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In honor of both Halloween month and the fiftieth anniversary of the release of the original The Exorcist in 1973, a celebration of the scariest movies made during the past fifty years comes full circle with the release of The Exorcist: Believer this past week. It also serves as a sequel to the first film (adapted from the 1971 William Peter Blatty novel) in which both Ellen Burstyn and Linda Blair return to reprise their roles as the mother and daughter battling demonic possession in what instantly became one of the most controversial and terrifying films released in cinematic history. The Exorcist opened the floodgates on what had hitherto been a largely taboo subject, up to that time, unfit for public consumption as popular entertainment.
Although there have been an endless stream of film imitators (in varying degrees of quality) made during the past five decades, The Exorcist is still the standard by which all the others will be judged. Despite widespread depictions of people being heavily influenced or possessed by evil demons/spirits in high-profile films, television programs, documentaries, and novels, the belief in such narratives (whether based on true stories or not) are still widely reviled by many skeptical people around the world. For many, it is impossible to accept that an otherworldly realm exists which can (and does!) interfere with our present, physical reality. Although demonic possession and the tremendous upheavals it can cause may result in a bona fide exorcism taking place to rid a person or place of this horrific phenomenon, it wasn’t a procedure which commonly occurred in Western societies (or at least wasn’t publicized) until fairly recent times.
Exorcism of evil spirits was and is most commonly associated with Catholicism in the West. However, throughout much of the the twentieth century this was considered to be an embarrassment to the Church, an anachronism which it wanted buried with the Middle Ages. This attitude became especially pronounced after the second Vatican Council of 1962-1965 when the Church tried to suppress its association with exorcism – according to an article from http://theconversation.com originally published on May 24, 2022. Despite the backwardness and superstition associated with beliefs in evil spirits and exorcism, especially in relation to the Catholic Church, the release of The Exorcist revived a tremendous interest in the occult among the general public. By the early 2000’s the Church was beginning to take exorcism seriously again and a special course was created at the Vatican seminary to train more “exorcists” to deal with the increasing demand for their rather unique services.
The Exorcist was hardly the only film made however, during the 1970s where demonic possession took center stage. The Omen (1976) was another immensely popular film to feature this contentious issue, where a child was not only possessed- but was the antichrist itself, causing all sorts of havoc and mayhem that required drastic action to eliminate this world-threatening evil. Like The Exorcist, this supernatural thriller is fascinating and bristling with suspense, well worth watching, so no spoilers here! In any event, while demonic possession is obviously a high-profile, controversial subject of many films over the past fifty years, hauntings are another popular, vital part of the supernatural film canon. In these frightening narratives the otherworldly entity is not possessing a person – but rather a place, such as a specific building that is typically a large, abandoned older home in a remote location.
The most notorious of these haunted, filmic events was (and still is) The Amityville Horror (1979). Adapted from the book by Jay Anson, this true and terrifying story concerns a family which fled their Amityville, New York home only twenty-eight days after moving in – due to horrifying paranormal activity which occurred there and was never entirely disproved. While also highly controversial like the aforementioned films, The Amityville Horror was another box office sensation – which was even more financially successful with the 2005 remake. With any discussion of the supernatural and particularly as it applies to film, there should be clarification of certain terms to avoid confusion and not lump them altogether. For instance, a “poltergeist” is different from a “demon” which implies an evil spirit possession. A poltergeist refers to “a noisy, mischevious ghost” according to the Merrimack-Webster dictionary, but doesn’t result in demonic possession. Another hit film called Poltergeist (1982) dealt specifically with this type of spirit and concerns a suburban California family whose home is invaded by unsettled spirits. Once again, for anyone who is interested, but hasn’t seen the film (which also had a 2015 remake) I don’t want to give away too much.
It should also be noted that along with Poltergeist, The Exorcist, The Omen, and The Amityville Horror have all been remade and have had numerous sequels. This well attests to the enduring interest in this sub genre of horror films. When it comes to classic house hauntings, the Canadian produced film The Changeling (1980) is also a memorable, shivery viewing experience and concerns an acclaimed composer who moves into an old, rambling mansion in Seattle and soon experiences unexplained phenomena that leads to the investigation of a shocking, long-hidden murder. There are some other supernatural terms such as “apparition” that are similar to “ghost” but more frequently refer to a headless ghost such as The Headless Horseman from The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow which began life as a short story by Washington Irving all the way back in 1820. This story is one of the most outstanding works of American fiction from the early 19th century and has been adapted to film, radio, stage, and television multiple times over the decade.
A “manifestation” simply refers to the appearance of a ghost, so this is a broad term, while a “phantom” (which sounds fearsome) can have dual meaning as either something that isn’t real, possibly imagined or a ghost. Depending on the point of view – a ghost/phantom is either imagined such as through a hallucination for some people – or a totally undeniable experience for others. Now we come to the term “presence” which Merriam-Webster describes as “something felt or believed to be present.” Of course, something that is felt (but not seen) that seems cloyingly close by, or creates inexplicable cold spots, may be more frightening than something which can be seen like an apparition or a poltergeist that might hurl an object across a room. On the other hand, a “specter” is another supernatural term that is “a visible disembodied spirit.” This is more likely a type of ghost that is only heard by creating loud rapping noises or making other scary noises with no traceable source.
Then we have “spirit” which is a common, all-encompassing term which can have very negative connotations – but could also be a positive, such as speaking of the Holy Spirit which is comforting for the more religiously inclined and is the antithesis of demonic forces. Finally, we come to the term “wraith” which is described as “the exact likeness of a living person, usually seen just before death.” The word “wraith” is rather delicate-sounding and maybe this is because it’s the most ephemeral of all the ghosts. Of course, this would be up to each individual supernatural horror film viewer and the particular narrative in question. Of course, both literal, psychological, and spiritual darkness are vital to memorably spine-tingling horror. So, to close out this post? one of the best films to combine all three is Lights Out (2016) which deftly blends all three elements to unforgettable effect where the victims are all killed in the dark! All of these films are suitably scary for Halloween, whether being viewed for the first time or revisited to get those juices of fear flowing again!
