I worked with an abused child once. Every night he would refuse to sleep, keeping himself up by jumping on the bed, trashing his room, singing songs. As he got more tired he started talking like his abusers, yelling, shouting profanities at himself. It was really scary and horrible. I can understand why some children who acted out this way were thought to be possessed. I think the abuse theory about this film may be spot on.
According to psychiatrists who treat NPD, theoretically it's a dissociative identity psychologically developed through integrating the behaviors of the parental abuser with the self identity, in place of developing their neglected authentic self. They essentially "become" and project their abuser and their behavior because the abuser rejected their vulnerability and authenticity, and neglected to foster its development through nurture and empathy. So dissociative identity could appear as "possession", but it can be dismantled and deconstructed through awareness of the condition, it's manifestation, and practicing reflective empathy in therapy to teach the afflicted to empathize with themselves and be comfortable with vulnerability.
One rule that we can infer from the events in the film is that the demon needs some sort of invitation to possess someone. Regan invites the demon into her life by playing around with the Ouija board. She befriends him and calls him Captain Howdy. Then he possesses her. Later, Karras says "Take me!" to the demon, after which the demon promptly possesses him. No one else in the film is possessed. The implication is that the demon can't possess anyone at will and do anything it wants in our world. It needs permission. The film would make more sense if there was a reason why Regan would've given the demon permission to possess her and why the demon was drawn to Regan's house (or situation) in the first place. In the beginning of the film, which is very forgettable on first pass, there is the mysterious line "Evil against evil" when they are examining the demon artifacts. And if you do some research on Pazuzu, it's said that although it was an evil spirit, it protected people (especially mother and child) against other evil spirits. None of this has any significance if everything is going well for Regan and her mother. We're not given any solid evidence that there is any evil threatening Regan and her mother. But, if we consider there was a hidden evil threatening mother and child (i.e. an abusive drunk Hollywood director taking advantage of a girl) and Regan appealed to this demon for help, a lot of things in the film start to make sense. Evil against evil. The sexually themed desecration of the Virgin Mary statue in the church. The brutality of Dennings' murder. Pazuzu came onto the scene *because* of evil things happening in Regan's house *at* Regan's invitation. Because she *asked* Captain Howdy to protect her.
Interesting point that a demon can become a protective entity to a desperate human. So, why the attack on the statue, or the priests, for that fact? Just a calling card, announcing its presence, or is the church set as an evil institution in this scenario? We know about some of these priests now, what they've done to children.
The fact that the possibility of sexual abuse is never mentioned in the film feels like a way to highlight it by contrast. Everything else gets discussed, except this specific elephant. Something similar happens in the first Godfather film, where the mob is never mentioned by name, yet it’s everywhere, and the fact that they never name it makes it all the more real and pervasive.
Not sure I'm with you there. The mafia is pervasive and real in the Godfather because the entire film revolves around the centric subject of the mafia, regardless of whether anyone mentions it by name or not. This is repeated in a lot of well known fiction surrounding the subject as well as real life. The American mob were ironically famous for being secretive and illusive and would always refer to the organisation as 'the commission' or some other benign term. Even in the Sopranos or Donnie Brasco it's called 'This thing of ours'. So in conclusion Puzo and Coppola were only being accurate by following trend and any aura of mystery that lends to the film is coincidental.
Being a victim of abuse myself atleast repeated mental and physical abuse, I know that abusers deny any wrong doing, and try to cover it up, make it look like it was anything fault other than there own.
We recently worked worked with a young girl who learned to projectile vomit in order to protect herself. It turned out she had learned to do this as an infant as it made her caregiver stop their sexual abuse. As she got older she suffered from an eating disorder.
Well, Blatty based the story on a 1947 case of a boy who was supposedly possessed, and he was aware of the behaviors that the boy was displaying. That boy had a close relationship with his aunt, who was a Spiritualist, and the two of them used the ouiji board together. It was right after the aunt died that the boy began to act in a bizarre manner. The documentary that I watched on this suggested that he was being sexually molested by the aunt, and so that explained his behavior. Blatty based his girl and her behavior on this 1947 case, so maybe he was unknowingly describing the effects of child abuse on a young adolescent.
I'm sure a lot of supposed "possession" cases are actually a response to abuse. It's a major factor in poltergeist cases as well. The victims are almost always young people beginning puberty. It may be that people are blaming demons because they can't face the fact that family members or clergy are abusers.
I can understand people digging deep into the story of the boy that Blatty used for inspiration and therefore deciding that he must have been trying to hint that Ragan must have also been abused and that's what caused her afflictions. However, I've watched the movie and read the book so much that I couldn't keep count. I've listened to or read every interview with Blatty, Friedkin and the cast that I've come across. S*xual abuse is NEVER talked about or even tossed around as the possible underlying cause of her transformation. Its a story about a girl being possessed. Blatty didnt need some hidden underlying theme about abuse. Its not mentioned because that wasn't his point.
@@gingerleamcwow435 I agree. Blatty wrote a story about a girl being possessed by a demon, period, full stop. What I am saying is that by basing Regan's behavior on that boy from the 1940s, he unknowingly described the behaviors of someone who has been sexually abused.
I've always thought this too. The 'Do you know what she did...your conting daughter line' and the demon voice saying 'do it..dooo it'. I think that Burke Dennings made Regan perform stuff on him and he performed stuff on her and that's why he was in her room before he died. I think demon Regan forces her mother to perform the same sickening act on her that Burke performed on her. Surely all this stuff is there for a reason.
@Based_transition_ClockerThen why does Kinderman specifically mention how Dennings’ body was found with his head twisted around? There’s no reason to do that. Saying that he died or broke his neck would be sufficient enough yet the character and the narrative goes out of its way to emphasize that. Because it’s for the purpose of symbolism. To show that he’s two-faced.
I work with sexual abuse survivors and perpetrators and I think this is a very intelligent and well-observed video. The on-going effects of sexual abuse are easily as horrific as the demonic activity in The Exorcist but usually occur “silently” within an individual. Although I like to enjoy this film at ““face value” i.e supernatural horror, it could easily and equally be watched as an allegory for the suffering of sexually abused children. Thank you for producing your video.
Also the reaction of the family or perps. Deeming the child immediately as "sick" "posessed" and blaming her for the abuse they caused. Its typical tactic in Narcisists and narcisistic families
As a sexual abuse survivor the first time I saw the film I knew this theory to be true. Especially the fact that Dennings was in her room when she was heavily sedated. And something I noticed was during the scene where Father Kerris is in the basement looking at her drawings behind him there’s a cartoon of little red riding hood and the big bad wolf; symbolizing her lost innocence, the big bad wolf is her abuser.
Oh Rose i'm sorry for what happened. Bcoz u mentioning Dennings, that he possible sexually abused Reagan. I remembered the scene when her mother asked Reagan what she wanna to do on her bday. Reagan told her mother that she could invite Dennings also and presumed that her mother is gonna married Dennings. And Reagan seems happy with the idea her mother marrying Dennings.
Why does it have to be either about abuse or about possession? Can't it be both? I've heard that some people believe a person becomes more vulnerable to demonic possession when experiencing a trauma like sexual abuse because you're emotionally and spiritually weak so your defenses are down. Couldn't it be that Regan was abused by Burke Dennings leaving her in a vulnerable state and then the demon seized the opportunity and possessed her. It would then make sense that the demon would want to torment her with what has hurt her the most... sexual abuse (hence why a large percentage of her posession is of a violent sexual nature). Salt in a fresh wound.
That makes a lot of sense. If she had been abused, she would be spiritually broken and probably stopped believing in God. That could have left her vulnerable for possession. If she had been sexually abused she may have even started to resent God.
It's never talked about how Regan's Father isn't on the scene and why not?, could be he was the one who was abusing Regan and she saw Denning's interest towards her mother as potentially another sexual male predator entering the home who might slip off to Regan's room in the middle of the night. Being the 70's as well and very much a time were these things were often dismissed by a mother who doesn't want to accept the shame of dealing with it openly
I find it interesting that we actually don't get to know Regan at all, we just see her the way her mother sees her: a sweet timid child who likes horses and reads gossip magazines, but not too much else. We always watch her through Chris's point of view, the only scene where she's acts different is when she learns her father won't call her on her birthday, you can see she's saddened by this and after that she begins her possession and she's not herself anymore. I believe some of the things she says and does while possessed might be her own psyche manifesting itself to the world, like telling them she's angry and frustrated with her life and the way she's treated or seen by everyone.
The reason the book does not include Reagans point of view is for one purpose, this is a narrative about a supernatural investigation, by the church, the medical community, and the police. The mystery of faith would go unexplored in the narrative if we had first person accounts of Reagan alone with the demon. In the novel, an appropriate amount of time to get to know Reagans personality before the possession, and how she greeted father Dyer at the end to know that her personality was very different from the demon.
When the abuse is by a parent, it's common to both loath and love that parent. When we're children, we depend on them for everything--but are horrified when abuse happens.
We get to see her as an incredibly depraved little hornbag, gorgeous sans all the crappy makeup and scowl and stupid voice, impaling herself pussy-first on a crucifix with her legs spread in front of her mum, and *_that,_* kind Sir, is right up my alley ;p
as someone who was sexually abused, holy shit?? i cant believe i have NEVER thought of this. it makes so much more sense. typically when those are abused they either never want to do anything sexual ever again OR they become hyper fixated on sexual things, which would explain Regan's behavior. Also not to mention Regans name for the thing possessing her is captain howdy and isn't her fathers name Howard?
My mom seen the exorcist in theaters while she was like 7 months pregnant and she decided in the theater to change the name she had picked out for me and name me raygen. I can’t help but wonder what the fuck was going on inside her head during this movie 💀🥴
Very interesting analysis. The subject of sexual abuse of children then was a taboo subject hidden in the shadows as a dirty secret. Perhaps sexual abuse was the catalyst for the events in the story, but the director did not want to make that known. Rather he crafted the story around demonic possession as a way to broach the subject in an under the radar way. Anyway you cut it, the movie is even more disturbing given that context. The fact that even after 44 years this film still is still interesting and entertaining to watch and analyze. And that speaks volumes to the greatness of this movie.
Yes! I am in agreement. One must remember that the film and novel are set in the year(s) 1971-72. A filmmaker in the US could never get away with an overt childhood sexual abuse story element at this time. Such a film--with childhood sexual abuse added to the other outre elements (which gave the film it's US "R" rating) would not even get an "X". It would never be released by any studio/distributor. The film does continue to fascinate these decades later.
What I find fascinating is that in viewing this from a sexual abuse context, the fact that the mother is in the movie industry and also that priests figure prominently in the story line. These two groups are now both heavily tied to pedofilia, and the entertainment industry is also tied to occultism.
Just for clarity folks. This video isn't attempting to discard of the supernatural narrative entirely. A theme runs in parallel to the overt plot - in effect a separate coinciding story that exists symbolically.
Collative Learning the supernatural parts could represent the fear and regret the involved adults felt after realizing what they've done - even the mother for allowing the abuse for so long.
Let's not forget the behavior Regan is demonstrating is NOT her own! Pazuzu is the one doing all the shocking things...NOT Regan...clearly you DON'T UNDERSTAND demonic possession! Regan is NOT doing anything...she is NOT in control of her body in ANY way.
He mentioned in the video that it could just very well be a surreal take on being sexually abused. Just because the authorial intent was to have all of it be caused by demonic possession, looking into sexual abuse was a valid interpretation even inside the movie universe before the supernatural stuff was dialed to 11.
Those god damn symbolical, methaphorical subplots.... I've regarged movies as maybe the finest of the arts: photography, painting, dancing, playing music, acting... It's all so great, it's art.
I completely disagree. I think this sounds laughable and dumb. It most certainly is not what William Peter Blatty wrote or intended for this. This garbage stinks of so much current day Leftwing nonsense, it's pathetic. This video was dated even before it was made that's how stale this is.
And therein lies a corruption: is sexual abuse the intended sub-subject? Personally , i doubt it, but each to their own. In many respects society is drawing its own conclusions on re-writing history on flimsy evidence which is considered concrete enough to be factual.
@@shannonadkinsmusic5767 exactly! In the novel, the demon takes on the persona of Burke Dennings during the exorcism and explains that the night he was killed, he heard cries of distress coming from up in Regan's bedroom and when he went to investigate, she (the demon) attacked him, broke his neck and then threw him from her window. The only sexual abuse Regan suffered was at the hands of the demon.
CSA victim, I always had a hard time watching Reagan slowly showing signs of possession bc it feels exactly like how it feels after being violated. Really interesting and disturbing theory!
Dude, you *keep* showing that spider walk. The only kind of thing that gets me in horror movies. And you keep showing it. It's cool. I don't need to sleep for a week.
I'm very sorry that you experienced that! My best friend died fairly young and I think part of his death was due to unresolved sexual abuse! Thank you for being brave enough to share!
The scars on Regan’s face could be a manifestation of how she feels about herself. The once innocent girl, now a monster. Fighting between trauma and the forces of coping (sometimes people find religion).
I always thought that one theme of the movie was how the transition to puberty plays with one’s head-the irrational fear that sexual thoughts and acts make one “dirty.” And of course, the demon exploits that. One minor detail I always note is that before Regan becomes possessed, she has no breasts. After her ordeal, in the last scene with the surviving priest whom she kisses, you can see her breasts are beginning to develop.
@@Simon-talks The exorcist plays on the idea of the fantasy of a supernatural serial killer. The author of the book was heavily fascinated with the zodiac killer and the original case of the 40's of a boy in Maryland who was said to be possessed.
Robert Clark Just like more people can entertain the possibility of aliens or demonic possession over global warming. Reality is too horrific to accept.
I saw the movie having just graduated from high school. It was the first time I was horrified beyond rational thought. I subsequently read the book in almost one sitting and was emotionally shaken for a month. At that time in my life child abuse was unknown in my experience and never entered my mind. Years later after having a family, my family was brushed by evil when a pedophile entered our life for a short time. After that experience the sexual abuse literally screams out from the screen. Once sensitized to the reality of child abuse a caring parent becomes overly sensitized to minuscule clues of its existence. Evil does exist. This is the first time I heard the child abuse articulated in regards to this movie.
Interesting theory. A victim of sexual abuse would be emotionally and spiritually vulnerable, filled with pain, fear and rage filled desires for retribution, a perfect vessel for a demon to take possession. I also have a theory that Regan’s father may have done something to her. In the movie, her mother is trying to contact him in Europe and she’s angry and cursing after waiting for over 20 minutes asking “who doesn’t call his own daughter on her birthday?” In a way, he pulled a Roman Polanski, fleeing to Europe and keeping his distance probably from some indiscretion he doesn’t want to face! That’s just my film theory!
