Thus, we’ve certainly seen it all by now. The releases have gone from bare-bones to limited edition deluxe boxed sets with a treasure trove of extras. officially changed the name of that edition to The Exorcist: Extended Director’s Cut. 'If I was making The Exorcist today, I still wouldn't use much CGI.The Exorcist has been released and re-released over the past 40 years in two different versions so many times that, by now, everyone who ever wanted to has seen The Exorcist: The Version You’ve Never Seen. 'I'll be honest with you,' says the director, proud of the film magic he achieved without the help of computers or other digital equipment. By employing innovative mechanical effects, life-sized puppets, editing tricks, creative lighting and other techniques, Friedkin and his team created a scene that remains unique in the history of horror films.

Most of it was shot with one camera, and all the sound was recorded separately because of the unusual voices and audio gimmicks. The exorcism section took nearly a month to shoot and was filmed entirely in sequence, recalls Friedkin, who says he was only able to complete about five shots a day due to the complexity and cold temperature required. The scene Friedkin describes below depicts the ultimate struggle of faith as two Jesuit priests-played by a young Jason Miller and a wizened Max von Sydow-confront ancient demons, which have possessed the body of an innocent 12-year-old girl (Linda Blair). Made in 1973, well before the advent of digital special effects and computer animation, The Exorcist stands as a testament to imaginative filmmaking, a classic that still has the ability to shock and scare audiences. The powerful imagery featured in the climactic sequence of William Friedkin's The Exorcist seems familiar and iconic now. Ghastly demons appear-some barely visible in fleeting subliminal cuts, others in ghoulish tableaus. Green gooey vomit spews from a little girl's parched lips. The director explains how he captured the climactic confrontation between good and evil.Ī freezing cold bedroom shakes, rocks and quakes. Without digital effects, William Friedkin shot some of the most terrifying images ever seen in The Exorcist.

The exorcist william