When the spider walk scene happened i was so terrified i actually walked out. David blackthorn every genre has definitive works that set a standard. Hell, even when i rewatched it in college and thought stuff was kinda funny i was also kinda spooked lol. I had seen the exorcist many times, and was incredibly excited to see it in theatres especially with all the bonus footage. The boys over at dread central came across this little clip that i found pretty damn interesting. The story of a young girl who has been possessed by the devil and a priest is called in to perform an exorcism. The spider walk was a scene originally intended to be in the film. It showed regan walking backwards down the stairs of the family home like a spider. Director william friedkin felt that the message about dennings was the climax of. Goodreads members who liked the exorcist also liked. The original version of the spiderwalk scene from the exorcist, taken.
During the 1960s and 70s, she was the busiest stuntwoman working on the east coast and a top commercial model. It was an instant success and hollywood came knocking, even before the book was finished. However, a different take showing regan with blood flowing from her mouth was inserted into the 2000 directors cut of the film. She attended florida state university, training site for many olympic gymnasts, on a gymnastics scholarship. Latin and french phrases in the exorcist merriamwebster. The exorcist was, and is, a terrific movie and will still scare the hell out of you.
Viewing 15 posts 1 through 15 of 15 total author posts july 9, 2010 at 1. Director freidkin deleted the famous spider walk scene. The exorcist by florencemcc tuesday, october 25, 2016 0 book vs movie adaptation, books, film, horror, movies permalink 0 william peter blattys the exorcist was pretty much an instant bestseller when it came out in 1971, and when the movie version came out just a couple of years later people lined up around the block to go. The exorcist is based on the novel of the same name, which itself is based on a true life exorcism that happened to a st. Interview with the exorcist writerproducer william peter. I love watching horror movies and enjoy reading horror books even more. The possessed girl regan linda blair descends the staircase walking like a spider with her face upside. Hodwatt 3505 2 years ago the book did manage to creep me out more than the movie. And, book ending the story, a frail, elderly priest recognizes the necessity for a showdown with an old. The exorcist free pdf, epub, fb2, rtf books library. Ann annie miles grew up in malvern, arkansas, and started working professionally as a stunt performer at the steel pier in atlantic city, new jersey, at the age of seventeen.
The exorcist is a 1971 novel by american author william peter blatty, who also wrote the film adaptation. The spider walk scene in the book is less terrifying at first than completely, inhumanly alien. I was really looking forward to reading the exorcist, but ending up with this has put me into a sour mood. The exorcist changed the face of horror cinema when it was released in 1973, and theres no question that it remains one of the most influential horror movies ever made. The heretic 1977 1977, the exorcist iii 1990 1990, exorcist. Rumour has it that blatty rushed the end of the book to be free to work on the script.
A short, creepy history of the horror movie spider walk serial. Heres an overview of the use of the spider or crab walk in film, beginning with the exorcist. No specter lingers larger over horror culture than william peter blattys masterpiece, the exorcist. Blatty based his original novel on a strange incident which took place in mt. A take of this version of the scene was filmed but went unused. Reading the quote page that opens william peter blattys book, the exorcist, one finds a statement by a priest. The exorcist is a 1971 horror novel by american writer william peter blatty. The story line goes further, has more characters and. Just rewatched the exorcist 1973 after 10 years and its. For twenty first century horror, the exorcist is one of these definitive works. I dont really find the movie scary at all, except maybe for the spider walk scene. William peter blatty has been in the movie industry for over 40 years, writing such films as the pink panther movie a shot in the dark, gunn, the great bank robbery, the exorcist, and the exorcist.
The book is an account of the demonic possession of a girl, regan macneil, by a captain howdyan alias of pazuzu, an ancient demonand of the desperate attempts to free. Dust jacket is sharp and bright with a bit of rubbing at the extremities. The spider walk scene definitely scared me soooo bad when i was a kid. Part of the exorcist franchise, the series serves as a direct sequel to the 1973 film of the same name. American author william peter blatty wrote the horror novel the exorcist, published in 1971, and he also produced and wrote the script for the classic 1973 film versionthe screenplay for which he won an academy award. As caseys story continues to make national headlines, father tomas finds himself unexpectedly. The power of christ compels you the exorcist 45 movie clip 1973 hd duration.
