Exorcist II: The Heretic ** (1977, Richard Burton, Linda Blair, Louise Fletcher, Max von Sydow) – Classic Movie Review 2523

Director John Boorman’s 1977 Exorcist sequel doesn’t lack star power with Richard Burton and Louise Fletcher adding to the return of Linda Blair as little Regan MacNeil and Max von Sydow as Father Lankaster Merrin. But director Boorman messes up this troubled sequel, most people’s least favourite Exorcist movie.

It’s four years on from the events of the first film. Understandably, Burton and Fletcher look rather glum and gloomy as Father Lamont, the priest and child psychiatrist whose unhappy task it is to have a second go at freeing little Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair) of the demon spirits that she was supposedly exorcised from in 1973.

It’s true that a creepy atmosphere and some scares ensue, but director Boorman doesn’t seem any happier than his stars with the dour material, trying to turn his co-written screenplay’s mumbo-jumbo hokum into a classy study of the eternal battle of the sacred against the occult. Pretentiousness rather than a worthy horror movie results.

It’s good that Max von Sydow re-creates his role as Father Lankaster Merrin but he doesn’t have enough to do. Kitty Winn, Paul Henreid as the Cardinal, James Earl Jones and Ned Beatty also star.

Also in the cast are Belinda Beatty, Rose Portillo, Barbara Carson, Tiffany Kinney, Joey Green, Fiseha Dimetrios, Ken, Reanrad, Hank Garrett, Lorry Gordman, Bill Grant, Shane Butterworth, Joey Lauren Adams, Robert Lussier, Charles Parks, George Skaff, Karen Knapp, Dana Plato and Richard Paul.

Ennio Morricone’s music, William A Fraker’s cinematography and Richard MacDonald’s production designs are on the classy, quality side.

Maybe because of bad word of mouth, it took a sixth of the 1973 original’s box-office receipts: even so, on a $14million cost, it took $30million at the US box office.

Boorman recut his movie into the British version (110 minutes) after the original 117 minutes film was booed in New York. Differences include the addition of a recap of the events of the first film through narration and freeze frame, using stock shots of Linda Blair from the first film for the climax and an alternate ending. All new shots of Regan being possessed were done by a double because Blair refused to have the possession makeup done on her again. The recut version was for long the only one available but recently the original is on DVD and TNT.

The Exorcist III followed in 1990, written and directed by original Exorcist writer William Peter Blatty.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2523

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