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One of the pinnacles of horror cinema, The Exorcist, is meant to chill you to the bone. The story centers around a young girl (Linda Blair), who becomes possessed by a demon. The demon causes her to break out into violent fits, move objects without even touching them and wreak havoc and chaos for those around her. Her face and voice soon begin to change and she becomes less than human. Less than anything! The girl's mother (Ellen Burstyn) calls on two priests to exorcise the demon from her daughter. One of the priests (Jason Miller, in his best role) is losing his faith in God and does not believe he can make it through the exorcism. The other (Max Von Sydow) is an expert exorcist, called in from overseas to perform this truly horrible exorcism.The film is one of the most excellent pieces of work I've ever seen. The acting depictions by Burstyn, Von Sydow, Miller and especially Blair, are all great performances. The exorcism scene is probably the most frightening, when the two priests and the demon dish out everything they have at each other. The make-up is excellent, turning sweet, almost angelic, Blair into a horrible repulsive monster, with pores and scabs all over her face, evil eyes that are less human than a wolf and a cruel, rasping voice. William Friedkin (The French Connection and recently Jade) directs this with power and a bizarre passion. The Exorcist is certainly on my list as one of the best films of all time.
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Not as great as The Exorcist, but almost as good. Gregory Peck and Lee Remick play the adoptive parents of Damien, a little boy, who is their pride and joy. However, recent incidents make Peck suspicious of the boy. First, the boy's nanny hangs herself in front of his own eyes. Then, a new nanny is hired, though she seems as cold as stone and very wary of the parents. Also, there is a big black dog hanging around the house more and more. Soon, a photographer (David Warner) attracts the attention of Peck, when the photographer tells him that his child may be more than he seems. Peck and Warner then begin to delve into the Damien's past. They find trouble along the way, including a pack of wolves that nearly rip them apart. They find out, from the priest, who gave Damien to Peck, where Damien's mother is buried and they find out something very surprising. After they find the mother, Peck begins to realize that his son, his pride and joy, may be the Antichrist.Just as they are finding out more about Damien, Warner is decapitated in a "freak" accident, heightening Peck's suspicions. When his wife is also killed, he suspects that the nanny (Bille Whitelaw) has something to do with it. Whitelaw has now taken to keeping the dog around as a protector of the child. Is the child the Antichrist or isn't he? Well, two sequels to this film probably should tell you something. The performances are pretty good, especially Whitelaw as the cold and cunning nanny. Though it relies at times on gore, rather than suspense, it still packs a punch.
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Supposedly based on a true story, it tells of a family that moved into a small, quaint little home, which turns out to be haunted. The film follows one month of hell for the family, as the toilet starts spewing up black bile, the youngest daughter starts talking to an invisible playmate, the dog starts barking at stuff that isn't there and the father (James Brolin) sinks into black moods, followed by outbursts of violence.Short on suspense, long on stupidity. The acting by Brolin is okay, but the other actors ham it up, playing scared little rabbits, who run around in a blind panic. Rod Steiger, as the priest, who is called in to help the family, is the biggest ham of them all. It appears he's ripping off Max Von Sydow's role in The Exorcist. I can't say that it's an awful film. It has a great opening scene and the middle is fine, but the climax is disappointing. Though it was a box-office hit at the time of it's release, I fail to see why.
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On the other hand, I can see exactly why this was a hit. Suspenseful, chilling, good acting, fantastic cinematography and eerie music. This was director Roman Polanski's first major hit. It deals with a young woman (Mia Farrow), who is about to have a baby, not knowing, until too late, that it's the devil's child. She finds out that her kindly, old neighbors (Sidney Blackmer and academy-award winner, Ruth Gordon) are witches and her husband (John Cassavetes) has made a pact with the devil. The pact is to have the neighbors give Farrow some concoction, which creates hallucination of the devil making love to her. She does not realize that she actually is making love with the devil.Nine months later, she will give birth to the devil's child, and a new Satan is born. A truly frightening, psychological thriller, based on the novel by Ira Levin, this found a huge audience. For some it was a religious allegory; to others, especially women, it showed the "worst fears" possibilities of pregnancy. But for the most part, the ending of the film said it all. Rosemary's love for her child is stronger than her need to destroy him.
I can't say one way or another if any of these aspects are true. I can say that Rosemary's Baby should go on your list of what to rent on Halloween.
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