There is a small documentary on a girl who had massive mental health issues because her father S.A.'d her, she became dangerous wanting to hurt and even unalive her adopted family...they had to send her to a special home to retrain her brain because she was so subconsciously disturbed by it and had massive rage and trust issues. She's grown now.
Yes. And in particular, the demon that possesses Raegan is Pazuzzu whom is a fierce protector of women and children. It’s as tho the demon came out to protect her. It’s why she cannot remember after it’s all over. She dissociated.
Great analysis. I’ve always thought there was a child abuse subtext to the movie. Slightly off topic, but I recently noticed something either completely intentional or coincidental in a pivotal later scene. When Father Karras visits the language lab to have Reagan’s audio recording analyzed, the word “Tasukete!” is clearly visible above the door. In Japanese it means “Help Me!” which is the same message a desperate Reagan scrawls on her stomach a couple of scenes later.
I never thought about the subtext of sexual abuse but it fits so well and the fact that Burke Denning was in her room is something I always did find odd! All that aside...Ellen Burstyn was so good in this film...I adore her. What an amazing actress!!
Call my cynical, but the fact that the movie is about Catholic priests and received a lot of support from the church makes the absence of such questioning even more conspicuous and (in the case of the priests, at least) makes a certain kind of sense.
I also felt that this was an underlying theme in this movie. I always felt the picture of Regan by the bed was a reminder that Regan wouldn't tell as the scene of her Mother in the same pose represents she kept it under wraps as well. They moved on and started a new life etc. Hoping to forget what had happened to her, not addressing it because she was so famous. Funny, I just really always thought that was an understood, but not stated part of the movie. I always assumed that is why the Mother had the breakup. But, as a victim of childhood abuse, that is why maybe it was plain to see for me.
And her mother would know or wonder about abuse--a therapist told me that the "secret" of abuse spreads throughout the family. You can try, but behaviors out themselves through people's changed personalities/actions/sicknesses.
I will NEVER forget sneeking in to watch this film in 1974, at 13 years of age. I couldn't sleep for weeks with the lights off. Rob, this is very well done, and although this obviously didn't occur to me back then, now I can see your points.
I completely bought your analysis of The Shining and sexual abuse. When I find you come up with the same for The Exorcist I immediately thought it a curious cooincidence. When you state you have worked with victims and abusers, suddenly it's no surprise you find sexual abuse contexts to both movies...and likely many more.
The exorcist seem more about child abuse and Shining about a child living under a violent home. Jack seem like he is abusing mentally, physically and sexually her wife.
That movie or book had nothing to do about her being abused in a normal setting. He's very ill informed about the deeds of Satan. He's probably never read one page of a Bible, That's what Satan does....he's the quintessential enemy of humankind. Her body was taken over by him. He's trying to put his perverted twist on the matter and is sounding so stupid to someone who knows.
@@mariahyohannes I don't doubt that. It isn't very difficult to imagine why. With that said, the more you think like a hammer, the more likely everything else starts to look like a nail.
My personal interpretation is that it is both - it is both a possession and a case mental illness due to sexual abuse - both at the same time. Which isn't a contradiction, but merely represents the 2 different ways of looking at it as demonstrated by all of the characters throughout the movie. And I don't think Blatty was promoting the theological viewpoint - I think he was trying to show how both viewpoints explain (in their own way) what is going on and so neither way of looking at it is wrong.
Emmanuel Goldstein- Okay, but in that case, how do you explain the dresser sliding across the floor, the objects flying around the room, the drawer opening on its own, and so on and so forth? That's brought on by the possession part, which was brought on by the sexual abuse? So what you're saying is that the supernatural is real, and that the dark force known as Satan does exist, but he's attracted by human perversions? I'm just trying to get a handle on what it is you're proposing exactly.
It is really interesting to hear some of the stories from the survivors in the comments. I am so sorry for what happened to you. Thank you for being so candid in sharing this ❤
Did it never bother anyone/strike anyone as strange, that scene early on when the mother finds a ouija board just lying around down in the basement? (Regan walks over to the ping pong table and bounces a ping pong ball. By the shelf Chris picks up an ouiji board.) CHRIS: Hey, where'd this come from? REGAN: I found it. CHRIS: Where? REGAN: The closet. (Chris walks toward the ping pong table with the ouiji board in hand.) CHRIS: You've been playing with it? REGAN: Yeah. CHRIS: You know how? REGAN: Here, I'll show you. (Regan places the board down on the table. Chris drags a chair over and sits down.) CHRIS: Wait a minute, you need two. REGAN: No you don't. I do it all the time. CHRIS: Oh yeah? Well, let's both play. (The pointer pulls itself away from Chris.) CHRIS: You really don't want me to play huh? REGAN: No I do, Captain Howdy said no. CHRIS: Captain who? REGAN: Captain Howdy. CHRIS: Who's Captain Howdy? REGAN: You know, I make the questions and he does the answers. CHRIS: Oh, Captain Howdy.... REGAN: He's nice. CHRIS: Oh I bet he is. REGAN: Here I'll show you. (Regan places the magnifier on the board and closes her eyes.) REGAN: Captain Howdy, Do you think my mom's pretty? Captain Howdy? Captain Howdy that isn't very nice. CHRIS: Well, maybe he's sleeping. REGAN: You think? - - - - - - 1. Mother finds a ouija board (& it doesn't freak the mother out) 2. Daughter said she has played with it alone (& it doesn't freak the mother out)3. The pointer obviously moves spontaneously by itself (& it doesn't freak the mother out)4. The daughter says she plays with Captain Howdy (& it doesn't freak the mother out)
Another question I have - if anyone knows the answer- is who owns the house they are staying in? Cos they are only staying in Washington temporarily. This is alluded to in another strange scene (the first scene of Chris and Regan): (Regan runs in and hugs and kisses Chris.) CHRIS: What did you do today? REGAN: Um........Stuff. CHRIS: What kind of stuff? REGAN: Well, me and Sharon played a game in the back yard, and we had a picnic down by the river. (Chris sits down.) REGAN: Oh mom, you should have seen this man came along on this beautiful grey horse. (to Sharon) Wasn't it pretty? SHARON: It was beautiful. CHRIS: Really, what kind was it, a mare or gelding? REGAN: Think it was a gelding. It was grey. Oh it was so beautiful, the guy let me ride it all around. CHRIS: You're kidding? SHARON: Yeah for about half an hour. REGAN: It was so nice, oh I loved it. Oh mom can't we get a horse? CHRIS: Well, not while we're in Washington. REGAN: Oh............ CHRIS: We'll see when we get home okay. REGAN: When can I have one? CHRIS: We'll see Regan. So I assume they're renting the house from someone - or the studio gave it to them for the movie shoot - so who are those people to have a ouija board lying around? And also, anyone else find it strange that a man wanders down by the river on a horse, and lets her ride around on it for 30 minutes. Who would ride a horse in Washington? A cop? A captain - like Captain Howdy? And Regan noticed it was a gelding (a castrated horse).... I watched the video and it made me re-watch The Exorcist - I'm only 20 minutes in so far, just stopped to post these questions. If they're answered later, forgive me....
A book on the occult and black mass also disappears which a friend gave Chris. Then the church desecrations happen, so it was obviously Regan who stole the book.
william mann film Why would Chris freak out about a ouija board? She’s not religious. As for try pointer moving and Captain Howdy, she assumed Reagan moved the pointer and that Captain Howdy is an imaginary friend. It’s a case of simple logic.
I can understand the Ouija board not freaking her out. we had one as kids they were popular in the 80s. But how old is Regan supposed to be? like 12 or 13? she seems a bit old to be talking to imaginary friends. so yea i agree, she missed the ball on that one i guess
Horror has always been one of my favorite genres, and before age 10 I loved movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Night of the Living Dead. I saw those movies and others, including The Exorcist, during a time when I was actively being sexually abused. This is the only film I've never been able to rewatch, and even now your video gives me a sense of dread. Now I believe I understand why this might have affected me so deeply.
I find the first responding comment here, normal, and seemingly quite appropriate... Yet the next two(especially the last one about being able to "relate") wholly unsympathetic and disturbingly without a normal individual's inherent sense of empathy... and thus wholly inappropriate. Weird... either I am seeing them completely out of some hypothetical relevant & somehow mitigating context, they are simply trolling, OR those two happen to be legitimate examples of sociopathic behavior.... just thought it was an interesting observation is all... LoL.
I think you mentioned the line "evil against evil" from the Iraq segment in another video. It seems Raigan let Pisuzu in to fight another perceived evil in her life. Perhaps sexual abuse, perhaps not.
@@imalwaysright The age old question: why does God allow demons to exist at all? Well someone has to punish the wicked. What did Regan do to deserve the possession then? She didn't, her mother was, as I suspect with Merrin, was 'turning a blind eye' to the abuses so the mother's punishment was to see what her silence was doing to her child. Means to an end I suppose? Or is the sin that marked her yet to come? Remember if by definition God is omnipresence that means past, present, and future; abused children can become abusers themselves. Perhaps in the future Regan becomes an abuser and to break the cycle, and pay for the sin, go back, do the possession, and A: punish the other abusers, B: pay for the future crime, C: prevent the future abuse all in one shot. Hard to wrap your head around how any entity out of the regular flow of time would process such a cycle.
The Exorcist immediately became my favorite horror flick after viewing it back in 2011. Being a sexual abuse victim as a child I can see the behavior Regan displays as reactionary to said abuse. I was violent, angry, wet the bed for years after. This theory makes a lot of sense to me.
The Exorcist also has a lot in common with the Vampire mythology, i.e.: the demon is attacked with holy water, priests, crucifix, the open bedroom window, the black mass symbology, the blood, the blasphemy, etc. al. Vampires could also be a way of historically representing child sexual abuse. Interestingly, the spider sequence was cut, a scene which bolsters the vampire imagery even more. Psychoanalysis was concerned with the vampire myth many years back, and they concluded among other things, that blood could represent any number of bodily fluids in the subconscious, including semen.
Interesting. I never really thought about how intensely vampire mythology manifests the paranoia and sexual hangups of religion. I did read a forensic pathology theory once that serial murders hundreds of years ago were generally blamed on werewolves, witches and vampires and that's why serial murder as a recorded phenomena seemed to pop out of nowhere in recent history.
Your analysis was excellent w/r/t the sex abuse subtext. Perhaps the author left it out due to religious convictions and the director due to commercial agendas. The Exorcist (the book) was principally concerned with a priest who had lost his faith/belief in God. The child who was possessed was an opportunity for the priest to see that God must exist because Satan was in her body. The book has an interesting series of investigations carried out by the young priest to see if she really fit the bill. The movie tacked on a massive introduction in the desert to probably imbue the film with a spiritual dimension through imagery alone, and failed. Friedkin added to the length of the desert scenes in the director's cut, proving he was misguided as to the spiritual nature of the work. The book has intellectual and spiritual layers which the movie discarded for purely emotional impact. Not a bad move; certainly not for William Friedkin, who's films tended to be concerned with emotional impact only.
Good point indeed. I have also started myself to wonder about the hidden meaning of dracula by Bram Stoker and its possible reference to royal family/High society as well as child abuse/sacrifice. Consider the following. Bram Stoker was an insider since he was part of the british high class as testified by his involvement in the occult-like spiritualist organization, called the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The three founders, were Freemasons and members of Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia. Some of the most famous member included A.Crowley and W. B. Yeats. Recently Prince Charles has admitted his family is linked with Vlad the impaler and I believe this variant on the narrative of vampyres has been introduce for the first time by Stoker (I am not aware of anybody mentioning count Dracula before). Dracula's plot also include very disturbing account of the count who specifically target little children. Also Lucy once she is turned into vampyre developes an urge in targeting little children. Other very disturbing details include the capability to rejuvenate by drinking blood and the detestation towards anything connected with catholic religion which somehow implies reference to satanism (see A.Crowley). Moreover count Dracula is extremly wealthy (the royal family are literally trillionaries) and he decides to move to London as part of his plan to conquer the world (origin of Windsor family are not british). I start to believe that B.Stoker has chosen a very powerful myth, the vampyre, in order to tell in a metaphorical way about secrets which were and are a total taboo. That also might explain the formidable success and appeal that Dracula has immediately exercised on the masses although it was not the first time a vampyre story has appeared in the literature of the time. It is like our subconscious is capable to understand the real meaning of the story and all of us become tremendously fascinated with the story because deep inside we understand the relevance of the message
I have always thought this was/is the case in the story of the boy in the 40s from whom the story was inspired. The aunt who showed him the Ouija board could have very possibly sexually abused him. I'm glad you brought it up as well.
I rewatched this last night with this theory in mind and it really checks out. I almost wonder if Reagan had DID and the demon was an identity. Theres a part in the doctor's office where you can see her dissociate during a physical and the demon's face pops up. Then they almost discredit exorcisms, citing mental illness throughout the first half of the movie.
I attended the opening of The Exorcist, the first day it opened, and actually recorded the audiences reaction to the film in real time. The people in the theater I was in were absolutely terrified. Some people cried, screamed, and even fainted believe it or not. The guy in front of me repeated the words coming from Regan, as well as the Priests during the Exorcist Ritual. That scared me worse than the movie itself. Yes, The Exorcist is the Best horror movie ever filmed in history. All of the events surrounding this movie at the time of filming with the cast and crew were unexplained happenings, and even tragedy. I still have that cassette tape, and occasionally play it for my research I do. The Supernatural world we all live in, is an amazing and paranormal one. I am 67, wish I had another 67 years to be alive and witness events as they happen.
Bro, I love the Exorcist and am currently reading the 40th anniversary edition of the book. And I swear, as I was reading it, I was also surprised that no one brought up sexual abuse. It just felt like something should have been considered, because of some of her actions and the stuff she was saying. Awesome video.
I always interpreted her "you're going to die up there" comment to the astronaut as her being an edgelord. When young people (kids, teens, early 20s) want attention, they'll often say things just for shock value. They'll also swear a lot if it gets attention. Being possessed by demons would be a great allegory for that period of combativeness and trying to find one's identity. The sexual abuse angle seems more compelling because the movie doesn't really have a happy ending. Being a normal combative teen eventually ends and has no lasting damage, but sexual abuse is a kind of permanent damage... like being thrown out a window.
The astronaut had a breakdown in the space capsule, was removed and placed in a military mental health facility. The movie 'The Ninth Configuration', based on the Blatty novel, elaborates on that.
@@protea38 that’s correct, @protea38The astronaut story continues into Blatty’s THE NINTH CONFIGURATION. He doesn’t literally die up there but suffers a complete mental breakdown.
My father was born in the hospital where the exorcism the movie and book are based on took place. That kid ended up working for N.AS.A. and claims that the exorcism was the best thing that ever happened to him.
