Exorcist: The Beginning | Rotten Tomatoes (2024)

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Why are there two versions of Exorcist: The Beginning? ›

An early cut of Schrader's film that ran at 130 minutes was shown to the studio in early 2003. The cut was widely derided due to a lack of scares and gore. The studio at first opted to re-edit the film to make it scarier, which Schrader opposed.

In northern Iraq, priest Lankester Merrin takes part in an archaeological dig in the ancient ruins of Hatra. During the dig, he finds a stone talisman of a winged being that evokes a concerned look on his face. He then has a vision in which a giant version of the same being appears nearby, silently confronting him.

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A nun prepares to perform an exorcism and comes face to face with a demonic force with mysterious ties to her past.

With a bulk of the film revolving around religion, the Catholic Church were not happy with the release of The Exorcist and its release led to them citing the film was “unsuitable for a wide audience" and there were calls for the film to be banned.

The Exorcist (1973) After 50 years, William Friedkin's adaptation of William Peter Blatty's novel The Exorcist is still the best film in the series—and the most ferocious, core-shaking horror movie ever. (Hereditary comes close, but not quite.) The Exorcist isn't just a scary movie.

"The Exorcist: The Beginning" is about the triumph of good over evil. "Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist" is about how goodness isn't triumphant.

What is the plot of Exorcist: The Beginning? Years before Father Lankester Merrin helped save Regan MacNeil's soul, he first encounters the demon Pazuzu in East Africa. This is the tale of Father Merrin's initial battle with Pazuzu and the rediscovery of his faith.

The dig's doctor, Sarah, turns out to be the possessed individual and she kills Francis. Merrin has the demon exorcised from her in the tunnels below the church but she dies.

The Exorcist spider walk scene, initially deleted from the film's release, was restored later, delighting fans who consider it a favorite sequence. Director William Friedkin felt the scene was a big special effect too early in the story, but later reinserted the scene using CGI to erase wires.

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The film by Ruggero Deodato was banned on account of the graphic, realistic violence depicted in various forms in the film.

What happened to Linda Blair after The Exorcist? ›

Blair stepped away from the film industry in the 1990s to dedicate her time to rescuing dogs, largely, she says, because she felt like she needed a greater purpose than just making movies. "I started rescuing dogs out of shelters in 1997 after my mother had passed.

As Regan McNeil, the demonically possessed schoolgirl in William Friedkin's The Exorcist (1973), Linda Blair spits obscenities, projectile vomits, defenestrates a man, slaps a priest and masturbat*s with a crucifix. It is hardly viewing material appropriate for minors then – let alone the 14-year-old playing her.

When "The Exorcist" was released in 1973, Linda Blair was just 14 years old. Though the film generated a considerable amount of controversy, the young actress blew audiences away with her haunting performance as possessed preteen Regan MacNeil.

The beginning is Merrin realizing he is being called to be an exorcist. The evil knows him and he it and the beginning signifies, with all the imagery entailed, that Merrin will have to face down evil throughout his life.

While its sensationalized depiction of demonic possession has all but defined this type of narrative in the popular imagination, the material itself is loosely based on a real-life case from 1949, where Father William Bowdern performed a series of exorcisms on a 14-year-old boy.

In the theatrical cut of The Exorcist, the exorcism itself begins almost immediately after Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow) arrives in Georgetown. In The Version You've Never Seen, there is an interlude while Karras fetches the necessities where Merrin and Chris interact.

The director's cut of The Exorcist incorporates an additional 10 minutes of footage, updated CGI effects, and a subtly different ending that impacts the overall narrative.

Exorcist: The Beginning came out first, and while it has higher production values, compared to Dominion, it feels like they cut the story down. Dominion has more detail, and a slightly different plot, but I feel it accomplishes its goals better. The bad guy feels more supernatural.

A new edition, labeled "The version you've never seen", was released on September 22, 2000 and includes the following additions and changes. A slightly different opening, which shows the MacNeil's home in Georgetown, then cuts to the opening titles.