The spiderwalk scene was reinstated in a new release of the film in 2000 called the exorcist. Unfortunately, nobody bothered to mention it anywhere. Rainer, maryland in 1949 involving a young boy named ronald hunkeler whose catholic family, convinced the childs aggressive behavior was due to demonic possession, called upon the services of father walter halloran to perform the rite of exorcism. Anyone who enjoyed the movie should take the time to read the book which preceded it. I was 22, and went home after the movie and closed all the drapes in the houseconvinced that something might be on the other side looking in. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. The infamous spider walk scene that was deemed too scary to be included in the movie. Woman who did spiderwalk in the exorcist sets the record. A short, creepy history of the horror movie spider walk. Foxs the exorcist just recreated that moment this past friday night. In the book, the spiderwalk is more muted, consisting of regan following sharon around near the floor and flicking a snakelike tongue at her ankles. I know the scene was cut from the movie, but is there a specific version i could buy.
First and last time ive ever walked out of a theatre. A film, a piece of theater, a piece of music, or a book can make a difference. Her book celebrates the pioneering spirit of a young woman in 1950s america and relays what it took for a. Obviously, this isnt something that was in the original book. The real story behind the infamous exorcist spider walk. A blockbusting adaptation of a bestselling novel, it was praised as deeply spiritual by some sections of the catholic church while being picketed by the festival of light and branded satanic by the evangelist billy graham. Fans have dubbed it the spider walk scene, and it wasnt actually part of the film until a 2000 rerelease that allowed friedkin to digitally remove the visible wires that forced him to. The actual walk is very creepy but the full scene doesnt work because the reactions of chris and sharon are off. Apparently there are two version of the infamous spider walk scene from the exorcist floating around and bbc blogger mark kermode explains. The best comments about the terror of seeing the exorcist. The rance family is engulfed in a firestorm of publicity after the media learns about the possession of casey rance. This is a script version of the book which was written for the authors bestfriend. I wanted to know where i can get an exorcist dvd with the spider walk scene where regan follows sharon like in the book.
At some point in time, the spider walk outtake acquired legendary status people debated whether the scene was actually shot or not. The exorcist 1973 the infamous scene of a possessed regan spider walking down the stairs and then doing lewd things to the houseguests was filmed using a real contortionist, but it never made the final cut of the movie when it was first released. The whole snake part, and the following the woman around part, actually seemed humorous in my mind. The book the exorcist, famously made into a movie in 1973, came out 40 years ago. In horror genre, ghost stories are my favorite genre and this book just fit to a t. The exorcist by william peter blatty, first edition abebooks.
Its funny though, i found the scene in the book sort of fell flat. A 40th anniversary specialedition dvd of the exorcist was released this week. The exorcist by william peter blatty in epub, fb2, rtf download e book. The scariest scene in the exorcist wasnt even originally in the film.
The book details the demonic possession of elevenyearold regan macneil, the daughter of a famous actress, and the two priests who attempt to exorcise the demon. The scene was supposed to be immediately after chris receives word that burke dennings jack macgowran is dead. Inspired by an alleged real case of demonic possession in 1949, the exorcist became an international phenomenon. In the book, the spiderwalk is more muted, consisting of regan following sharon around near the floor and flicking. The exorcist, the iconic book by william peter blatty, came out in 1971. Apparently there are two version of the infamous spider walk scene from the exorcist. The exorcist mass market paperback january 1, 1972 by william peter blatty author.
Fans have dubbed it the spiderwalk scene, and it wasnt actually part of the film until a 2000 rerelease that allowed friedkin to digitally remove the visible wires that forced him to cut it back in 1973. Meanwhile, a young priest at nearby georgetown university begins to doubt his faith while dealing with his mothers terminal sickness. It features regan spider walk down stairs exorcist regan. William peter blatty 1928 2017 was an american writer and filmmaker best known for his 1971 novel the exorcist and for the academy awardwinning screenplay of its film adaptation. In the book, the spiderwalk is more muted, consisting of regan following sharon around near the floor and. All the horror fans around the world have seen this film for sure and one of the most memorable scenes of the film was of a spider walk by the possessed girl. Star of the morning is the sixth episode of the first season of the exorcist, written by laura marks and directed by jennifer phang. Nothing scared me as much as the exorcist when i saw it the night it was released. Until mysterious events begin to happen in their house. The exorcist is an american supernatural horror television series created by jeremy slater for fox. This is my book of the month february 2017, with gr group horror aficionados. The exorcist is a classic horror movie franchise well known for its scares, so today. The exorcist is a 1973 religious horror film though the director, william friedkin, doesnt view it as such based on the 1971 novel by william peter blatty, and inspired by what was supposedly an actual documented exorcism from 1949, the exorcist is the terrifying, shocking tale of an originally rather cute 12yearold girl named regan mcneil and the efforts of her mother chris ellen.