I've always heard that scene as the "masturbation" scene. What is being depicted is more akin to near mortal trauma. It would be doubtful that anyone experiencing that would survive without immediate hospitalization and surgery. That has to be the most shocking scene for me.
@@VegemiteQueen1 lucky, 7 spending the night with grandparents, sneaked into living room to watch cable at like 2:00 am. There was the Exorcist and just like that there went my innocence. I couldn't look away or scream just start crying half way through the movie till the end. Gotta love the eighties, hell raiser by ten cemented my love of good horror.
I am really delighted to see another film enthusiast explore this theory. I wrote about this when I was at university and my lecturer dismissed it entirely as me completely misreading the film. The most obvious evidence that Regan is being abused is that Burke Dennings was killed by “falling” through Reagan’s bedroom window with considerable force. It is NEVER explored what Burke was doing in her bedroom in the first place. Why else would this man, who is not close to Regan, enter her bedroom late at night. “Is there someone inside you?” “Sometimes.” And sometimes it’s Dennings. As a survivor myself The Exorcist is one of my favourite films and from the first time I saw it as a teen the theme of abuse resonated with me and I have never doubted it. I don’t think it needs to detract from the clear supernatural element of the plot. The links between possession / rape, trauma / horror etc mean we can thematically accept both. It is a film after all. Thanks for making this video!
Something unique about The Exorcist is that it almost seems at times that the film took on a life of it`s own. That there are moments that even Friedkin and Blatty are at a loss to explain. I find it intriguing that the Director himself can`t seem to explain why Burke was in her room. And I love the fact that many incidents that occur are open to ones own interpretation. For example when the words " Help Me" appear on Reagan`s body it`s assumed that this is Reagan herself asking for help. But I have an interesting thought : In the same way that serial killers are subconsciously trying to be caught , what if ( in a similar process ) it is actually the Demon asking for help ? What if this is an attempt at being understood rather than automatically hated and reviled ? Something else I`ve become aware of that I now adore : the moments that simultaneously "seem" needless and yet create the overall effect; for example.....when Burke ( at the party ) mentions that there is a pubic hair in his drink. I consider The Exorcist to be the greatest film ever made. And the performance from Lind Blair never ceases to take my breath away.
Sodomy forces the 3rd eye open... negatively speaking. You can open your 3rd eye postiveily meditating etc, however, when someone is raped, sexually abused, it forces the 3rd eye open in a traumatic way, which will attract dark entities...My friend had this happen to her when she was 7 and 10; her mother was a drug addict and sold her to men for money for drugs... Eventually, her mother lost all parental rights to her. She was haunted by these dark figures and demons. One night, she called me 3 in the morning. She jumped up and heard voices outside her bedroom window and thought she was going crazy. however her 7 year old daughter, and her brother, who was an ex marine heard them as well. The voices said they were legion, and that they no longer wanted her, but were coming forn her daughter. The very next day, I went over to her house and gave her a michael the archangel statue, and they never returned. She keeps Michael the archangel by the door -especially at night... Call it bullshit/conicidence, but she had other witnesses besides just her "hearing things" :{
l worked at a psych ward and a lot of the patients were sexually abused as children. What a coincidence right? later on in life they became schizophrenics, deeply depressed etc to the point where they had to be in a locked facility...😟😟😟😢😢😢 hope your friend is doing better
The updated spider walk could also be a symbolic allusion to oral sexual abuse. The theme does carry itself a lot in the movie what with tongue flicking, sudden foul language, vomiting, "lick me"... and idk if it's just me, but the first thing I notice when Reagan's face begins to distort in the hospital is her chapped lips. I always wondered what was up with the Burk character even when I watched this movie as a kid; it always seemed a tad suspect.
Thank you. I felt your analysis of the film was excellent in respect of the 'absent' sexual abuse themes running through it. I have learnt so much from your exploration of more than possible sexual abuse themes which was absent and not mentioned once in this film in it's entirety. Clearly upon closer examination Regan MacNeil was exhibiting all the major signs and symptoms for sexual abuse in children yet, Not once was this mentioned throughout. The sexual profanities are everywhere in this film. Regan's highly sexualised behaviours and language all point to this yet the film itself does not say a thing. The obvious is deliberately not mentioned by the doctors seeking answers to her state? Her father is absent in her life and also does not contact her on her birthday is this a sign of his guilt? Great explanation and I really think you shed so much clarity on this film in respect of abuse and what was not said - thank you
This was a passive thought in my head along with the real life case (mostly) and demon possession was just mentioned to cover up the abuse. My girlfriend was raped when she was really young and she would self harm, she has insomnia, She used to expose herself as a child and weird sexual interests by 9, She can be really fiery at to people she hates that remind her of her rapist and there were times when she was young she have maniacal laughing fits to where people thought she was possessed and she was very mischievous as a kid too. It seemed possible to me even before meeting my girlfriend. She's come so far on her own but, she still has a ways to go with at least better being able to handle everything related. Her family tried to cover up her acting out and the rape which is very much like I had said about disguising the fits as possession in this presumably extreme cover up possibly for profit. These possession case families sem to usually be poor or desperate for money anyway so, who knows what's really up here.
My mother was also abused in her childhood. Over the year it develloped into mental ilness and she was acting like she was possessed. She ask for a priest for an exorcist. And the body became strong enough to act thing that could look impossible. Like throwing heavy furniture through the window and having all sign of an upcoming birth (when she was not pregnant). The mind is sometimes stronger that the cousciouness and the pain drive the mind in weird place to deal with a trauma.
This is the first I've heard of Dennings' voice being the 'possessed' voice. Are you sure it's supposed to be his? I remember seeing a documentary of the film where they said the voice was done by an older female actress at the time, who smoked a considerable number of cigarettes to get the raspy quality.
There are multiple voices used by the demon to confuse, attack and antagonize . Dennings is one as is Karras's mother also. The drunk in the train station. 'Can you help an old alter boy father" You are right though about the Pazuzu voice being done by the actress.
Thank you for the bang on interpretation. The movie is a masterpiece horror not through what we see but what we don't see. The abuse subtext not only deepens sympathy for Reagan but makes this movie a true horror. ... Because those demons walk among us everyday
Wow, this is really, REALLY dark stuff... I don't think we are talking about a fundamentally different understanding of this movie, specifically with regard to the idea that anything considered supernatural in the movie has 100% nothing to do with the supernatural (in the movie)... I think what we are talking about here, is that sexual abuse is one of many things that can potentially lead to demonic activity in a household, but because of the more commonly committed not so spiritually pure (often perverted) sexual acts and behaviors in the world, compared to murder, torture, witchcraft, cruelty, theft, etc., the sexual content in the Exorcist was all the more shocking, HARROWING, vivid, unholy, blasphemous, truly demonic in intensity and degree, etc. Because... ...Its the inference that because practically all teens and adults have sexual knowledge and/or desires, etc., that we ourselves are wicked and evil for having thoughts/desires enter our minds/hearts from time to time that we know are not Godly. Even only on rare occasions. (Any one of us could be more influenced by Satan in life, etc., not just being possessed, which is very rare, etc.) Even if we push them out of our minds, these more troubling or intense sexual thoughts, preoccupations, etc., or don't entertain them. ...It's the ever-sobering thoughts that we are wicked and evil for ever thinking or being this way. And who are we to cast out beings that have similar thoughts, even if they are far more consumed by them? It's TRUE that we need to seek purity and not carnality in life, but it's also true that we are NOT demons, or demonic, simply because we are imperfect, etc. in this life. It's always half-truths that the devil engages us in, in our own thoughts. And that's what the Exorcist CLEARLY explains-the devil will appear to be harmless, confuse, misdirect, fill us with fear, dread, guilt, shame, hopelessness, sorrow over/feelings about loved ones, family, romantic relationships, all this stuff... He doesn't want us to be truly better, more Godly people. He only wants us to be miserable LIKE HE IS. The Exorcist is "on point" with regard to the nature of real demons, sure... But the sexual content that makes it so shocking and even a little traumatic, etc., is still extremely controversial, generally considered NOT wholesome or spiritually uplifting, etc. Notice that movies like The Wicker Man, Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist, the Amityville Horror, and Stephen King's IT, all have sexual content that generally isn't "porn" in the typical meaning of the word (the Wicker Man being more ambiguous in this particular train of thought)-it's meant to shock and instill terror, revulsion, horror, etc., instead of encourage sexual desire, etc. When a kid has been sexually abused, yeah, it can be shocking to see behavior that is triggered by abuse of this sort. But I think urinating in front of guests in a living room, sexually suggestive movements, etc. are not quite on the level as desecrating statues at church, masturbating with a cross shouting blasphemies while doing so, or forcing your mom to lick/taste your private parts, etc. Those actions I think are on the level of the demonic, esp. the dehumanizing, utterly humiliating aspects of these acts. ...And sexual abuse is also one of those things that can really spiritually harm someone, both the person committing the act, and the person being abused. It's why it is SO abominable to God. So reprehensible and unspeakably evil and wicked. It's why it's not far away from the level of evil involved with demonic possession, infestation, domination, hauntings, etc.
Amanda Dixson+ No, it definitely was. It’s not like The Shining where it’s deliberately done so it can be viewed from a range of standpoints, and that the supernatural elements can be explained away, but Reagan was definitely possessed by a demon in the story. The sexual abuse aspect is more of a sub plot that ties into the supernatural main one.
I totally agree with this interpretation, everything matches so perfect it's scary: The story references three worlds where sexual abuse is common (Hollywood, Catholic Church, broken home). Regan's mother is an actress who is so busy, she could easily neglect who spends time with her. If you think about it, The Exorcist is really a Rape/Revenge film in which the devil is actually helping Regan to kill those who have wronged her. In fact, the sumerian demon used as a representation of the devil Pazuzu was also a protector: "Although Pazuzu is considered an evil spirit, he was called upon to ward off other malicious spirits. He would protect humans against any variety of misfortune or plague" from Wikipedia. Possesed by Pazuzu, Regan kills the friend of her mother, and two priests who were probably molesting her. I can't imagine what is like to be a survivor of sexual assault, but from what I understand, it scars you for life... On the other hand, the book and film are called "The Exorcist", not "The Exorcism", so it's clear who the protagonist of the story really is: father Karras, and his entire journey revolves around faith. Karras sacrifice might be a proof of his faith restored and Regan's, who in the end kisses gently th eother priest on the cheek, as if saying she trusts men again... Great video!!! Thanx!!!
Thank you for talking about the pathological denial. It's so damaging. I worked with a child who had been abus3d and his father just refused to acknowledge it. He would look away and stop talking to him if he tried and the healthcare workers who tried got this firestorm of rage and screams that his son isn't "like that." The child ended up being removed to his grandparents.
it came to my mind almost immediately in the film. people don’t want to see what’s really there, and it’s sad, because the same thing happens in real life
100% I always thought that abuse by Dennings was the catalyst that made Reagan's possession possible. It's not either or. It's both abuse AND possession. Possession is often said to be brought about by a trauma or malignant, heightened emotions. Abuse, drug addiction, a divorce, a miscarriage...even mental illness. Though I'm not equating mental illness with sufferers of the other traumas. Anything that causes negative ongoing emotions is the gateway..
It is such an irony that one of the priest in the exorcist was accused of sexual abuse. "A priest who appeared in The Exorcist has been accused of allegedly grooming and sexually abusing a student at the Jesuit high school where he taught. William O’Malley, who plays Father Dyer in the 1973 horror film, is one of several people named in a lawsuit filed as part of the Child Victims Act, which enables New Yorkers who were allegedly abused as children to file civil cases with no time or age limit for one year." this was from an article on the independent.
Perhaps Blatty removed any mention of possible sexual abuse from the book at the behest of the publisher, fearing that it would make the book seem too exploitative and hurt sales.
The Exorcist was made almost 50 years ago. To this day, it's the only movie that truly scares me. If it was made 50 years from now, it still would be ahead of its time. I don't know of another movie you can say that about.
Love the video. However in the novel the demon ( in Dennings voice) describes how he lured him up there by pretending to be Regan crying. You'd think if there was abuse by Dennings the demon would explicitly say so to Chris, to demoralize her even further. Just a thought!
Exactly. I think the people who agree with this video's assessment of the supposed sexual abuse of Regan at the hands of Burke Dennings are clearly viewing the movie through a modern lense. We live in a time where there is so much more known and discussed about sexual abuse, but none of that was common knowledge back when The Exorcist was released and I'm certain that William Peter Blatty never intended such a plot line. A grown man paying a visit to a little girl's bedroom today is viewed with scrutiny and suspicion- rightly so- but that doesn't mean that Burke was guilty of child molestation. As you said, the novel explains why Burke was in Regan's bedroom the night he died and it had nothing at all to do with pedophilic intentions. The only sexual abuser in both the novel and film is the demon.
The film leaves that part out, I’d argue for a reason. It also adds the british accent to the ‘shut up bitch’ line when Chris hears the thrashing from upstairs. I think these two revisions point to Dennings being the culprit at least in the film.
@@blerksnarfgut2766 Imagine having never knowing Blatty personally, or seeing any interview with him where he denies the theory in this video yet saying "I am certain William Peter Blatty never intended such a plot line." Do you know what certain/certainty mean? You don't know anything about this for certain.
Very interesting considerations. I think there is another angle that involves Pazuzu. Assuming Pazuzu to be real, it is possible that Burke Dennings was possessed or at least influence by Pazuzu as a way to get to Regan. It would link the sexual deviance displayed by both characters. And as you said yourself, Regan's character is not completely taken over until Dennings dies. This would link both characters using the subplot character writing technique. This could also be why Father Karras is specifically targeted by Pazuzu as Karras is celibate.
Isaac Foster I was thinking exactly that - he's a drunk because he IS possessed or affected greatly by an evil entity that gives him an MK-Ultra type of personality - and the Pazzuza thing is the conduit for the demonic energies to manifest. Regan's behavior seemingly shows the most extreme effects of base-chakra trauma based mind control and how it opens a child/ victim up to all sorts of horrors, including opening up of her body and mind as a vessel for demonic entities to invade and eventually take total control of her. She was a victim of SOMETHING very foul to have this nightmare to occur even I the slightest way CERN , I conjunction. with the Demonic "D-Wave' quantum computers and even the HAARP machine are doing some pretty gnarly things to the "Veil" that separates our world from others that are simultaneously existing or whatever.
This Demon is nothing like this movie makes him out to be anybody that works with him know this most movies that try to show Demons in a bad light are done from a Christian mindset
@@bumcheek7 Exactly, since alcohol also opens him up to spirits (demons) and he is not himself anymore. Also, the mother is an actor; therefore, just look what Hollywood has been exposed as pedos. Again, the mother was an actress and many actors in her house, think by being possessed, their careers will take off. This is why the Quija board was of no real issue to her because she probably knows many actors are in the occult.
