movie both times I watched it- which I think might be a little less scary than the Director's Cut. The director's cut I think is where we see Regan spider walking down the stairs and just being really crazy. I think the next time I watch this I'll try to see the director's cut just to make sure... but I think the storytelling aspect of the theatrical cut really works.

Over all- I think this might be a yearly spooky movie watch and one I would highly highly recommend if you're wanting a slow burn movie. I think an insane double feature would be watching this movie and The Coffee Table... I kind of want to do that... but yeah. I highly recommend watching this one!

Bye!

-Shannon