History Film / TheExorcist

* AdaptationDeviation: The film leaves out, perhaps understandably, the aspect of Regan's possession from the book in which she has uncontrollable diarrhea, requiring her to wear a diaper and making her room smell unbearable.

[[TheFilmOfTheBook Based on]] the [[Literature/TheExorcist 1971 novel]] by William Peter Blatty, [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory and inspired by]] what was supposedly an actual documented exorcism from 1949, ''The Exorcist'' is the terrifying, shocking tale of an originally rather cute 12-year-old girl named Regan [=McNeil=] and the efforts of her mother Chris, a famous film actress, her mom's secretary Sharon, and a pair of priests to save the poor girl's soul from the ravages of a powerful, malign entity called Pazuzu (though his name is kept ambiguous in the film).

Based on the [[Literature/TheExorcist 1971 novel]] by William Peter Blatty, [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory and inspired by]] what was supposedly an actual documented exorcism from 1949, ''The Exorcist'' is the terrifying, shocking tale of an originally rather cute 12-year-old girl named Regan [=McNeil=] and the efforts of her mother Chris, a famous film actress, her mom's secretary Sharon, and a pair of priests to save the poor girl's soul from the ravages of a powerful, malign entity called Pazuzu (though his name is kept ambiguous in the film).

%%* AxCrazy: Pazuzu
%%* TheBadGuyWins

%%* BigBad: Pazuzu

* BreakingSpeech: Pazuzu is ''very'' good at it.

%%* FantasticCatholicism
%%* FauxAffablyEvil: Pazuzu.

%%* TheFilmOfTheBook

%%* ReligionIsMagic

!!Tropes:

* AffectionateParody:
** ''Film/{{Repossessed}}'', starring Leslie Nielsen and Linda Blair AdamWesting.
** The WesternAnimation/DaffyDuck cartoon "The Duxorcist".

* ExorcistHead: TropeNamer. The reason for it isn't clear in the film and only subtly explained in the novel, but the demon is taunting Karras with knowledge that she (it) knew how Burke Dennings died (having his neck snapped, twisting his head around 180 degrees from his tumble out of the window.)

The original movie is considered one of the best (and ''[[NightmareFuel/TheExorcist most terrifying]]'') horror movies of all time and was followed by two sequels and (for complicated reasons) two versions of the same prequel, with varying levels of quality and success from each of them. A TV series of the same named premiered on [[Creator/{{Fox}} FOX]], which was later revealed to be another sequel to the original.

* CleanPrettyReliable: Uh, Damien, that's not how you do CPR, and you as a doctor should know that. Naturally, he's pretty distraught, exhausted, and not thinking clearly.

** This is why Friedkin originally cut out the spider-walk scene. He knew that if the audience spent the whole movie wondering if/when Regan was going to leave the bedroom and attack somebody, it would distract from the drama unfolding outside. That's right: a scene where a demon-possessed CreepyChild walks backwards down a staircase and vomits blood was cut out because it was ''less scary'' than a mother's agony over her child's well-being.

* SplitPersonality: As the possession starts to take hold and Regan's behavior gets more bizarre, Chris thinks her daughter might have a split personality -- but see the reference to VoiceOfTheLegion, below. The doctors explain that real split personality is almost unheard of, but brain lesions and epilepsy can cause patients to act like it.[[note]]superficially, at least, if you don't know much about multiple personality. It comes on far too suddenly for the genuine article.[[/note]] when Fr. Karras begins to tell Fr. Merrin about each of the personalities he has witnessed, Merrin tersely interrupts, saying there's only one.

* SplitPersonality: As the possession starts to take hold and Regan's behavior gets more bizarre, Chris thinks her daughter might have a split personality -- but see the reference to VoiceOfTheLegion, below. The doctors explain that real split personality is almost unheard of, but brain lesions and epilepsy can cause patients to act like it.[[note]]superficially, at least, if you don't know much about multiple personality. It comes on far too suddenly for the genuine article.[[/note]]

The original movie is considered one of the best horror movies of all time and was followed by two sequels and (for complicated reasons) two versions of the same prequel, with varying levels of quality and success from each of them. A TV series of the same named premiered on [[Creator/{{Fox}} FOX]], which was later revealed to be another sequel to the original.

%%* AbnormalLimbRotationRange

* ChristianityIsCatholic: Obviously, as it is the only church to offer exorcism as a practice. This is TruthInTelevision. The Lutheran minister of the parents of the child in the real life case the movie is based on told the parents to get a Catholic priest because Lutherans had no exorcism tradition. It is somewhat strange though that Damien Karras is a Catholic despite being Greek because Greek people are overwhelmingly Eastern Orthodox (98%).
** Karras and his mother are Frankoi, meaning they are among the 200,000 [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_Church_in_Greece Greeks who practice Roman Catholicism]].