I also wonder how the young girl as the actress was protected or not from these ideas. Even talking about deviant sexual behavior in front of a young person is in a way abusing them. It’s hard for me to imagine any of my daughters acting in this film - they are all 14 and under - I would spend many a sleepless night wrestling with my conscience if they were in a movie like this one.
I was offered a starring role in a film where I would have had to use horrible language. The whole audition process did not include the real script at all. When I was given the real script, I was horrified (I was 14, looked to be about 10. Many kids in showbiz are unusually small and young looking for their age and play younger characters than their own age). My mom said, "You decide what you want to do. Remember that whatever goes on film stays on film and if you want to do something later in life where this would be an embarrassment to you, don't do it." So I didn't. I turned it down. It was an opportunity to go bigger in show business, but it wasn't worth it. It helps if you come from a family that's been in the industry for generations. With that, you're an environment where the industry is not worshipped. It is seen as a profession. You don't have to be a star to make a living in this industry and it can be preferable NOT to be a star, because you can keep your privacy, yet have fun and make money doing what you enjoy doing. I would not have enjoyed that film so I'm glad I didn't do it! I wonder how Linda Blair feels now about having done those films. She made a lot of money but I wonder if it messed her up. It would be interesting to know. Brooke Shields doesn't seem any the worse for having done the "Nothing comes between me and my Calvins" billboards. I didn't even get the double meaning when I was a kid and she did those. Every kid is different and every family is different.
She had said it didn't effect her.. Not sure why she always said that when it's obvious she went through a bad phase of drugs etc a wild stage most Hollywood young stars go through, the casting couch is not just for the adults either now we know kids were abused and probably still are.. it obviously impacted her, she was way too young
People way back then are not pussies, not distorted by political correctness and social justice. Today almost everything offends someone, it is ridiculous
@@mikhailbjornsson1874 I think she should have been older, played by an older actress there are pedophile vibes in this film, especially the cross scene, and her saying fuck me etc, its a brilliant film otherwise no cgi then either. I know of people who watched this originally in the cinema and never watched it again, were so terrified.
In the context of it being acting, it being supernatural fiction, and how the extreme vulgarity is framed negatively and not as normal behavior, I could see how a relatively young child could rationalize the concepts such that they aren't traumatizing. I'm no child psychologist, but I believe it would come down to the individual and how emotionally mature they are.
Very interesting theory. I first saw the film in 1974, and I am surprised that this didn't occur to me over the decades. But maybe that explains the film's enduring power to grip audiences and leave them with a creepy, disturbed feeling that lingers for years. William Peter Blatty, before writing his novel, researched the original case of the 14-year-old boy who underwent an exorcism. No doubt he heard the whispers that the boy was possibly molested by his aunt, who died shortly before the boy became ill. The dead aunt, who still has these rumors swirling around her after all of these years, might have inspired the character of Burke in the novel, where readers are suspicious of his motives for being in Regan's bedroom. Maybe Blatty switched the main character from a boy to a girl to make her seem more sexually vulnerable. In the early 70s, sexual abuse of children was simply not in people's consciousness. Awareness came later, as more stories and research of sex abuse were publicized in the late 70s and 80s. Readers of the book and viewers of the movie would more readily accept a story of a girl being tormented by a demon than they would accept a story of a girl having a mental breakdown because a man, or men, in her life were abusing her. Blatty and Friedkin definitely presented a story of the supernatural, but it clearly has a sex-abuse subtext which is more obvious today than it was in 1973.
I just saw the film a few days ago. First time in 20 years. The guy being up in her room made my eye brow raise but this new theory really fits. By the way, my wife was out of town so I watched without being harrased. But I did think I heard a few noises. A few dvd cases flipped off the shelf. Just enhanced the movie
Friedkin also does something like this in his movie Bug. It makes us see the people paranoid about aliens, but in reality they have all the syptoms of methanfetamine abuse withut ever mentioning it in the movie. I know it's not a classic, but it could be an interesting analysis for you to do
It is an teriffic film, but even more interesting to me is Killer Joe. Now there has to be more going on in that movie! Friedkin is such an interesting guy too. After hearing he did the famous chase in the French Connection without permission, speeding around New York at 90 mph, endangering pedestrians, his crew and cast and himself, I figured he is capable of anything!
Yes. Criminally discarded as a horror movie as well, but fortunately it's not banned for being unpopular. I think there's a little more flesh to the story than meth. You have Agnes, a woman longing for the company of a man, medicating her loneliness with drugs; and Peter whom at the beginning, while odd, was a paranoid schizophrenic staying grounded in his reality only thru the support & treatment he was receiving, plus when relaxed. he was empathetic, something that gave Agnes a sense of trust. Agnes's loneliness catered to everything Peter was saying because of the fear of him leaving, which from what I understand potentiates symptoms. Doesn't take long before Folie a deux happens. Shared psychosis + stimulants + isolated 'world' = a boiling kettle.
*Rob I think this is a MASTERFUL interpretation of a masterpiece of a film* 09:07 Very few viewers have ever spotted that the infamous line "Do you know what she did?" is said in BURKES voice! It adds a deeply disturbing undercurrent to an already horrifying story. If the sexual abuse was taking place, it may have actually led to Reagan being vulnerable to possession. As Father Merrin explained, the devil wants to demoralize us, to make us believe we are animal and ugly and incapable of Gods love. What a powerful description of how a victim of such abuse must feel about themselves...
Thank you for doing this analysis. Ever since I first saw the film, there was something just absolutely wrong with the whole film that I have never been able to shake. And... this was 17 years ago. Your discussion on this literally hit the nail on the head and helped put some of my own feelings together. Not to mention that this theory helps capsize on the true emphasis of evil that this film was able to capture. Thank you. This is not an easy subject to talk about and I'm glad I came across your channel. Well thought-out and put together. I look forward to watching more of your work down the road. :)
I think your interpretation is spot on. I recently read David Foster Wallace's short story collection, Oblivion. In one story he mentions the guilt the Priest experiences at not being able to prevent his mother from dying alone. This could have warped the Priest's interpretation of the childs behavior, whereby he is embarking on a crusade of righteousness, albeit entirely warping his empirical faculties with religious dogma
I rewatched this film for Halloween and was struck by how strong the sexual abuse themes and subtext were. Like you said, I'd never heard anyone talk about that when they talked about this film. But to my mind there were quite a few indications that give credibility to this reading of the film, most of which you also picked up on. That line, "do you know what she did?" felt like such a powerful indicator, the fact that it was only said to and heard by her mother (and her mothers reaction), to me, felt like Chris being confronted with that possibility. Very interesting video, it's remarkable how much discussion this film still generates all these years later!
Being a victim of sexual abuse i can say the signs you brought up were spot on. Im not far enough in therapy but i hope someday to recognise these signs on other victims who need help. There are a lot of things I'd like to tell the world, I don't know which is more important.
What I can't understand is if this is what happened to her,why is it at the end of the movie Regan appears cured,happy and well again? Doesn't support the abuse theory.
Because she is still under their thumb and she better behave or else is my theory. She's been shown what happens when people step out of line in their circle of abusers. Dennings, Merrin, Karras, with a flex like that you'd comply if you saw 3 people murdered and the media frame it as possession. That's why the cop at the end tries to befriend the other priest, he's a suspect and that cop isn't giving up on cracking open the abuse ring.
That was only in the Directors edition that come out recently enough, same with the updated spider walk, which also looks a bit shite and out keeping with the movies dark tone.
No, that face was definitely in the movie when I saw it on cable TV back in the early 1980s - it was the only part of the movie I found scary, for some reason, perhaps because it was so out of place and unexpected, and wasn't really followed up on - it never appeared anywhere else in the movie. I've not seen the movie since then, certainly not in the era of CGI and "enhanced" director's cuts and such.
It’s definitely Burke. He’s a Hollywood Elite after all. It explains the references to witchcraft, because he was the one who gave Regan the ouija board and taught her about “captain howdy”. He’s hanging around the house while the mother (his supposed love interest and friend) isn’t even at home. Why was he there in the first place when the babysitter went to get the medicine? Chris was his only reason to be there and she was not at home. That is because he wasn’t there for her at all. Also when Chris and Regan have that conversation about Burke, the person that put all those ideas in her head was Captain Howdy aka Burke. The only thing that blows all this out of the water is the telekinetic stuff going on, however this might be happening because of the extreme stress of the abuse situation surrounding the girl has definitely invited some weird demonic activity, so yes there is some possession but it was brought in by Burke. Also there is the Alcoholism. Some drunks can shapeshift. I grew up in an alcoholic household and I do believe that alcohol opens up the spiritual pathway to invite things in. You can see their eye color change from brown to red, their size change and their features morph. It’s bizarre. Burke has all the right elements. it’s Burke.
I think you’ve hit on something, but I’d twist it just a bit. The reason that the movie is so disturbing is that Regan is being sexually abused, but by the demon that is possessing her. After all, we literally hear the demon abusing her and Regan fighting back, albeit in vain. That’s why we have all of the acting out moments in the film. It’s not that the movie is secretly not about exorcism at all (after all, it’s not like the priests or the mother leap to “it’s definitely a demon” conclusions) it’s that it’s about what it would really be like if your abuser was also inside of your body.
I still think Megan's father, now absent, is the abuser. Him gone, she now lets out her PTS symptoms, and aims her anger at all adults, especially her mother who didn't stop her husband's abuse of Megan.
The Father is an interesting aspect of the story. If I remember rightly the novel says he left when Regan was 3 yrs old. He also said he didn't phone on her birthday because he got stuck on a yacht off shore so had no phone access.
Collative Learning Didn't know that. The movie does not specify when he left, but since she is reading a movie magazine, it could well be the parents in the movie split up rather recently. Far off imagining: Father may have been friends wtih the director who visited Megan in her bedroom, for unspecified reasons. There may have been several perpetrators; A child trafficking ring based in Hollywood. Quite a few people have come forward since those days, speaking of a high prevalence of pedophile activities in Hollywood. The film is not clear enough to make it a whistleblower narrative, though.
Why would it have to be the father? Why not Carl? Why not Sharon? Why not Chris herself, taking it out on the daughter who's a constant reminder of her ex-husband. Better yet, why NOT just the devil, who on face value, is the Bad Guy this horror movie is all about? You know... Sometimes a cigar really is just a cigar!
"You're going to die up there" could be Regan talking to the entire room, meaning anyone in the room, including her mom, will die up there. I always thought it was Dennings attempt to sexually abuse Regan when he was killed. I never read the book and just took clues from the film. The fact that the demon used Denning's voice and asked, "Do you know what she did?" placing the blame all on Regan was what made me think Dennings tried something. Only thing is, killing Denning could be seen as the demon protecting her, which is too kind for a demon, unless the demon thought Regan was in danger of dying, and the demon will be forced to get a new host. The fact that the book says different does not have much meaning. Any movie based on a book, no matter how loyal to the book, cannot be judged as the book but must be regarded on its own.
The Astronaut is Capt Billy Cutshaw, USMC. Watch the movie "Ninth Configuration" written and directed by Peter Blatty. Very funny/morose, insightful, charming, enlightening. It's about Vietnam Vets suffering PTSD. th-cam.com/video/YXs6rsN-8_4/w-d-xo.html
@@joecoupon8299 Thank you for reminding me of tthat great film. I actually have it but have not watched it in three years. Will watch it tomorrow. Thank you again.
I think we may have a case here of an agenda, unintended by the film makers, being perceived by viewers because a pattern for one type of scenario can be superimposed over another in a way which seems convincing. Humans are relentlessly good at finding patterns where none exist, so in cases where there is a close match, the effect can be even more compelling. But I think the reason Blatty never mentions sexual abuse at any point Is because it never occurred to him that this might be a part of Regan’s story; I think it exists entirely in the eye of the beholder. I think we can rule out this possibility, at least in the case of Blatty’s intentions. Blatty has stated quite clearly that his decision to include sexually vulgar behaviour in Regan was because of the fact that she was a child, and that such behaviour would be disproportionately shocking for that very reason, and would suggest that a more adult personality was in control of the innocent child. His reasoning for the sexual assault with the crucifix went pretty much as follows: “I had to ask myself, ‘what can I do that will be so shocking that it will drive this atheistic mother to go to priests’ and the answer came to me at once: the masturbation with a crucifix.” This reveals more about Blatty’s devotion to Catholicism than it does about his scale of values, since he obviously regards the violation of a sacred object to be much more shocking than the fact that Regan has already murdered someone. But his motive has been clearly expressed: It had to be something so shocking that Chris would finally be driven to put events in motion which would eventually attract Merrin to the house. At no point, it seems, was he ever asking himself, “How can I best allude to a history of sexual abuse.” The novel also makes it clear that all of Regan’s behaviour mirrors exactly the accounts of possession which are described in the book about witchcraft which is discovered to be under Regan’s bed. Her symptoms could easily be the result of suggestibility tied to these descriptions, the results of which just happen to mirror the symptoms of sexual abuse. It’s entirely possible, of course, that these traditionally recorded symptoms of “demonic possession” were themselves often the psychotic manifestation of a history of sexual abuse in childhood, and so the close approximation to such symptoms in this modern story would have naturally matched them. In the book there is much more ambiguity concerning whether Regan is actually possessed or not, right up until the final chapter, and the impossible acts which Regan performs in the movie (the head rotation) never occur in the novel except as a hallucination which Chris thinks she sees at one point. If we only consider the novel, then there’s room for the sexual abuse hypothesis, although I’m almost certain that no such sub-text was ever considered by Blatty. Blatty himself seems to have proceeded on the assumption that the possession was real, because he was inordinately convinced by the flimsy and unimpressive accounts of the so-called possession of Roland Doe in Maryland. Given the blatant supernatural phenomena in the movie version, though, (right from the bucking-bronco bed which, in the novel, is only ever described as a quivering mattress which Regan is clutching) there is no such wiggle room, and demonic possession is the only option available for consideration. When Friedkin was directing the movie he did make some of the scenes far more visually dramatic than they were in the novel, and this removed the option of ambiguity about the true nature of Regan's condition. Friedkin was certainly not a religious believer, as Blatty was, and simply recognised good source material for a movie when he saw it. He has stated on many occasions that his one aim was to bring the book to the screen and depict the story as faithfully as possible as described by Blatty. He may well have relished the idea of making a statement in another movie which was an antidote to the Exorcist’s message that “science fails / religion triumphs” but I’ve not encountered any comments from him regarding this, and there’s no indication that he plotted to insinuate a sexual abuse theme into Blatty’s concept, or even that he recognised the existence of such a possibility. There is no indication whatsoever in the novel or the movie that the character of Burke Dennings is sexually abusing Regan, unless you consider that visiting the room of a sick child while you are supposed to be baby-sitting her is overly suspicious - even though we can just as easily suppose (since 'supposing' is what all of this is really about) that something deliberately attracted his attention and led him upstairs to investigate. The fact that Regan uses Denning's voice at one point is a psychological attack on Chris akin to Regan using the voice of Karras's mother during another scene. We have no reason to suppose that Regan was being sexually abused by either Dennings or Mrs Karras, so why go to unnecessary extremes to explain this tactic on behalf of the demon? The reason the Dennings personality is employed in the novel is clearly spelled out: This strategy convinces Chris that she must, under no circumstances, have Regan committed to a hospital, but must be kept at home, attended only by herself and Sharon; she doesn't want to take the chance that Regan might admit to the murder of Dennings to any doctors who are treating her. This enables the demon to stay right where it wants to be. We are, of course, aware that movies (novels and albums) are endlessly excavated by fans who arrive at all sorts of theories for which they can find what appears to be evidence that fits what they want to believe. While this is always interesting, we have to recognise how easy it is to find a pattern in a story with a lot of characters and events, and that it's possible to find just about anything you want to find once you start off with a conclusion already in mind. (Re, the addition by Friedkin of Regan’s clay object found by Kinderman: This is a more visually concise way of depicting the scene in the novel where Kinderman surreptitiously takes a sample from Regan’s clay model in the basement, by scraping it with his fingernails, and later confirming, via forensic testing, that the clay is the same material which was used in the church desecrations. It isn’t really an addition to the story, but, rather, a way of making the same information more appropriate for a visual scene.)
