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Originally Posted by nosferatu42  I can't watch The Exorcist as a serious film, it's like, this is a serious film about faith, but it doesn't address anything.
Possession of an innocent without any kind of moral choice is a basic setup that doesn't really address any of the moralistic choices made in any kind of pact with the devil for a start.
Ok i get it's the priests faith, but it just kinda makes them look like extras from Father Ted, idiotic numbnuts.
"I was a priest for 20 years but lately i'm not up to it. "
"So what changed? "
"Dunno just feeling a bit off, maybe the salmon mousse."
In my view the film is a well made ghost train that builds up atmosphere and tension but doesn't address anything.
Also it is ultra serious in intent, but the major pay off scenes are ridiculous, Swearing, ****ing a cross, the head 360 degree turn ( which is my ultimate bug bear, they'd be dead, end of.,) and puke scenes are all totally base and pathetic and are totally in opposition to the main themes of the film.
Also I'm pretty sure Pazuzu is the Aztec version of the "shithead" card game.
At least Exorcist 2 realises it's a mess and runs with it, but then again The Omen series has always been my religious horror film template, and i was always on his side anyway...
Oh no...i've fallen out the window down the stairs again Vic.
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There are several different storylines in The Exorcist: Pazuzu’s battle with Father Merrin, the Demon targeting Father Karras because of his crisis of confidence, faith, and trying to reconcile his medical knowledge with something that defies biological explanation.
There is no “pact with the devil”: Regan was chosen because of her proximity to Damien Karras, her parents’ (pending) divorce, her transient lifestyle, and her susceptibility to possession.
It’s a film about humanity and how, ultimately, Damien Karras chooses to pay the ultimate price through self-sacrifice to save the soul of an innocent girl after Father Merrin has, effectively, died in battle against the Demon. Rather than being “idiotic numbnuts”, they are caring and compassionate people who are determined to save an innocent child’s life. With the exception of Dr. Klein, they are far kinder than the doctors who subject Regan to traumatic tests and more thoughtful and respectful than the pompous psychiatrist who hypnotises her.
I’ve never played shithead and hadn’t heard of it before today. All I know about Pazuzu is that he is the king of the wind demons, a character trait that is very present in the Iraq opening section and, later, when crockery and other objects are blowing around Regan’s bedroom.
I consider The Exorcist to be a masterfully made film, one with exceptional performances, and a very powerful and emotional experience that always stays with me long after the end credits have finished.