By Todd Garbarini
William Friedkin’s The French Connection (1971) swept the 1972 Academy Awards ceremony and went on to become a smash hit with both critics and audiences alike. During promotion of the film months earlier, Mr. Friedkin received a copy of The Exorcist from William Peter Blatty, a writer whom he had met five years earlier and whose script of a project he was offered he brushed off. Fascinated by this new novel, The Exorcist, Mr. Friedkin agreed to direct the film.
Revered the world over as the scariest movie ever made, The Exorcist is staunchly referred by both its writer and director as a detective story about the nature and mystery of faith. Neither gentleman was interested in making a horror film, but given the film’s marketing campaign in 1973, few could have believed that it was anything but a horror film. My late grandmother had recalled more times than I care to admit that when she was seventeen, she was terrified to go and see James Whale’s Frankenstein (1931) because the film’s poster provided this warning as such: “If you have a weak heart and cannot stand intense excitement or even shock...We advise you NOT see the production...If, on the contrary, you like an unusual thrill, you will find it in "Frankenstein". A bit of reverse psychology never hurt anyone…certainly not the box office anyway! The new documentary, The Exorcist Untold, which does not appear to be licensed by Warner Brothers, is directed by Robin Bextor, runs 70-minutes and provides us with a glimpse of the hysteria that gripped the world as unsuspecting audiences stood for hours in less-than-comfortable weather to see the film adaptation of the best-selling novel. The book initially went unknown upon its 1971 publication as there was little publicity surrounding it. There is a case to be made that actor Robert Shaw’s drunkenness prior to his scheduled 1971 appearance on The Dick Cavett Show resulted in him being cancelled and replaced with author Blatty. This interview made such an impression on Mr. Cavett’s audience that The Exorcist became the number one best-selling novel the following week.
The documentary, which features anecdotes and comments from experts in diversified backgrounds, makes one thing plain: no one today who did not see The Exorcist during its initial December 1973 release can come close to comprehending what it was like to see it theatrically at that time. In the absence of social media and the constant interconnected nature of contemporary life, major newspapers of that era reported on audiences vomiting or passing out in the theatres. The film was a major shock to their systems and gave rise to debates, both publicly and privately, on God and the Devil. Experts weigh in and generally agree on the film’s power while collectively repudiating the much-maligned and fast-tracked John Boorman sequel four years hence. However Exorcist III: Legion (1990) receives praise from Mr. Blatty’s family. There is also a discussion about how Mr. Friedkin discovered Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells, the first album release on Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Records label and used the opening of the album as a counterpoint to the action on the screen. Instantly recognizable now and referred to as “The Exorcist Theme,” this led to millions of copies of the album selling on the basis of its use in the film.
Mr. Friedkin’s biographer, the always eloquent and erudite Nat Segaloff, speaks at length about Mr. Friendkin and the film. He is the author of The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear and is an excellent authority on the subject. He discusses Mr. Friedkin’s unorthodox methods of getting a natural reaction from an actor, which would probably not go over well today! Here’s hoping that an expanded version of his excellent Hurricane Billy: The Stormy Life and Films of William Friedkin (1990) gets an update and reissue.
One portion of the documentary that I found delightful and was news to me is a section discussing the iconic stair steps in the film. As a film fanatic, I enjoy seeking out the locations to favorite films of mine and seeing how they have changed in the years since. The French Connection, being my favorite film, was the first film’s locations that I sought out in July 1990. Many of these locales are now gone, but I was lucky enough to visit them back then. I have made my way to The Exorcist steps twice since 2008, and in October 2015 a ceremonial plaque was dedicated and unveiled at the base of the steps to commemorate the film’s location. Both the writer and director were on-hand at the unveiling. This event is included in the documentary.
There is also a good deal of behind-the-scenes footage, discussions of what was left on the cutting room floor, mentioning the Manson killings coming on the heels of the end of the “Flower Children” era and the on-going Vietnam War, and a lot of footage of first-time audience reactions and their impressions.
The film refers to The Exorcist as “a compelling supernatural murder mystery with a moral theme.”
A must-see for fans of the film.
(Note: this review is derived from a screener link.)
Click HERE to view online or purchase the DVD of The Exorcist Untold on Amazon.com. Click here to order from Amazon UK.
Click here to purchase The Exorcist 50th Anniversary Edition - Theatrical & Extended Director's Cut (4K Ultra HD + Digital) [4K UHD].
Click here to view or purchase William Friedkin’s The Devil and Father Amorth (2017) DVD.
Click here to view or purchase Friedkin Uncut (2019).