You may say that but my immediate thought of burke being in her room is why? And why does he get killed? The only conclusion is that he did something to Reagan. The line as well with “do you know what she did? Your cunting daughter?” Sounds like the demon trying to trick the mam into believing that Reagan somehow invited this abuse on herself. Just my take.
I disagree with this theory completely. In the book it's explained why Dennings was in her room (he heard a commotion). Also, how could a sexual abuse victim learn to speak fluent Latin and to levitate off the bed 3 feet?
I think this is an interessting idea, and I am not angered by it. But what fascinates me is that I have noticed a trend from atheists that they analyse supernatural movies like they are not supernatural. I have noticed this on other similar movies as well... in The Devil's Tomb (2009) some people said it wasnt really demonic but psychosis. Something the movie do not seem to imply or even seem to be smart enough to have as subtext. But I like the idea of this being a possibility. Then again, the non supernatural aspekt of this movie is a big part. That is kind of the point isnt it? That they try science until science can not do anything else.
I think it is very similar to stories of werewolves (among other phenomena), to find out that many hirsute people in the past had a genetic disorder (or even mental disorders for some other mythological "beings") that made them grow hair. People in the past found supernatural reasons for things that we later found out with science (and empathy) was due to things normally found in the natural world.
I think some people just like to think about the different angles & meanings of things. It probably has little to do with atheism, that's just your projection.
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I worked with an abused child once. Every night he would refuse to sleep, keeping himself up by jumping on the bed, trashing his room, singing songs. As he got more tired he started talking like his abusers, yelling, shouting profanities at himself. It was really scary and horrible. I can understand why some children who acted out this way were thought to be possessed. I think the abuse theory about this film may be spot on.
According to psychiatrists who treat NPD, theoretically it's a dissociative identity psychologically developed through integrating the behaviors of the parental abuser with the self identity, in place of developing their neglected authentic self.
They essentially "become" and project their abuser and their behavior because the abuser rejected their vulnerability and authenticity, and neglected to foster its development through nurture and empathy.
So dissociative identity could appear as "possession", but it can be dismantled and deconstructed through awareness of the condition, it's manifestation, and practicing reflective empathy in therapy to teach the afflicted to empathize with themselves and be comfortable with vulnerability.
I don't think so, that just sounds like a fucking psycho.
@@m3ntyb last line: is this vulnerability situational or unique?
How the hell can you talk in a completely different voice though?
that was an abused child.
One rule that we can infer from the events in the film is that the demon needs some sort of invitation to possess someone. Regan invites the demon into her life by playing around with the Ouija board. She befriends him and calls him Captain Howdy. Then he possesses her. Later, Karras says "Take me!" to the demon, after which the demon promptly possesses him. No one else in the film is possessed. The implication is that the demon can't possess anyone at will and do anything it wants in our world. It needs permission. The film would make more sense if there was a reason why Regan would've given the demon permission to possess her and why the demon was drawn to Regan's house (or situation) in the first place.
In the beginning of the film, which is very forgettable on first pass, there is the mysterious line "Evil against evil" when they are examining the demon artifacts. And if you do some research on Pazuzu, it's said that although it was an evil spirit, it protected people (especially mother and child) against other evil spirits. None of this has any significance if everything is going well for Regan and her mother. We're not given any solid evidence that there is any evil threatening Regan and her mother. But, if we consider there was a hidden evil threatening mother and child (i.e. an abusive drunk Hollywood director taking advantage of a girl) and Regan appealed to this demon for help, a lot of things in the film start to make sense. Evil against evil. The sexually themed desecration of the Virgin Mary statue in the church. The brutality of Dennings' murder. Pazuzu came onto the scene *because* of evil things happening in Regan's house *at* Regan's invitation. Because she *asked* Captain Howdy to protect her.
Interesting points.
It's the surrender of the will, the will being the final wall that separates the spirit world from the physical world.
Just the act of using the ouija was sufficient permission, open doorways.
Interesting point that a demon can become a protective entity to a desperate human. So, why the attack on the statue, or the priests, for that fact? Just a calling card, announcing its presence, or is the church set as an evil institution in this scenario? We know about some of these priests now, what they've done to children.
well theres a scene when the mother asks why her child and the preists reply its not about regan but everyone involved with her especially the priests
The fact that the possibility of sexual abuse is never mentioned in the film feels like a way to highlight it by contrast. Everything else gets discussed, except this specific elephant.
Something similar happens in the first Godfather film, where the mob is never mentioned by name, yet it’s everywhere, and the fact that they never name it makes it all the more real and pervasive.
Not sure I'm with you there. The mafia is pervasive and real in the Godfather because the entire film revolves around the centric subject of the mafia, regardless of whether anyone mentions it by name or not. This is repeated in a lot of well known fiction surrounding the subject as well as real life. The American mob were ironically famous for being secretive and illusive and would always refer to the organisation as 'the commission' or some other benign term. Even in the Sopranos or Donnie Brasco it's called 'This thing of ours'. So in conclusion Puzo and Coppola were only being accurate by following trend and any aura of mystery that lends to the film is coincidental.
Being a victim of abuse myself atleast repeated mental and physical abuse, I know that abusers deny any wrong doing, and try to cover it up, make it look like it was anything fault other than there own.
@@grandmastermario3695 same, every person aware of the situation will do the MOST to not mention it, at any costs. family, friends, etc.
@@mommyslilstinkeryup - and frankly they would rather believe in demonic possession - and blame the victim - than address a real perpetrator.
And you see, back then, a writer would include the subtext of sexual abuse without choosing to state it.
We recently worked worked with a young girl who learned to projectile vomit in order to protect herself. It turned out she had learned to do this as an infant as it made her caregiver stop their sexual abuse. As she got older she suffered from an eating disorder.
Patty Duke did the same thing, for the same reason.
Poor soul.. hope she's better. Or eventually gets better.
Jesus thats horror
WOW!!!! Very sad.
I call BS.
Well, Blatty based the story on a 1947 case of a boy who was supposedly possessed, and he was aware of the behaviors that the boy was displaying. That boy had a close relationship with his aunt, who was a Spiritualist, and the two of them used the ouiji board together. It was right after the aunt died that the boy began to act in a bizarre manner. The documentary that I watched on this suggested that he was being sexually molested by the aunt, and so that explained his behavior. Blatty based his girl and her behavior on this 1947 case, so maybe he was unknowingly describing the effects of child abuse on a young adolescent.
I was thinking the same thing
I'm sure a lot of supposed "possession" cases are actually a response to abuse. It's a major factor in poltergeist cases as well. The victims are almost always young people beginning puberty. It may be that people are blaming demons because they can't face the fact that family members or clergy are abusers.
Mind blown 🤯
I can understand people digging deep into the story of the boy that Blatty used for inspiration and therefore deciding that he must have been trying to hint that Ragan must have also been abused and that's what caused her afflictions. However, I've watched the movie and read the book so much that I couldn't keep count. I've listened to or read every interview with Blatty, Friedkin and the cast that I've come across. S*xual abuse is NEVER talked about or even tossed around as the possible underlying cause of her transformation. Its a story about a girl being possessed. Blatty didnt need some hidden underlying theme about abuse. Its not mentioned because that wasn't his point.
@@gingerleamcwow435 I agree. Blatty wrote a story about a girl being possessed by a demon, period, full stop. What I am saying is that by basing Regan's behavior on that boy from the 1940s, he unknowingly described the behaviors of someone who has been sexually abused.
I've always thought this too. The 'Do you know what she did...your conting daughter line' and the demon voice saying 'do it..dooo it'. I think that Burke Dennings made Regan perform stuff on him and he performed stuff on her and that's why he was in her room before he died. I think demon Regan forces her mother to perform the same sickening act on her that Burke performed on her. Surely all this stuff is there for a reason.
@Based_transition_ClockerThen why does Kinderman specifically mention how Dennings’ body was found with his head twisted around?
There’s no reason to do that. Saying that he died or broke his neck would be sufficient enough yet the character and the narrative goes out of its way to emphasize that.
Because it’s for the purpose of symbolism. To show that he’s two-faced.
I work with sexual abuse survivors and perpetrators and I think this is a very intelligent and well-observed video. The on-going effects of sexual abuse are easily as horrific as the demonic activity in The Exorcist but usually occur “silently” within an individual. Although I like to enjoy this film at ““face value” i.e supernatural horror, it could easily and equally be watched as an allegory for the suffering of sexually abused children. Thank you for producing your video.
Also the reaction of the family or perps. Deeming the child immediately as "sick" "posessed" and blaming her for the abuse they caused. Its typical tactic in Narcisists and narcisistic families
Mark the Demystifier gift if hush bay buddy crunch is going down :on you. Ducati stuffed in car
You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about and there's no way that you're a mental health professional
B.S
I think they are reading too much into a movie
Regan's fathers name was Howard, Captain Howdy? Maybe she was trying to tell her mother what her father did?
Yup
makes alot sense
picturing Regins head spinning around and her saying"Do you know what he Did? Your Cunting Husband!!!"
I agree
😱
As a sexual abuse survivor the first time I saw the film I knew this theory to be true. Especially the fact that Dennings was in her room when she was heavily sedated. And something I noticed was during the scene where Father Kerris is in the basement looking at her drawings behind him there’s a cartoon of little red riding hood and the big bad wolf; symbolizing her lost innocence, the big bad wolf is her abuser.
yes !
I hope you get lots of love ❤️
I didn t like Burke Dennings
He looked fucked up
Oh Rose i'm sorry for what happened. Bcoz u mentioning Dennings, that he possible sexually abused Reagan. I remembered the scene when her mother asked Reagan what she wanna to do on her bday. Reagan told her mother that she could invite Dennings also and presumed that her mother is gonna married Dennings. And Reagan seems happy with the idea her mother marrying Dennings.
I got the Dennings vibe
Why does it have to be either about abuse or about possession? Can't it be both? I've heard that some people believe a person becomes more vulnerable to demonic possession when experiencing a trauma like sexual abuse because you're emotionally and spiritually weak so your defenses are down. Couldn't it be that Regan was abused by Burke Dennings leaving her in a vulnerable state and then the demon seized the opportunity and possessed her. It would then make sense that the demon would want to torment her with what has hurt her the most... sexual abuse (hence why a large percentage of her posession is of a violent sexual nature). Salt in a fresh wound.
That makes a lot of sense. If she had been abused, she would be spiritually broken and probably stopped believing in God. That could have left her vulnerable for possession. If she had been sexually abused she may have even started to resent God.
She was already “sick” before burk’s dead, also I remember seen a scene when he opens regans door, I guess I imagine it
That's how I see it. Or maybe Dennings could see she was already vulnerable so took the opportunity to abuse her.
Yep
100%
It's never talked about how Regan's Father isn't on the scene and why not?, could be he was the one who was abusing Regan and she saw Denning's interest towards her mother as potentially another sexual male predator entering the home who might slip off to Regan's room in the middle of the night. Being the 70's as well and very much a time were these things were often dismissed by a mother who doesn't want to accept the shame of dealing with it openly
Brian Greene Regan’s parents are getting divorced and her father travels in Europe all the time.
Ya, cause he got all rapey with his daughter!, hiding out in Europe with all the other sick freak......oh wait hang on, I'm in Europe, derp!
I've always considered that to be likely.
Are their any hints in it about who did it Is?
This is so strench lol
I find it interesting that we actually don't get to know Regan at all, we just see her the way her mother sees her: a sweet timid child who likes horses and reads gossip magazines, but not too much else. We always watch her through Chris's point of view, the only scene where she's acts different is when she learns her father won't call her on her birthday, you can see she's saddened by this and after that she begins her possession and she's not herself anymore.
I believe some of the things she says and does while possessed might be her own psyche manifesting itself to the world, like telling them she's angry and frustrated with her life and the way she's treated or seen by everyone.
The reason the book does not include Reagans point of view is for one purpose, this is a narrative about a supernatural investigation, by the church, the medical community, and the police. The mystery of faith would go unexplored in the narrative if we had first person accounts of Reagan alone with the demon. In the novel, an appropriate amount of time to get to know Reagans personality before the possession, and how she greeted father Dyer at the end to know that her personality was very different from the demon.
Her father Howard or Howdy for his friends
When the abuse is by a parent, it's common to both loath and love that parent. When we're children, we depend on them for everything--but are horrified when abuse happens.
We get to see her as an incredibly depraved little hornbag, gorgeous sans all the crappy makeup and scowl and stupid voice, impaling herself pussy-first on a crucifix with her legs spread in front of her mum, and *_that,_* kind Sir, is right up my alley ;p
I've always thought Dennings, the mothers friend, being up in her room before he plummets to his death meant he had molested her.
He might well have done, but that doesn't mean Regan wasn't possessed by a demon.
Dennings went up there to place a cross in her bed, hoping it might help the girl. That's why the demon via Regan threw him out the window.
I still think he went up there to tape her.
Ok
that was my understanding, too
as someone who was sexually abused, holy shit?? i cant believe i have NEVER thought of this. it makes so much more sense. typically when those are abused they either never want to do anything sexual ever again OR they become hyper fixated on sexual things, which would explain Regan's behavior. Also not to mention Regans name for the thing possessing her is captain howdy and isn't her fathers name Howard?
Oh whoooa
Oh damn, that’s wild. Could damn well be.
