The Exorcist
Academy Award × 2·National Film Registry
Rent/Purchase
When a mysterious entity possesses a young girl, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
What critics thought
Critics at the time were sharply divided — some hailed it as a genuinely terrifying and technically masterful achievement, while others dismissed it as cynical, ugly exploitation dressed up in theological clothing. Decades of popular devotion have softened that original split, but the original reviews reveal a film that unsettled critics as much as audiences, for very different reasons.
“an amazing film, and one destined to become at the very least a horror classic ... there has never been anything like this on the screen before”
Joe Dante·Castle of Frankenstein
“I am not sure exactly what reasons people will have for seeing this movie; surely enjoyment won't be one ... Are people so numb they need movies of this intensity in order to feel anything at all?”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“The Exorcist succeeds on one level as an effectively excruciating entertainment, but on another, deeper level it is a thoroughly evil film.”
Andrew Sarris·The Village Voice
“the trash bombshell of 1973, the aesthetic equivalent of being run over by a truck ... a gloating, ugly exploitation picture”
Michael Dempsey·Film Quarterly
“shallowness that asks to be taken seriously”
The New Yorker
Genres
Horror
Cast & Crew
DirectorWilliam Friedkin
StarringEllen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Jason Miller, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb
ComposerJack Nitzsche
The Exorcist
Academy Award × 2·National Film Registry
When a mysterious entity possesses a young girl, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
What critics thought
Critics at the time were sharply divided — some hailed it as a genuinely terrifying and technically masterful achievement, while others dismissed it as cynical, ugly exploitation dressed up in theological clothing. Decades of popular devotion have softened that original split, but the original reviews reveal a film that unsettled critics as much as audiences, for very different reasons.
“an amazing film, and one destined to become at the very least a horror classic ... there has never been anything like this on the screen before”
Joe Dante·Castle of Frankenstein
“I am not sure exactly what reasons people will have for seeing this movie; surely enjoyment won't be one ... Are people so numb they need movies of this intensity in order to feel anything at all?”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“The Exorcist succeeds on one level as an effectively excruciating entertainment, but on another, deeper level it is a thoroughly evil film.”
Andrew Sarris·The Village Voice
“the trash bombshell of 1973, the aesthetic equivalent of being run over by a truck ... a gloating, ugly exploitation picture”
Michael Dempsey·Film Quarterly
“shallowness that asks to be taken seriously”
The New Yorker
Genres
Horror
Cast & Crew
DirectorWilliam Friedkin
StarringEllen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Jason Miller, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb
ComposerJack Nitzsche
Rent/Purchase