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hbrennan
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
Philippines
1455 Posts |
 Posted - 10/22/2005 : 12:09:21 AM
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quote:
Capt. Nemo wrote: The Exorcist doesn't belong with these films. I can't put my finger on it but what does this film lack that these two films have?
It lacks (in some instances) an audience who can be disturbed or frightened by spiritual horrors as opposed to "worldly" horrors (like psychopaths or sharks) or standard monsters (alien or otherwise). "The Exorcist" is in a completely different catagory - but trust me, the audience that watched it with me (in New York City, no less) was quite frightened. Today, I find it more disturbing than frightening (but, then again, this isn't 1973 - is it?)
"...yet it hadn't destroyed his brain."
re: Charles "The Butcher" Benton (1956)
http://henrybrennan.blogspot.com/ |
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Capt. Nemo
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
630 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2005 : 12:26:36 AM
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hbrennan
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
Philippines
1455 Posts |
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hbrennan
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
Philippines
1455 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2005 : 01:10:29 AM
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Just kidding. A "spiritual" horror involves a monstrous assault not only on one's body - but on one's soul, as well. Probably the best blending of the two ("worldly" and "spiritual") can be found in movies like "Hellraiser". I thought that one was pretty interesting - although I never found it frightening. Just entertaining.
"...yet it hadn't destroyed his brain."
re: Charles "The Butcher" Benton (1956)
http://henrybrennan.blogspot.com/ |
Edited by - hbrennan on 10/22/2005 01:21:18 AM |
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Monkey
Archdeacon of Jabootu
Ireland
17 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2005 : 04:51:15 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Capt. Nemo
I wonder if Texas Chainsaw Massacre was even meant to be scary. I think it was made more for the grossout factor. To see how many gross scenes we can put in a movie. There is an audience for that sort of thing. If the mood ever strikes me, I will watch it on its own terms.
That backs up my earlier point about the Texas Chainsaw Massacre having no effect on some people.
I'm also somewhat surprised that you would put the film in the grossout category. The film does have an oppressive atmosphere, but it is almost entirely bloodless.
Have you watched it? |
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R. Dittmar
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
420 Posts |
Posted - 10/27/2005 : 9:25:00 PM
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Even though I'm on record above as being underwhelmed by The Exorcist, Blatty based his book on a story from my current St. Louis stomping ground. Our local radio jocks always have field days talking about it during the Halloween season:
http://www.prairieghosts.com/exorcist.html |
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MikeC
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
749 Posts |
Posted - 10/28/2005 : 08:14:20 AM
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St. Louis? I had thought that Blatty based it on a
case from the suburbs of DC, though ISTR that at one
point the child in question (a boy in 'real life')
was taken to a seminary in the midwest for exorcism/
treatment.
The definitive investigation of the inspiration for
THE EXCORCIST can be found here:
http://www.strangemag.com/exorcistpage1.html
MikeC |
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Jet
Altar Boy of Jabootu
Australia
8 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2005 : 04:49:47 AM
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I wasn't terribly scared by The Exorcist myself - although admittedly I saw it on a laptop with dodgy sound and graphics, so it was probably less effective than it might've been on the big screen. I found it intriguing, though, and definitely well-made. I'm an athiest, but I was still interested in the whole setup and cared about the outcome. I'd agree that The Exorcist is creepy and disturbing rather than outright scary.
Oh, yeah, by the way... Hi, I'm new to the forums. Been reading the reviews for some time, though. I've learned a lot from them. And here's something Exorcist-related I've been wanting to share ever since reading the recap of Exorcist II: The Heretic (such a lame subtitle, not to mention an irrelevant one). It's a quote from someone who apparently saw Exorcist II; by the name of John Simon.
He must've read the advertising boast about Linda Blair playing a 'more lovely and mature Regan', or whatever it was. Anyway, his opinion was this:
"Linda Blair, not a very talented or prepossessing youngster then, is even less interesting now, though considerably more bovine; I doubt whether a post-pubertal acting style can be made out of mere chubbiness"
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Greenhornet
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
1791 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2005 : 09:26:21 AM
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It helps to remember that these movies origonaly came out on "the big screen". Seeing it in a darkened theater, on a larger-than-life screen (Where you can easily imagine yourself IN the action) is a far cry from seeing it on a 28 inch TV in the comfort and familor surroundings of your own home.
"The Queen is testing poisons." CLEOPATRA, 1935 |
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John Nowak
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
1017 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2005 : 8:30:26 PM
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I'll go along with the general opinion here. Film making is a skill; in a horror film, you're trying to scare the audience; a film successful at sharing the audience has its scary bits recycled so often that it can't affect a later generation of filmgoers. Or at least not so much.
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We've always been united in stupidity. That's why there is no hope. But, then again, when has that ever stopped us?
-- hbrennan |
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