Yes, her father’s name is definitely Howard.
I don’t care what happens to you just the video at hand.
@@healthyliam6803 thank you healthy liam. i will keep that in mind for my future endeavors!
My mom seen the exorcist in theaters while she was like 7 months pregnant and she decided in the theater to change the name she had picked out for me and name me raygen. I can’t help but wonder what the fuck was going on inside her head during this movie 💀🥴
Regan is her spelling in the novel.
@@Cablecol my mom didn’t want anyone to think she named me after the president, she also said “it looked nicer written” the way she spelled it 🤷♀️
Dang!😲
Love that tbh
Did she explain her reasoning? 🥴
Very interesting analysis. The subject of sexual abuse of children then was a taboo subject hidden in the shadows as a dirty secret. Perhaps sexual abuse was the catalyst for the events in the story, but the director did not want to make that known. Rather he crafted the story around demonic possession as a way to broach the subject in an under the radar way. Anyway you cut it, the movie is even more disturbing given that context.
The fact that even after 44 years this film still is still interesting and entertaining to watch and analyze. And that speaks volumes to the greatness of this movie.
Yes! I am in agreement. One must remember that the film and novel are set in the year(s) 1971-72. A filmmaker in the US could never get away with an overt childhood sexual abuse story element at this time. Such a film--with childhood sexual abuse added to the other outre elements (which gave the film it's US "R" rating) would not even get an "X". It would never be released by any studio/distributor. The film does continue to fascinate these decades later.
What I find fascinating is that in viewing this from a sexual abuse context, the fact that the mother is in the movie industry and also that priests figure prominently in the story line. These two groups are now both heavily tied to pedofilia, and the entertainment industry is also tied to occultism.
@@timirish2563 The way Chinatown was?
Linda Blair's performance is phenomenal for someone of her age.
I would love to have see her sneak out the house and go to the church that would've been creepy.
Amazing film to have us all still attempting to understand its many layers 40+ years later.
Bro you show up on every channel I love. Cool stuff.
Just rewatched it now, So many things to take in.
Sometimes people add _too many_ layers to films, when there are actually only a few...or just one!
I had to do a double take on the name when I saw your comment, love both these channels
Truly!
Just for clarity folks. This video isn't attempting to discard of the supernatural narrative entirely. A theme runs in parallel to the overt plot - in effect a separate coinciding story that exists symbolically.
Collative Learning the supernatural parts could represent the fear and regret the involved adults felt after realizing what they've done - even the mother for allowing the abuse for so long.
Let's not forget the behavior Regan is demonstrating is NOT her own! Pazuzu is the one doing all the shocking things...NOT Regan...clearly you DON'T UNDERSTAND demonic possession! Regan is NOT doing anything...she is NOT in control of her body in ANY way.
He mentioned in the video that it could just very well be a surreal take on being sexually abused. Just because the authorial intent was to have all of it be caused by demonic possession, looking into sexual abuse was a valid interpretation even inside the movie universe before the supernatural stuff was dialed to 11.
Those god damn symbolical, methaphorical subplots....
I've regarged movies as maybe the finest of the arts: photography, painting, dancing, playing music, acting... It's all so great, it's art.
I theorise that the sexual abuse may even have opened her up to demonic possession.
This sounds on point. Almost makes the demonic aspect less interesting by comparison-and that’s saying something for this movie.
It makes it a much more disturbing story. The demonic possession seems laughable.
I completely disagree. I think this sounds laughable and dumb. It most certainly is not what William Peter Blatty wrote or intended for this. This garbage stinks of so much current day Leftwing nonsense, it's pathetic. This video was dated even before it was made that's how stale this is.
MontcomHorror wow. Head in the “us vs. them” political cloud even when it comes to fiction .....oooookayyyyyyyyy
And therein lies a corruption: is sexual abuse the intended sub-subject? Personally , i doubt it, but each to their own. In many respects society is drawing its own conclusions on re-writing history on flimsy evidence which is considered concrete enough to be factual.
@@shannonadkinsmusic5767 exactly! In the novel, the demon takes on the persona of Burke Dennings during the exorcism and explains that the night he was killed, he heard cries of distress coming from up in Regan's bedroom and when he went to investigate, she (the demon) attacked him, broke his neck and then threw him from her window. The only sexual abuse Regan suffered was at the hands of the demon.
CSA victim, I always had a hard time watching Reagan slowly showing signs of possession bc it feels exactly like how it feels after being violated. Really interesting and disturbing theory!
Dude, you *keep* showing that spider walk. The only kind of thing that gets me in horror movies. And you keep showing it.
It's cool. I don't need to sleep for a week.
the whole topic and movie has me shivering with fear
That’s the one scene in the entire film that scared the crap out of me.
And you KEEO WATCHING A VIDEO YOU CAN TURN OFF! lol.
I was sexually abused when I was a child, and... yeah. I can totally see the themes of sexual abuse.
Get nae naed
I think that blatty is obviously a part of Hollywood pedophile gate.
I'm sorry you had to go through this. I hope you have received help or support.
I'm very sorry that you experienced that! My best friend died fairly young and I think part of his death was due to unresolved sexual abuse! Thank you for being brave enough to share!
@Gappie Al Kebabi It sounds like maybe you were abused as well? Or you just have no empathy?
The scars on Regan’s face could be a manifestation of how she feels about herself. The once innocent girl, now a monster. Fighting between trauma and the forces of coping (sometimes people find religion).
Yes the scars within.
I think its a reference to self harm. Alot of sexual abuse victims cut or harm themselves
I always thought that one theme of the movie was how the transition to puberty plays with one’s head-the irrational fear that sexual thoughts and acts make one “dirty.” And of course, the demon exploits that. One minor detail I always note is that before Regan becomes possessed, she has no breasts. After her ordeal, in the last scene with the surviving priest whom she kisses, you can see her breasts are beginning to develop.
I think what probably happened was she ended up being possessed by a demon named Pazuzu
@@Simon-talks The exorcist plays on the idea of the fantasy of a supernatural serial killer. The author of the book was heavily fascinated with the zodiac killer and the original case of the 40's of a boy in Maryland who was said to be possessed.
It's interesting to think that people are more willing to accept demonic possession i.e. spiritual abuse than a sexual abuse narrative
Robert Clark Just like more people can entertain the possibility of aliens or demonic possession over global warming. Reality is too horrific to accept.
@@waltertheartist2746 lol
@pyropulse I bet you're fun at parties
Riiiiiiight. Because a head spinning around or the straight demonic face and eyes are a dead giveaway for sexual abuse.
@@correypeta because one is very real, sexual abuse and the other is completely fake, or misdiagnosed mental illness.
I saw the movie having just graduated from high school. It was the first time I was horrified beyond rational thought. I subsequently read the book in almost one sitting and was emotionally shaken for a month. At that time in my life child abuse was unknown in my experience and never entered my mind. Years later after having a family, my family was brushed by evil when a pedophile entered our life for a short time. After that experience the sexual abuse literally screams out from the screen. Once sensitized to the reality of child abuse a caring parent becomes overly sensitized to minuscule clues of its existence. Evil does exist. This is the first time I heard the child abuse articulated in regards to this movie.
Interesting theory. A victim of sexual abuse would be emotionally and spiritually vulnerable, filled with pain, fear and rage filled desires for retribution, a perfect vessel for a demon to take possession. I also have a theory that Regan’s father may have done something to her. In the movie, her mother is trying to contact him in Europe and she’s angry and cursing after waiting for over 20 minutes asking “who doesn’t call his own daughter on her birthday?” In a way, he pulled a Roman Polanski, fleeing to Europe and keeping his distance probably from some indiscretion he doesn’t want to face! That’s just my film theory!
There is a small documentary on a girl who had massive mental health issues because her father S.A.'d her, she became dangerous wanting to hurt and even unalive her adopted family...they had to send her to a special home to retrain her brain because she was so subconsciously disturbed by it and had massive rage and trust issues. She's grown now.
Yes. And in particular, the demon that possesses Raegan is Pazuzzu whom is a fierce protector of women and children. It’s as tho the demon came out to protect her. It’s why she cannot remember after it’s all over. She dissociated.
Great analysis. I’ve always thought there was a child abuse subtext to the movie. Slightly off topic, but I recently noticed something either completely intentional or coincidental in a pivotal later scene. When Father Karras visits the language lab to have Reagan’s audio recording analyzed, the word “Tasukete!” is clearly visible above the door. In Japanese it means “Help Me!” which is the same message a desperate Reagan scrawls on her stomach a couple of scenes later.
Right after he taunts the German butler Dennings says "What's for dessert?" and then it immediately cuts to Regan asleep in her bed.
Lol
Karl: "I'm Swiss."
Wow i also caught that good eye👍
Dominos on cheese with walnut sauce. PIZZA PARTY!!!
@@pierredelectojr6340 Hey it's set in the same city as Comet ping pong!
I never thought about the subtext of sexual abuse but it fits so well and the fact that Burke Denning was in her room is something I always did find odd! All that aside...Ellen Burstyn was so good in this film...I adore her. What an amazing actress!!
Call my cynical, but the fact that the movie is about Catholic priests and received a lot of support from the church makes the absence of such questioning even more conspicuous and (in the case of the priests, at least) makes a certain kind of sense.
The writer of the book was catholic so i dont know
Dorothy in the Poppy Field the director and writer said it’s about faith
I also felt that this was an underlying theme in this movie. I always felt the picture of Regan by the bed was a reminder that Regan wouldn't tell as the scene of her Mother in the same pose represents she kept it under wraps as well. They moved on and started a new life etc. Hoping to forget what had happened to her, not addressing it because she was so famous. Funny, I just really always thought that was an understood, but not stated part of the movie. I always assumed that is why the Mother had the breakup. But, as a victim of childhood abuse, that is why maybe it was plain to see for me.
100% 💪
You ar3 projecting honey. This is about a kid possessed by Pazuzu.
@@BlowinFree you may be right! I may be looking a bit too deep in a movie meant for entertainment purposes only! :)
@@bonitadiablo oh I don’t think it’s only for entertainment, maybe a warning in there also, not to mess about with the dark arts
And her mother would know or wonder about abuse--a therapist told me that the "secret" of abuse spreads throughout the family. You can try, but behaviors out themselves through people's changed personalities/actions/sicknesses.
I will NEVER forget sneeking in to watch this film in 1974, at 13 years of age. I couldn't sleep for weeks with the lights off. Rob, this is very well done, and although this obviously didn't occur to me back then, now I can see your points.
I wonder if this effected your development. And if so, then how? Now let pray 🙏
@@quantumpotential7639wtf? 13 yo is not that young to be "affected" by movies
I completely bought your analysis of The Shining and sexual abuse. When I find you come up with the same for The Exorcist I immediately thought it a curious cooincidence. When you state you have worked with victims and abusers, suddenly it's no surprise you find sexual abuse contexts to both movies...and likely many more.
Yes! RA has cred which I don't believe we should discount in our views of this video...which actually resonates with me very much.
The exorcist seem more about child abuse and Shining about a child living under a violent home. Jack seem like he is abusing mentally, physically and sexually her wife.
That movie or book had nothing to do about her being abused in a normal setting. He's very ill informed about the deeds of Satan. He's probably never read one page of a Bible, That's what Satan does....he's the quintessential enemy of humankind. Her body was taken over by him. He's trying to put his perverted twist on the matter and is sounding so stupid to someone who knows.
Rob is not the first or the only who seen the underlying sexual abuse themes in both movies
@@mariahyohannes I don't doubt that. It isn't very difficult to imagine why. With that said, the more you think like a hammer, the more likely everything else starts to look like a nail.
My personal interpretation is that it is both - it is both a possession and a case mental illness due to sexual abuse - both at the same time. Which isn't a contradiction, but merely represents the 2 different ways of looking at it as demonstrated by all of the characters throughout the movie. And I don't think Blatty was promoting the theological viewpoint - I think he was trying to show how both viewpoints explain (in their own way) what is going on and so neither way of looking at it is wrong.
Emmanuel Goldstein- Okay, but in that case, how do you explain the dresser sliding across the floor, the objects flying around the room, the drawer opening on its own, and so on and so forth? That's brought on by the possession part, which was brought on by the sexual abuse? So what you're saying is that the supernatural is real, and that the dark force known as Satan does exist, but he's attracted by human perversions? I'm just trying to get a handle on what it is you're proposing exactly.
It's not left open for interpretation, the storyline is right there....
It is really interesting to hear some of the stories from the survivors in the comments. I am so sorry for what happened to you. Thank you for being so candid in sharing this ❤
Did it never bother anyone/strike anyone as strange, that scene early on when the mother finds a ouija board just lying around down in the basement?
(Regan walks over to the ping pong table and bounces a ping pong ball. By the shelf Chris picks up an ouiji board.)
CHRIS: Hey, where'd this come from?
REGAN: I found it.
CHRIS: Where?
REGAN: The closet.
(Chris walks toward the ping pong table with the ouiji board in hand.)
CHRIS: You've been playing with it?
REGAN: Yeah.
CHRIS: You know how?
REGAN: Here, I'll show you.
(Regan places the board down on the table. Chris drags a chair over and sits down.)
CHRIS: Wait a minute, you need two.
REGAN: No you don't. I do it all the time.
CHRIS: Oh yeah? Well, let's both play.
(The pointer pulls itself away from Chris.)
CHRIS: You really don't want me to play huh?
REGAN: No I do, Captain Howdy said no.
CHRIS: Captain who?
REGAN: Captain Howdy.
CHRIS: Who's Captain Howdy?
REGAN: You know, I make the questions and he does the answers.
CHRIS: Oh, Captain Howdy....
REGAN: He's nice.
CHRIS: Oh I bet he is.
REGAN: Here I'll show you.
(Regan places the magnifier on the board and closes her eyes.)
REGAN: Captain Howdy, Do you think my mom's pretty? Captain Howdy? Captain Howdy that isn't very nice.
CHRIS: Well, maybe he's sleeping.
REGAN: You think?
- - - - - -
1. Mother finds a ouija board (& it doesn't freak the mother out)
2. Daughter said she has played with it alone (& it doesn't freak the mother out)3. The pointer obviously moves spontaneously by itself (& it doesn't freak the mother out)4. The daughter says she plays with Captain Howdy (& it doesn't freak the mother out)
Another question I have - if anyone knows the answer- is who owns the house they are staying in? Cos they are only staying in Washington temporarily. This is alluded to in another strange scene (the first scene of Chris and Regan):
(Regan runs in and hugs and kisses Chris.)
CHRIS: What did you do today?
REGAN: Um........Stuff.
CHRIS: What kind of stuff?
REGAN: Well, me and Sharon played a game in the back yard, and we had a picnic down by the river.
(Chris sits down.)
