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The Exorcist (1973) ✦ Full-Length Watchalong Reaction (Patreon)

Published:
2025-10-07 19:00:08
Imported:
2026-08
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Content

The first of the scary movies this month! Although this one wasn't really scary for me, but it was very unsettling, creepy, heartbreaking, and it made me tense up a lot (so much so that I actively had to shake out my upper body a couple of times).

I can't help but wonder what the general reception was like back in 1973 when this released, especially with the level of visual and auditory vulgarity that was present here.

This is a quieter reaction from me, so at least the people who like to think I talk too much will be happy. 😉

I hope you enjoy this! I'm looking forward to your comments. 😊 [Direct link here.]

✦ KL

Files

The Exorcist (1973) ✦ Full-Length Watchalong Reaction

Comments

RegalEagle

I remember the head spinning and the crucifix stabbing the most..

Vincent Hollow

If I remember correctly, even the director, William Friedkin, did not consider The Exorcist a horror film. He considered it more of a drama. I first saw this when I was barely a teenager, and I was kinda like you, where I wasn't really scared, but I was definitely enthralled and entranced by everything happening. It quickly became a frequent rewatch for me after that. Also, that spider walk down the stairs. 😵

Vincent Hollow

If you want to go a little further with The Exorcist at some point in the future, (obviously not anytime soon) The Exorcist III (aka Legion) is a direct sequel to the events of the first film, 27 years later. Characters from the first film return (although not all played by the same actors) and it has one of the best scares in horror history. It's written and directed by William Peter Blatty, the author of the original novel and its sequel. I know what you're thinking, "What about Exorcist II?" That is universally known as one of the *worst* horror movies/sequels ever made, and is pretty much ignored and shunned by the horror community, so skipping it to go right to 3 is totally acceptable. In fact, its encouraged.

Chris Thom

Saw this in the e-mail and I thought Cassie was doing it at first. Was like huh?? Really?? Lol.

jimmy2k4o .

Oh please watch exorcist 3, it's masterpiece an many believe it to be superior to the first

Chris Thom

Friedkin has some really interesting movies. Bug (2006) was a great one about trauma and paranoia.

Vincent Hollow

I remember seeing that years after it came out, but I've definitely forgotten most of it. Might have to check it out again.

Steve Mercier

Love this movie, but it doesn't really scare me anymore. The dream sequences with Father Karras are probably the most unsettling thing for me, personally (especially the vampire-like shadowy face that barely blips onto the screen). Aside from the performances (especially Ellen Burstyn and Jason Miller), I love two things: the fact that the demon isn't really defeated in the end (at least not without taking two priests with it); and how well the movie serves as an allegory for the fear of female power--the transition from puberty to womanhood, but also the rise of feminism in the 1970s, and a general rebellion against the patriarchy. Christian allegory aside, the fact that the 'possessed' person is a young teenage girl who becomes prone to mood swings (to put it mildly) and begins to showcase overt signs of sexuality and vulgarity, not to mention the extreme and gory use of menstrual blood in one particular scene, just can't be denied. The fact that the two male priests can't defeat this 'evil'--the older, more traditional priest outright dying, while the younger more cynical priest has to take the 'evil' into himself, that is to say accept the inevitable--speaks volumes. Horror only has weight with subtext--like any story--and this one delivers. Good shit.

Bryan Dempsey

I think how much this affects viewers is directly related to your belief in evil personified. If you don’t believe in metaphysical representatives of good & evil this is just a fictional exercise with some quality practical effects for its time. This one pre-dates me, but my mother saw this in theaters and apparently was terrified. She’s a devout Catholic. I first saw this as a teenager edited for tv, but it creeped me out. While I am not the church going sort, I have had personal experiences that have solidified my belief in personified good and evil. So I still find it somewhat unsettling. Plus the original novel the movie is based on was loosely adapted from real events. Though in the real event it was a teenage boy. I look forward to watching this full reaction.

Omar

I thought the exact same thing 😂

Tyler Foster

Honestly, I'd like to see her reaction to II as well. It may be bad but it's certainly memorable.

Omar

Glad we’re getting this one. Funny story, this movie almost caused me not to be born. While my mom was dating my dad, she saw this film in the theatres when it came out, and was completely freaked TF out by it. My dad found out and hid under her bed before she got home, waited till she went to bed, and started shaking the bed from beneath. Thankfully, she got over it and I was born years later.

Chris Thom

She does have a secret reaction coming up. But I think it's The Blair Witch project. Hasn't confirmed or denied it yet.

Chris Thom

It's very powerful. The way it builds and builds until the climax of the film is pretty wild.

Tyler Foster

I had been going to recommend you watch the Theatrical Cut, which most people seem to prefer. At some point, Friedkin made an alternate cut, titled "The Version You've Never Seen" (and sometimes "Extended Director's Cut"). I don't know if I've ever watched the extended version, but my understanding is that he did more than add scenes, he more fully altered dialogue and things in certain scenes, and those changes were somewhat controversial. Luckily, you watched the TC anyway -- The Version You've Never Seen is about 10 minutes longer. In addition to the discussion below about the somewhat bonkers Exorcist II, both Exorcist III and the prequel that followed have pretty famous alternate versions. Exorcist III's director's cut was a Holy Grail for many horror fans, and although the footage does not survive in high quality, it finally premiered in 2016, entitled The Exorcist III: Legion, with the extensive deleted footage sourced from a tape. The prequel was an even bigger debacle. Writer/director Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver) was hired based on a script by Caleb Carr. When Schrader turned in the finished project, Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist, Morgan Creek's executives were so unhappy that after some attempts to edit it, they fired Schrader and hired Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2, Long Kiss Goodnight), who came in and made an entirely different movie with the same leading man, called The Exorcist: The Beginning. After The Beginning was unsuccessful in theaters, Warner eventually released Dominion as well. There are many projects with a wild development journey, where you can read about alternate takes on a project that were never made, but the Exorcist prequel is a rare case of being able to see two completely different films meant to fulfill the same purpose, made almost back-to-back.

jimmy2k4o .

Fr Merrin is the three eyed raven in Game of Thrones. The actot Max von Syndow (Who recentl passed away) was actually in his 40s when he made exorcist. He's in old man make up.

Chris Thom

Exorcist 3 is a bit underrated. With one hell of a jump scare. Lol

Chris Thom

There's a new show on Netflix that shows the premiere of Psycho with Hitchcock in a attendance, and a woman went into labor right there at the theater.

Tyler Foster

This and Back to the Future stand out to me as movies where the "old man" makeup of the era is almost completely ignored by modern audiences who just expect them to look old. KL has also encountered Max Von Sydow in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and (uncredited) as the voice of Vigo the Carpathian, the evil painting from Ghostbusters II.

Bob Bittner

I really appreciate your comments. And you gave me an honest-to-goodness laugh by summing up Regan’s character as a young girl “who becomes prone to mood swings”! Perfect. (This film, BTW, is one of my top 5 greatest films ever, regardless of genre. And even though I’ve moved from believer to nonbeliever since I first saw it, it remains a masterpiece for me.)

Bob Bittner

Hey, she recently did “The Fly,” so who knows!