Fango Flashback: "THE EXORCIST III"

Creating a sequel to THE EXORCIST is a job I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Famous for being one of the highest-grossing horror films ever made, scaring the ever-loving shit out of everyone who saw it, containing some of the best special FX ever created in the genre and responsible for a whole generation’s worth of nightmares and Catholic outrage, William Friedkin’s film isn’t just a tough act to follow—it’s like doing standup comedy right after Richard Pryor when all you’ve got is a knock-knock joke.

In short, you’d have a better chance of getting struck by lightning—multiple times—than making a worthy sequel.

Which is why to this day, I’m still shocked that, against all odds (and the monstrosity that is EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC), THE EXORCIST III matches the original pound for pound, if in a completely different and far more cerebral way. It’s a phenomenal movie that stands as one of the most underrated and underviewed horror films ever created.

After the cesspool of excrement that was EXORCIST II, William Peter Blatty (writer of both the original book and film) stepped up to direct this adaptation of his follow-up novel LEGION. It’s the story of Detective Kinderman (a towering performance by George C. Scott), who’s on the trail of a vicious serial killer who uses religion as the basis for his murders. The trail seems to be turning up cold until a chance encounter in a hospital makes Kinderman investigate Patient X (Brad Dourif), a man in the psych ward who hasn’t left his cell in years, but can recall details of the murders only known by the police. Is he somehow the killer? Or is something else going on? As things tick forward and the killing spree slowly progresses to claiming those around him, Kinderman must solve the case before it’s too late.

If that scenario sounds completely different than the original, that’s because it is. While it contains similar themes and mentions of certain previous characters, this movie can pretty much stand on its own two legs, especially due to the great writing.

Blatty’s script is absolutely fantastic, loaded with some of the cleverest dialogue in all of horror, with nearly every line being quoteworthy. The mystery behind the murders is solid and intriguing, and the ending (while tampered with by the studio, 20th Century Fox) caps it off well. Meanwhile, the acting is superb, with Scott and Dourif truly impressing with their riveting performances (man, can these guys sell a monologue!).

But the film isn’t just all talk—it also contains some of the creepiest imagery outside of the original film (statues of Jesus will always be scary), and has one of the flat-out craziest jump-scares ever put on celluloid, one that never fails to make first-time viewers fall out of their seats. The murders, while never shown, are some of the grisliest one could imagine, such as a woman being forcibly paralyzed, emptied of all her internal organs, and then stuffed with rosary beads and sewn back up. (And believe it or not, that’s by far the least of the slayings.)

Are their any blemishes on this hidden classic? Two. There’s an incredibly out-of-place dream sequence early in the film that adds nothing to the story and serves only to take you out of the proceedings, and then there’s the issue of the special-FX-heavy ending. As opposed to the simple, downbeat conclusion of LEGION (a great read), Fox forced Blatty to come up with an exorcism sequence in order to tie the movie more directly to the original. It shows, coming off very forced and gimmicky considering the subdued nature of what has come before.

Some people find THE EXORCIST III too talky. I will admit that those looking for pea-soup vomitings, head-twistings and lovely scenes of a little girl masturbating with a crucifix will find little enjoyment here. However, for those looking for a taut, interesting horror film with good characters, writing, and scares to spare are sure to fall in love with this one.

Comments

0 #10 A Must Watch — rancid meathole 2010-08-12 23:50

Exorcist III is more of a murder mystery than a movie about exorcism, and that's a good thing. I personally enjoy gore in my horror, but this movie excels without it, and doesn't need it. (although those cut scenes you speak of I'd love to see...) I'm glad I finally chanced it on VHS one day after passing it up so many times. A great watch, and I honestly like it better than the Excorcist.