REGAN: Oh mom, you should have seen this man came along on this beautiful grey horse. (to Sharon) Wasn't it pretty?
SHARON: It was beautiful.
CHRIS: Really, what kind was it, a mare or gelding?
REGAN: Think it was a gelding. It was grey. Oh it was so beautiful, the guy let me ride it all around.
CHRIS: You're kidding?
SHARON: Yeah for about half an hour.
REGAN: It was so nice, oh I loved it. Oh mom can't we get a horse?
CHRIS: Well, not while we're in Washington.
REGAN: Oh............
CHRIS: We'll see when we get home okay.
REGAN: When can I have one?
CHRIS: We'll see Regan.
So I assume they're renting the house from someone - or the studio gave it to them for the movie shoot - so who are those people to have a ouija board lying around?
And also, anyone else find it strange that a man wanders down by the river on a horse, and lets her ride around on it for 30 minutes. Who would ride a horse in Washington? A cop? A captain - like Captain Howdy?
And Regan noticed it was a gelding (a castrated horse)....
I watched the video and it made me re-watch The Exorcist - I'm only 20 minutes in so far, just stopped to post these questions. If they're answered later, forgive me....
A book on the occult and black mass also disappears which a friend gave Chris. Then the church desecrations happen, so it was obviously Regan who stole the book.
Chris doesn't freak out because:
1.the house is rented.
2.She's not religious.
william mann film Why would Chris freak out about a ouija board? She’s not religious. As for try pointer moving and Captain Howdy, she assumed Reagan moved the pointer and that Captain Howdy is an imaginary friend. It’s a case of simple logic.
I can understand the Ouija board not freaking her out. we had one as kids they were popular in the 80s. But how old is Regan supposed to be? like 12 or 13? she seems a bit old to be talking to imaginary friends. so yea i agree, she missed the ball on that one i guess
Horror has always been one of my favorite genres, and before age 10 I loved movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Night of the Living Dead. I saw those movies and others, including The Exorcist, during a time when I was actively being sexually abused. This is the only film I've never been able to rewatch, and even now your video gives me a sense of dread. Now I believe I understand why this might have affected me so deeply.
WOW! I'm sorry.
Same like you can relate right?
I find the first responding comment here, normal, and seemingly quite appropriate... Yet the next two(especially the last one about being able to "relate") wholly unsympathetic and disturbingly without a normal individual's inherent sense of empathy... and thus wholly inappropriate.
Weird... either I am seeing them completely out of some hypothetical relevant & somehow mitigating context, they are simply trolling, OR those two happen to be legitimate examples of sociopathic behavior.... just thought it was an interesting observation is all... LoL.
@@jeremyw.norwood1453 hey I am a sociopath good call
@@loralynf.9722 well, ya know what they say... "takes one to know one"... LoL.
I think you mentioned the line "evil against evil" from the Iraq segment in another video. It seems Raigan let Pisuzu in to fight another perceived evil in her life. Perhaps sexual abuse, perhaps not.
Interesting...
@@imalwaysright The age old question: why does God allow demons to exist at all? Well someone has to punish the wicked. What did Regan do to deserve the possession then? She didn't, her mother was, as I suspect with Merrin, was 'turning a blind eye' to the abuses so the mother's punishment was to see what her silence was doing to her child. Means to an end I suppose? Or is the sin that marked her yet to come? Remember if by definition God is omnipresence that means past, present, and future; abused children can become abusers themselves. Perhaps in the future Regan becomes an abuser and to break the cycle, and pay for the sin, go back, do the possession, and A: punish the other abusers, B: pay for the future crime, C: prevent the future abuse all in one shot. Hard to wrap your head around how any entity out of the regular flow of time would process such a cycle.
Wow..good one
are there ever any happy hidden themes?
Yes. She can make marvellous clay statues :))
Yes 2001 A Space Odyssey ending is happier than the surface narrative.
There's some weird but interesting stuff in "Prelude To A Kiss"
She went on to be Rick James' girlfriend.
Probably not in a horror movie, lol
I can't count how many times I've watched The Exorcist, but you've just made it even creepier for me.
The Exorcist immediately became my favorite horror flick after viewing it back in 2011. Being a sexual abuse victim as a child I can see the behavior Regan displays as reactionary to said abuse. I was violent, angry, wet the bed for years after. This theory makes a lot of sense to me.
The Exorcist also has a lot in common with the Vampire mythology, i.e.: the demon is attacked with holy water, priests, crucifix, the open bedroom window, the black mass symbology, the blood, the blasphemy, etc. al. Vampires could also be a way of historically representing child sexual abuse. Interestingly, the spider sequence was cut, a scene which bolsters the vampire imagery even more. Psychoanalysis was concerned with the vampire myth many years back, and they concluded among other things, that blood could represent any number of bodily fluids in the subconscious, including semen.
Interesting. I never really thought about how intensely vampire mythology manifests the paranoia and sexual hangups of religion. I did read a forensic pathology theory once that serial murders hundreds of years ago were generally blamed on werewolves, witches and vampires and that's why serial murder as a recorded phenomena seemed to pop out of nowhere in recent history.
Your analysis was excellent w/r/t the sex abuse subtext. Perhaps the author left it out due to religious convictions and the director due to commercial agendas.
The Exorcist (the book) was principally concerned with a priest who had lost his faith/belief in God. The child who was possessed was an opportunity for the priest to see that God must exist because Satan was in her body. The book has an interesting series of investigations carried out by the young priest to see if she really fit the bill. The movie tacked on a massive introduction in the desert to probably imbue the film with a spiritual dimension through imagery alone, and failed. Friedkin added to the length of the desert scenes in the director's cut, proving he was misguided as to the spiritual nature of the work. The book has intellectual and spiritual layers which the movie discarded for purely emotional impact. Not a bad move; certainly not for William Friedkin, who's films tended to be concerned with emotional impact only.
Good point indeed. I have also started myself to wonder about the hidden meaning of dracula by Bram Stoker and its possible reference to royal family/High society as well as child abuse/sacrifice. Consider the following. Bram Stoker was an insider since he was part of the british high class as testified by his involvement in the occult-like spiritualist organization, called the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The three founders, were Freemasons and members of Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia. Some of the most famous member included A.Crowley and W. B. Yeats. Recently Prince Charles has admitted his family is linked with Vlad the impaler and I believe this variant on the narrative of vampyres has been introduce for the first time by Stoker (I am not aware of anybody mentioning count Dracula before). Dracula's plot also include very disturbing account of the count who specifically target little children. Also Lucy once she is turned into vampyre developes an urge in targeting little children. Other very disturbing details include the capability to rejuvenate by drinking blood and the detestation towards anything connected with catholic religion which somehow implies reference to satanism (see A.Crowley). Moreover count Dracula is extremly wealthy (the royal family are literally trillionaries) and he decides to move to London as part of his plan to conquer the world (origin of Windsor family are not british). I start to believe that B.Stoker has chosen a very powerful myth, the vampyre, in order to tell in a metaphorical way about secrets which were and are a total taboo. That also might explain the formidable success and appeal that Dracula has immediately exercised on the masses although it was not the first time a vampyre story has appeared in the literature of the time. It is like our subconscious is capable to understand the real meaning of the story and all of us become tremendously fascinated with the story because deep inside we understand the relevance of the message
il barone I agree with all three comments.
"Vampires could also be a way of historically representing child sexual abuse. "
They obviously aren't.
I have always thought this was/is the case in the story of the boy in the 40s from whom the story was inspired. The aunt who showed him the Ouija board could have very possibly sexually abused him. I'm glad you brought it up as well.
I rewatched this last night with this theory in mind and it really checks out. I almost wonder if Reagan had DID and the demon was an identity. Theres a part in the doctor's office where you can see her dissociate during a physical and the demon's face pops up. Then they almost discredit exorcisms, citing mental illness throughout the first half of the movie.
I attended the opening of The Exorcist, the first day it opened, and actually recorded the audiences reaction to the film in real time. The people in the theater I was in were absolutely terrified. Some people cried, screamed, and even fainted believe it or not. The guy in front of me repeated the words coming from Regan, as well as the Priests during the Exorcist Ritual. That scared me worse than the movie itself. Yes, The Exorcist is the Best horror movie ever filmed in history. All of the events surrounding this movie at the time of filming with the cast and crew were unexplained happenings, and even tragedy. I still have that cassette tape, and occasionally play it for my research I do. The Supernatural world we all live in, is an amazing and paranormal one. I am 67, wish I had another 67 years to be alive and witness events as they happen.
Can you share that recording? I would be so interested to hear it.
Wow 😮
Bro, I love the Exorcist and am currently reading the 40th anniversary edition of the book. And I swear, as I was reading it, I was also surprised that no one brought up sexual abuse. It just felt like something should have been considered, because of some of her actions and the stuff she was saying.
Awesome video.
I always interpreted her "you're going to die up there" comment to the astronaut as her being an edgelord. When young people (kids, teens, early 20s) want attention, they'll often say things just for shock value. They'll also swear a lot if it gets attention. Being possessed by demons would be a great allegory for that period of combativeness and trying to find one's identity.
The sexual abuse angle seems more compelling because the movie doesn't really have a happy ending. Being a normal combative teen eventually ends and has no lasting damage, but sexual abuse is a kind of permanent damage... like being thrown out a window.
James Baldwin said it best: "The devil does not levitate beds, or fool around with little girls: we do."
THIS!!!!
@jason cole Or he's a made up boogey man.
@jason cole that's giving abusers a pass. PEOPLE do this, not some made up monster.
Actually, the devil can do both just like some people can.
hugospiegel+ Only if you believe in that though.
just watching this still gives me the creeps
Only Merrin "dies up there" conclusively. Karras was still alive and given last rites at the bottom of the stairs.
The Exorcist just got a hole lot more scary.... Brilliant Rob 👍
hole (sic) :)
Ryan Burns your correct
Glory
19:02 Not true. There is a radio message that says they have lost contact with the Spacecraft the astronaut was in, later in the movie.
Where does that happen?
The astronaut had a breakdown in the space capsule, was removed and placed in a military mental health facility. The movie 'The Ninth Configuration', based on the Blatty novel, elaborates on that.
@@protea38 that’s correct, @protea38The astronaut story continues into Blatty’s THE NINTH CONFIGURATION. He doesn’t literally die up there but suffers a complete mental breakdown.
My father was born in the hospital where the exorcism the movie and book are based on took place. That kid ended up working for N.AS.A. and claims that the exorcism was the best thing that ever happened to him.
what kid?
I've always heard that scene as the "masturbation" scene. What is being depicted is more akin to near mortal trauma. It would be doubtful that anyone experiencing that would survive without immediate hospitalization and surgery. That has to be the most shocking scene for me.
Agreed. In the novel it's less violent, with the demon deriving pleasure from the act. It's more chilling in that way, as well.
I had to turn it off after that scene, I was around 14 when watching it and it just made me feel all kind of ways. Never tried to watch it again.
@@VegemiteQueen1 lucky, 7 spending the night with grandparents, sneaked into living room to watch cable at like 2:00 am. There was the Exorcist and just like that there went my innocence. I couldn't look away or scream just start crying half way through the movie till the end. Gotta love the eighties, hell raiser by ten cemented my love of good horror.
I am really delighted to see another film enthusiast explore this theory. I wrote about this when I was at university and my lecturer dismissed it entirely as me completely misreading the film.
The most obvious evidence that Regan is being abused is that Burke Dennings was killed by “falling” through Reagan’s bedroom window with considerable force. It is NEVER explored what Burke was doing in her bedroom in the first place. Why else would this man, who is not close to Regan, enter her bedroom late at night.
“Is there someone inside you?”
“Sometimes.”
And sometimes it’s Dennings.
As a survivor myself The Exorcist is one of my favourite films and from the first time I saw it as a teen the theme of abuse resonated with me and I have never doubted it. I don’t think it needs to detract from the clear supernatural element of the plot. The links between possession / rape, trauma / horror etc mean we can thematically accept both. It is a film after all.
Thanks for making this video!
Your lecturer's dismissal of your argument must have been especially painful.
I don't remember the window being broken by Dennings. Perhaps his guilt caught up with him and he jumped.
Something unique about The Exorcist is that it almost seems at times that the film took
on a life of it`s own. That there are moments that even Friedkin and Blatty are at a loss
to explain. I find it intriguing that the Director himself can`t seem to explain why Burke
was in her room. And I love the fact that many incidents that occur are open to ones
own interpretation. For example when the words " Help Me" appear on Reagan`s body
it`s assumed that this is Reagan herself asking for help. But I have an interesting thought :
In the same way that serial killers are subconsciously trying to be caught , what if ( in a
similar process ) it is actually the Demon asking for help ? What if this is an attempt at
being understood rather than automatically hated and reviled ? Something else I`ve
become aware of that I now adore : the moments that simultaneously "seem" needless
and yet create the overall effect; for example.....when Burke ( at the party ) mentions that
there is a pubic hair in his drink. I consider The Exorcist to be the greatest film ever made.
And the performance from Lind Blair never ceases to take my breath away.
Sodomy forces the 3rd eye open... negatively speaking. You can open your 3rd eye postiveily meditating etc, however, when someone is raped, sexually abused, it forces the 3rd eye open in a traumatic way, which will attract dark entities...My friend had this happen to her when she was 7 and 10; her mother was a drug addict and sold her to men for money for drugs... Eventually, her mother lost all parental rights to her. She was haunted by these dark figures and demons. One night, she called me 3 in the morning. She jumped up and heard voices outside her bedroom window and thought she was going crazy. however her 7 year old daughter, and her brother, who was an ex marine heard them as well. The voices said they were legion, and that they no longer wanted her, but were coming forn her daughter. The very next day, I went over to her house and gave her a michael the archangel statue, and they never returned. She keeps Michael the archangel by the door -especially at night... Call it bullshit/conicidence, but she had other witnesses besides just her "hearing things" :{
l worked at a psych ward and a lot of the patients were sexually abused as children. What a coincidence right? later on in life they became schizophrenics, deeply depressed etc to the point where they had to be in a locked facility...😟😟😟😢😢😢 hope your friend is doing better
I suppose the theme was dark enough. To think that precious little girl was sexually abused would have really pushed everyone over the edge!!!
The updated spider walk could also be a symbolic allusion to oral sexual abuse. The theme does carry itself a lot in the movie what with tongue flicking, sudden foul language, vomiting, "lick me"... and idk if it's just me, but the first thing I notice when Reagan's face begins to distort in the hospital is her chapped lips. I always wondered what was up with the Burk character even when I watched this movie as a kid; it always seemed a tad suspect.
