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The Exorcist occupies a central position in the history of horror films, an almost sadistically malevolent experience in terror. Regan (Linda Blair) is a young girl entering puberty and she becomes possessed by the spirit of an ancient demon. Her mother (Ellen Burstyn) finds that there is no assistance in the scientific pragmatism of the modern world and she hesitantly turns to the occult rites of Catholicism and Orthodoxy in order to rid her daughter of the monster. The exorcism scenes attain a disturbing authenticity and they are based on the official Catholic Church rites of exorcism. “The Exorcist” is a film that feeds on our most intimate fears and terrors and not a film for the easily frightened. Stars Max Van Sydow as Father Merrin. Based on the book by William Peter Blatty. Mercedes McCambridge is the voice of the Devil. Part of Tubular Bell by Mike Oldfield used on the soundtrack.
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Stream, rent or buy via
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
315914
Languages
Arabic
Bulgarian
English
English
English
Finnish
Icelandic
Italian
Italian
Romanian
Audience classification
R (18+)
Subject categories
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Motion picture trailers
Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Catholic Church
Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Occultism
Feature films → Feature films - United States
Literature → American literature - Film and video adaptations
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
DVD; Access Print (Section 1)