* GoodWingsEvilWings: Inverted by Pazuzu. The wings on the stone idol he was released from (and most other depictions of him, we might add, most famously in the ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' series) are actually birdlike.

* DarkIsNotEvil: The scene when Merrin arrives (as seen in the poster image above), the priest is clad in black, while [[LightIsNotGood white light emanates from the demon's room]].

* MindYourStep: Played oh so painfully straight. See StaircaseTumble below.
** They filmed using a RealLife stairwell near Georgetown, which has become a tourist attraction known as the Exorcist Steps. [[spoiler: If you ever walk it, you'll [[NightmareFuel realize just how far]] Karras fell to his death...]]

%%* WhoYouGonnaCall

** Father Karras is deeply depressed about choosing a life of poverty instead of becoming a rich doctor - and his uncle gives him a WhatTheHellHero about it. (His mom, on the other hand, is [[SoProudOfYou proud of him]].) Made worse that he can't afford to give his mother proper health care when she goes insane, and she dies alone in her squalid apartment. Pazuzu exploits this fully.

-->'''Pazuzu:''' ''(to Merrin)'' Stick your cock up her ass, you motherfucking worthless cocksucker.

!!''Exorcist: The Beginning''
* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler:Only Merrin and Joseph survive the massacre between the locals and the British military.]]
* AteHisGun: After Major Granville witnesses supernatural activity in his tent in the form of finding himself preparing a crow for his butterfly collection instead of a regular insect specimen, his collection coming to life and then having butterfly crawling out of his mouth, he puts his gun into his mouth and pulls the trigger.
* CreepyChild: Joseph, who seems to attract bad luck everywhere he is present. [[spoiler:Subverted since the one actually [[DemonicPossession possessed]] is Sarah, the doctor.]]
* FliesEqualsEvil: Flies are present in places with higher density of demonic activity.
* MutualKill: During the climax, Merrin's native guide manages to shoot an angry tribesman at ''exactly'' the same time the tribesman throws his spear.
* SadisticChoice: Flashbacks show that Merrin lost his faith after he was forced by Nazis in WWII to pick ten people from a crowd to be shot, lest they all be killed.
* SlashedThroat: When Merrin goes to question Bession about the archeological site, he finds him bleeding from a chest wound. After a cryptic conversation, Bession then kills himself by slicing his throat open with a shard of glass.
* StockSubtitle: ''The Beginning'' is a typical subtitle for a prequel.
* WallCrawling: [[spoiler:Possessed Sarah]] does this briefly after Merrin drives her away with his faith.

!!''Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist'' (directed by Creator/PaulSchrader)
* SurprisinglyHappyEnding: [[spoiler:Compared to Harlin's version, most of the people live through the film.]]

* GoodWingsEvilWings: Inverted by Pazuzu. The wings on the stone idol he was released from (and most other depictions of him, we might add, most famously in the ''ShinMegamiTensei'' series) are actually birdlike.

* [[spoiler: MentorOccupationalHazard: Father Merrin dies. His puppil too.]]

* DemonicPossession: Present and accounted for, sir!

* BeatTheCurseOutOfHim: After all the enchantments, crosses and holy water, it took [[spoiler: Karras]] punching the crap out of out of the possessed Regan in order to drive the spirit out of her [[spoiler: and into him.]]

* Jumpscare: The first time the demon's face flashes on screen might startle some viewers. And nobody could predict the vomit part, either.

Based on the [[Literature/TheExorcist 1971 novel]] by William Peter Blatty, [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory and inspired by]] what was supposedly ([[http://www.examiner.com/history-in-baltimore/the-not-so-real-life-story-that-inspired-the-exorcist it's been disputed]]) an actual documented exorcism from 1949, ''The Exorcist'' is the terrifying, shocking tale of an originally rather cute 12-year-old girl named Regan [=McNeil=] and the efforts of her mother Chris, a famous film actress, her mom's secretary Sharon, and a pair of priests to save the poor girl's soul from the ravages of a powerful, malign entity called Pazuzu (though his name is kept ambiguous in the film).

* LightIsNotGood[=/=]DarkIsNotEvil: The scene when Merrin arrives (as seen in the poster image above), the priest is clad in black, while white light emanates from the demon's room.
* MedicalHorror: Regan in the operating room having a carotid angiography[[note]]an extremely painful test in which the patient must be conscious -- the doctors are played by real doctors from the medical center at NYU[[/note]] -- including the blood spurting from an artery in her neck -- was the scariest part of ''The Exorcist'' for some moviegoers at the time. No, it wasn't the cursing, the vomiting, the exorcism or anything else that caused them to actually ''leave the theaters and vomit'' - it was '''[[NauseaFuel this]]'''.

* WhoYouGonnaCall

* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler:Only Merrin and Joseph survive the massacre.]]