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0 #9 a awesome sequel — Robert Leonard 2010-08-03 06:44

This,along with The Ninth Configuration, make up an unofficial trilogy in a way (skip the horrid Exorcist 2 and Renny Harlins awful Exorcist 4). While neither Exorcist 3 or Ninth Configuration are on par with the origional Exorcist they are still really great films anyway,as is the origional version of Exorcist 4 directed by Paul Schrader called Dominion:Preque l to the Exorcist. In fact, I'd say that,much like the Star Trek:The Motion Picture,I consider these films to be flawed-masterpieces. I'd love to see a boxed set at some point with all the good Exorcist films in it: the origional,Exorc ist 3,The Ninth Configuration, and Dominion:Preque l to the Exorcist.And if some of the cut footage from Exorcist 3 could be put back in for a director's cut then that would be even better.

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0 #8 RE: Fango Flashback: "THE EXORCIST III" — Chuckyfan 2010-08-02 16:48

This movie is amazing, unfortunately it's not available in many countries (like Italy), it's the very sequel to to Exorcist. The part II was very bad, this movie it's far superior and the atmosphere is black and deep like the original one.

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0 #7 Exorcist III is Awesome! — Deathmarch 2010-08-02 12:42

Totally agreed with the review. I think this movie is as just as good as the first movie. That one scene still scares me no matter how many times I've seen it (I'm sure you know the one I'm referring to.) Would be nice to have an updated DVD of this. The second movie, Heretic, is utter trash. Exorcist III remains an underrated gem.

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0 #6 RE: Fango Flashback: "THE EXORCIST III" — Heathen 2010-08-02 07:40

I agree a special edition disc with the morph head scene and the priest holding his severed head restored is overdue

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0 #5 pornoforpandas — Bryant Low 2010-08-02 00:47

Though I acknowledge its flaws, I've always felt 'Exorcist III' in many ways superior to the first film. It's certainly quirkier (the exchanges between Scott and Ed Flanders are filled with low key sarcasm, old ladies spider-crawling ceilings etc) and subtler (lacking any truly in-your-face unpleasantness) . And yet it has a tremendously unnerving power to suggest an unseen, malevolent intelligence at work (something David Lynch's films seem to do). For my money, I still feel it's one of the most original horror films ever. If it has a flaw it is that it's got more brains than heart, lacking anything close to the mother-daughter relationship of the first movie to give it some emotional weight.

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+1 #4 As Good As The Original, C'mon. — Ed Baxter 2010-08-01 20:36

Just for the fact that you had to point out two blemishes in Exorcist III proves that it is inferior to the original. The original Exorcist (not the unnecessary version you've never seen) is one of those very rare occasions where the planets were in alignment and everything worked out just perfect. There isn't any blemishes that need to be explained away, there isn't any studio tampering that diluted the final product, just a spot on horror film that is flawlessly acted and directed. The Exorcist III, which probably would have had more credibility if it was just title Legion, is in my opinion good, but not anywhere near as great as the original. With Blu-Ray becoming more and more popular, the director should consider re-editing his film to remove the silly gratuitous exorcism scene, restore the ending as he wanted it if the elements still exist and letting people see the film that he wanted to release. Maybe then it could have a chance of becoming rediscovered.

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0 #3 RE: Fango Flashback: "THE EXORCIST III" — Screamz 2010-08-01 18:20

A very worthy sequel that I find to be a bit better than the original. I would love to see this film get a Special Edition treatment on Blu-Ray. A commentary from Blatty would be fantastic...

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+1 #2 RE: Fango Flashback: "THE EXORCIST III" — Metal Dave 2010-08-01 07:25

Although many Christians find The Exorcist to be offensive, many Catholics do not. A number of Catholic priests appeared in the film and worked behind the scenes. My uncle, a priest himself, was the first one to show me this film when I was a kid. Poor guy had no idea he was creating a horror movie fanatic that day.

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+3 #1 EXORCIST III — NIGHTTHING 2010-08-01 04:34

This underseen film is the true sequel to The Exorcist, although it's interesting that Blatty considers his 1978 novel The Ninth Configuration to be just that.

Legion was always going to be a tough adaptation, and although missing the EVP subplot and adding the spectacular but unnecessary "climax", Blatty made a worthy follow-up to the original film.

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