These effects range from the classic rotating-head scene to furniture flying across the room and the bed shaking uncontrollably. Other, similarly stunning feats include having the possessed girl float above her bed, having her body slam on the bed in a very unnatural manner and, of course, the projectile vomit made from pea soup. While all of these scenes are classics and really sell the overall film, they are also one of the ways that made The Exorcist such a powerful film for its time.
This particular Blu-ray Book release contains two Blu-ray discs, one with the original Theatrical Release and another with the Director's Cut, where many of the scenes that were removed from the original film are added to enhance the overall effect. In fact, many of the special features touch upon the re-adding of this footage. One early featurette focuses on these scenes before the Director's Cut was released and actually has Director William Friedkin arguing with Novel and Screenplay Writer William Blatty over the inclusion of these scenes. I found this very amusing since there is a similar featurette that was filmed after the Director's Cut where they reference the many arguments they had and Friedkin's eventual conceding of the matter.
More on the special features later. The Exorcist itself focuses on not only the progression of a little girl's possession, but also the fact that one of the main priests in the film is suffering from a loss of faith, and how this event resolves that issue.
Linda Blair plays the young Regan MacNeil who lives with her famous actress mother, Chris (Ellen Burstyn). At the start of the film, little Regan seems like a perfectly normal girl, but when she starts coming down with a strange illness, Chris starts taking her to a series of doctors who have trouble finding anything physically wrong with her. After a massive battery of tests, some of which seem to be the most horrific part of the whole film (old-school MRIs are scary as hell), the doctors suggest she look into psychiatry.
At first, Regan's possession only manifests in behavioral differences, but when furniture starts flying around the room and people's lives are put into danger, Chris finally resolves herself to not only talk to a psychiatrist, but one that is a member of the clergy, Father Dyer (played by Reverend William O'Malley). At first, Dyer's own loss of faith and scientific outlook on psychiatry keep him from accepting the possibility that Regan could really be possessed, but when he is finally convinced, he asks for help.
The church replies by sending one of the few living men who have actually performed an exorcism, Father Merrin (Max von Sydow), and the two of them work together and attempt to drive the demonic force from the bed-ridden girl.
As far as I can tell, The Exorcist: Director's Cut brings any and all special features previously released for the film together in one release. This, plus the new three new featurettes, means there are a ton of extras to watch and enjoy.
The new featurettes focus on the filming of the movie (complete with original behind-the-scenes footage not fully seen before), how Georgetown has changed since the film's shooting and how the film itself changed between the Theatrical and Director's Cut versions. Another, hour-plus long documentary called "The Fear of God: The Making of The Exorcist" is also included. This 1998 documentary pretty much covers everything the newer three don't. It is the combination of these four extras where you will learn pretty much anything you could about the film. Everything from the visual effects to the unusual number of deaths that occurred while filming The Exorcist are talked about in one or more of these featurettes.
The rest of the extras are either various commentaries, or TV, radio and theatrical trailers for both the original version, and the newer one. While nice to have to round out the entire package, it's the earlier extras that really seal the deal.
The Exorcist throws out quite a few questions, both philosophical and theological, and that is probably one of the reasons it hasn't faded away like many other films from its time. This Blu-ray release of The Exorcist: The Director's Cut is the best version to buy at this point. Not only does the film look and sound great, but its massive list of special features should please even the most casual fan of the film.