Thank you. I felt your analysis of the film was excellent in respect of the 'absent' sexual abuse themes running through it. I have learnt so much from your exploration of more than possible sexual abuse themes which was absent and not mentioned once in this film in it's entirety. Clearly upon closer examination Regan MacNeil was exhibiting all the major signs and symptoms for sexual abuse in children yet, Not once was this mentioned throughout. The sexual profanities are everywhere in this film. Regan's highly sexualised behaviours and language all point to this yet the film itself does not say a thing. The obvious is deliberately not mentioned by the doctors seeking answers to her state? Her father is absent in her life and also does not contact her on her birthday is this a sign of his guilt? Great explanation and I really think you shed so much clarity on this film in respect of abuse and what was not said - thank you
This was a passive thought in my head along with the real life case (mostly) and demon possession was just mentioned to cover up the abuse. My girlfriend was raped when she was really young and she would self harm, she has insomnia, She used to expose herself as a child and weird sexual interests by 9, She can be really fiery at to people she hates that remind her of her rapist and there were times when she was young she have maniacal laughing fits to where people thought she was possessed and she was very mischievous as a kid too. It seemed possible to me even before meeting my girlfriend. She's come so far on her own but, she still has a ways to go with at least better being able to handle everything related. Her family tried to cover up her acting out and the rape which is very much like I had said about disguising the fits as possession in this presumably extreme cover up possibly for profit. These possession case families sem to usually be poor or desperate for money anyway so, who knows what's really up here.
My mother was also abused in her childhood. Over the year it develloped into mental ilness and she was acting like she was possessed. She ask for a priest for an exorcist. And the body became strong enough to act thing that could look impossible. Like throwing heavy furniture through the window and having all sign of an upcoming birth (when she was not pregnant). The mind is sometimes stronger that the cousciouness and the pain drive the mind in weird place to deal with a trauma.
I was molested and raped when I was 8 years old. My head has NEVER rotated 360°.
I love that the sexually charged dialogue is just today's middle school hallway banter.
Was it really even more offensive back then
I’m sure the Devil loves it as well…
This is the first I've heard of Dennings' voice being the 'possessed' voice. Are you sure it's supposed to be his?
I remember seeing a documentary of the film where they said the voice was done by an older female actress at the time, who smoked a considerable number of cigarettes to get the raspy quality.
There are multiple voices used by the demon to confuse, attack and antagonize . Dennings is one as is Karras's mother also. The drunk in the train station. 'Can you help an old alter boy father" You are right though about the Pazuzu voice being done by the actress.
Same
Mercedes McCambridge
The demon used that Denning's voice bc he just killed Denning. That's why the position 180° head like the man when he was killed!
The demon spent a considerable amount of time in the book speaking to Karras in Dennings' voice.
urinating is a sign of sexual abuse, I also have worked with those children.
```` its in general, not be able to control when they go, when before they were fine
Oh dear...
Thank you for the bang on interpretation. The movie is a masterpiece horror not through what we see but what we don't see. The abuse subtext not only deepens sympathy for Reagan but makes this movie a true horror.
... Because those demons walk among us everyday
Wow, this is really, REALLY dark stuff...
I don't think we are talking about a fundamentally different understanding of this movie, specifically with regard to the idea that anything considered supernatural in the movie has 100% nothing to do with the supernatural (in the movie)...
I think what we are talking about here, is that sexual abuse is one of many things that can potentially lead to demonic activity in a household, but because of the more commonly committed not so spiritually pure (often perverted) sexual acts and behaviors in the world, compared to murder, torture, witchcraft, cruelty, theft, etc., the sexual content in the Exorcist was all the more shocking, HARROWING, vivid, unholy, blasphemous, truly demonic in intensity and degree, etc. Because...
...Its the inference that because practically all teens and adults have sexual knowledge and/or desires, etc., that we ourselves are wicked and evil for having thoughts/desires enter our minds/hearts from time to time that we know are not Godly. Even only on rare occasions. (Any one of us could be more influenced by Satan in life, etc., not just being possessed, which is very rare, etc.) Even if we push them out of our minds, these more troubling or intense sexual thoughts, preoccupations, etc., or don't entertain them. ...It's the ever-sobering thoughts that we are wicked and evil for ever thinking or being this way. And who are we to cast out beings that have similar thoughts, even if they are far more consumed by them?
It's TRUE that we need to seek purity and not carnality in life, but it's also true that we are NOT demons, or demonic, simply because we are imperfect, etc. in this life. It's always half-truths that the devil engages us in, in our own thoughts. And that's what the Exorcist CLEARLY explains-the devil will appear to be harmless, confuse, misdirect, fill us with fear, dread, guilt, shame, hopelessness, sorrow over/feelings about loved ones, family, romantic relationships, all this stuff... He doesn't want us to be truly better, more Godly people. He only wants us to be miserable LIKE HE IS.
The Exorcist is "on point" with regard to the nature of real demons, sure... But the sexual content that makes it so shocking and even a little traumatic, etc., is still extremely controversial, generally considered NOT wholesome or spiritually uplifting, etc. Notice that movies like The Wicker Man, Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist, the Amityville Horror, and Stephen King's IT, all have sexual content that generally isn't "porn" in the typical meaning of the word (the Wicker Man being more ambiguous in this particular train of thought)-it's meant to shock and instill terror, revulsion, horror, etc., instead of encourage sexual desire, etc.
When a kid has been sexually abused, yeah, it can be shocking to see behavior that is triggered by abuse of this sort. But I think urinating in front of guests in a living room, sexually suggestive movements, etc. are not quite on the level as desecrating statues at church, masturbating with a cross shouting blasphemies while doing so, or forcing your mom to lick/taste your private parts, etc. Those actions I think are on the level of the demonic, esp. the dehumanizing, utterly humiliating aspects of these acts.
...And sexual abuse is also one of those things that can really spiritually harm someone, both the person committing the act, and the person being abused. It's why it is SO abominable to God. So reprehensible and unspeakably evil and wicked. It's why it's not far away from the level of evil involved with demonic possession, infestation, domination, hauntings, etc.
A demon was never really there at all in the movie... this is an over-exaggeration of the behavior of a sexual abuse victim.
Amanda Dixson+ No, it definitely was. It’s not like The Shining where it’s deliberately done so it can be viewed from a range of standpoints, and that the supernatural elements can be explained away, but Reagan was definitely possessed by a demon in the story. The sexual abuse aspect is more of a sub plot that ties into the supernatural main one.
I totally agree with this interpretation, everything matches so perfect it's scary: The story references three worlds where sexual abuse is common (Hollywood, Catholic Church, broken home). Regan's mother is an actress who is so busy, she could easily neglect who spends time with her. If you think about it, The Exorcist is really a Rape/Revenge film in which the devil is actually helping Regan to kill those who have wronged her. In fact, the sumerian demon used as a representation of the devil Pazuzu was also a protector: "Although Pazuzu is considered an evil spirit, he was called upon to ward off other malicious spirits. He would protect humans against any variety of misfortune or plague" from Wikipedia. Possesed by Pazuzu, Regan kills the friend of her mother, and two priests who were probably molesting her. I can't imagine what is like to be a survivor of sexual assault, but from what I understand, it scars you for life...
On the other hand, the book and film are called "The Exorcist", not "The Exorcism", so it's clear who the protagonist of the story really is: father Karras, and his entire journey revolves around faith. Karras sacrifice might be a proof of his faith restored and Regan's, who in the end kisses gently th eother priest on the cheek, as if saying she trusts men again...
Great video!!! Thanx!!!
Two priests who were probably molesting her? Seriously? How do you get that?
Excellent point!
Thank you for talking about the pathological denial. It's so damaging. I worked with a child who had been abus3d and his father just refused to acknowledge it. He would look away and stop talking to him if he tried and the healthcare workers who tried got this firestorm of rage and screams that his son isn't "like that." The child ended up being removed to his grandparents.
it came to my mind almost immediately in the film. people don’t want to see what’s really there, and it’s sad, because the same thing happens in real life
100% I always thought that abuse by Dennings was the catalyst that made Reagan's possession possible. It's not either or. It's both abuse AND possession. Possession is often said to be brought about by a trauma or malignant, heightened emotions. Abuse, drug addiction, a divorce, a miscarriage...even mental illness. Though I'm not equating mental illness with sufferers of the other traumas. Anything that causes negative ongoing emotions is the gateway..
It is such an irony that one of the priest in the exorcist was accused of sexual abuse.
"A priest who appeared in The Exorcist has been accused of allegedly grooming and sexually abusing a student at the Jesuit high school where he taught.
William O’Malley, who plays Father Dyer in the 1973 horror film, is one of several people named in a lawsuit filed as part of the Child Victims Act, which enables New Yorkers who were allegedly abused as children to file civil cases with no time or age limit for one year." this was from an article on the independent.
Perhaps Blatty removed any mention of possible sexual abuse from the book at the behest of the publisher, fearing that it would make the book seem too exploitative and hurt sales.
Nah, I think Friedkin added it in, much like what Kubrick did to The Shining
The Exorcist was made almost 50 years ago. To this day, it's the only movie that truly scares me. If it was made 50 years from now, it still would be ahead of its time. I don't know of another movie you can say that about.
Love the video. However in the novel the demon ( in Dennings voice) describes how he lured him up there by pretending to be Regan crying. You'd think if there was abuse by Dennings the demon would explicitly say so to Chris, to demoralize her even further. Just a thought!
Exactly. I think the people who agree with this video's assessment of the supposed sexual abuse of Regan at the hands of Burke Dennings are clearly viewing the movie through a modern lense. We live in a time where there is so much more known and discussed about sexual abuse, but none of that was common knowledge back when The Exorcist was released and I'm certain that William Peter Blatty never intended such a plot line. A grown man paying a visit to a little girl's bedroom today is viewed with scrutiny and suspicion- rightly so- but that doesn't mean that Burke was guilty of child molestation. As you said, the novel explains why Burke was in Regan's bedroom the night he died and it had nothing at all to do with pedophilic intentions. The only sexual abuser in both the novel and film is the demon.
The film leaves that part out, I’d argue for a reason. It also adds the british accent to the ‘shut up bitch’ line when Chris hears the thrashing from upstairs. I think these two revisions point to Dennings being the culprit at least in the film.
@@blerksnarfgut2766 Imagine having never knowing Blatty personally, or seeing any interview with him where he denies the theory in this video yet saying "I am certain William Peter Blatty never intended such a plot line." Do you know what certain/certainty mean? You don't know anything about this for certain.
Very interesting considerations. I think there is another angle that involves Pazuzu. Assuming Pazuzu to be real, it is possible that Burke Dennings was possessed or at least influence by Pazuzu as a way to get to Regan. It would link the sexual deviance displayed by both characters. And as you said yourself, Regan's character is not completely taken over until Dennings dies. This would link both characters using the subplot character writing technique. This could also be why Father Karras is specifically targeted by Pazuzu as Karras is celibate.
Isaac Foster I was thinking exactly that - he's a drunk because he IS possessed or affected greatly by an evil entity that gives him an MK-Ultra type of personality - and the Pazzuza thing is the conduit for the demonic energies to manifest.
Regan's behavior seemingly shows the most extreme effects of base-chakra trauma based mind control and how it opens a child/ victim up to all sorts of
horrors, including opening up of her body and mind as a vessel for demonic entities to invade and eventually take total control of her.
She was a victim of SOMETHING very foul to have this nightmare to occur even I the slightest way
CERN , I conjunction. with the Demonic "D-Wave' quantum computers and even the HAARP machine are doing some pretty gnarly things to the "Veil" that separates our world from others that are simultaneously existing or whatever.
Isaac Foster all catholic priests are celibate. They are not allowed to get married or have sex as catholic priests
This Demon is nothing like this movie makes him out to be anybody that works with him know this most movies that try to show Demons in a bad light are done from a Christian mindset
@@bumcheek7 Exactly, since alcohol also opens him up to spirits (demons) and he is not himself anymore. Also, the mother is an actor; therefore, just look what Hollywood has been exposed as pedos. Again, the mother was an actress and many actors in her house, think by being possessed, their careers will take off. This is why the Quija board was of no real issue to her because she probably knows many actors are in the occult.
I also wonder how the young girl as the actress was protected or not from these ideas. Even talking about deviant sexual behavior in front of a young person is in a way abusing them. It’s hard for me to imagine any of my daughters acting in this film - they are all 14 and under - I would spend many a sleepless night wrestling with my conscience if they were in a movie like this one.
I was offered a starring role in a film where I would have had to use horrible language. The whole audition process did not include the real script at all. When I was given the real script, I was horrified (I was 14, looked to be about 10. Many kids in showbiz are unusually small and young looking for their age and play younger characters than their own age). My mom said, "You decide what you want to do. Remember that whatever goes on film stays on film and if you want to do something later in life where this would be an embarrassment to you, don't do it." So I didn't. I turned it down. It was an opportunity to go bigger in show business, but it wasn't worth it. It helps if you come from a family that's been in the industry for generations. With that, you're an environment where the industry is not worshipped. It is seen as a profession. You don't have to be a star to make a living in this industry and it can be preferable NOT to be a star, because you can keep your privacy, yet have fun and make money doing what you enjoy doing. I would not have enjoyed that film so I'm glad I didn't do it! I wonder how Linda Blair feels now about having done those films. She made a lot of money but I wonder if it messed her up. It would be interesting to know. Brooke Shields doesn't seem any the worse for having done the "Nothing comes between me and my Calvins" billboards. I didn't even get the double meaning when I was a kid and she did those. Every kid is different and every family is different.
She had said it didn't effect her.. Not sure why she always said that when it's obvious she went through a bad phase of drugs etc a wild stage most Hollywood young stars go through, the casting couch is not just for the adults either now we know kids were abused and probably still are.. it obviously impacted her, she was way too young
People way back then are not pussies, not distorted by political correctness and social justice. Today almost everything offends someone, it is ridiculous
@@mikhailbjornsson1874 I think she should have been older, played by an older actress there are pedophile vibes in this film, especially the cross scene, and her saying fuck me etc, its a brilliant film otherwise no cgi then either. I know of people who watched this originally in the cinema and never watched it again, were so terrified.
In the context of it being acting, it being supernatural fiction, and how the extreme vulgarity is framed negatively and not as normal behavior, I could see how a relatively young child could rationalize the concepts such that they aren't traumatizing. I'm no child psychologist, but I believe it would come down to the individual and how emotionally mature they are.
Very interesting theory. I first saw the film in 1974, and I am surprised that this didn't occur to me over the decades. But maybe that explains the film's enduring power to grip audiences and leave them with a creepy, disturbed feeling that lingers for years. William Peter Blatty, before writing his novel, researched the original case of the 14-year-old boy who underwent an exorcism. No doubt he heard the whispers that the boy was possibly molested by his aunt, who died shortly before the boy became ill. The dead aunt, who still has these rumors swirling around her after all of these years, might have inspired the character of Burke in the novel, where readers are suspicious of his motives for being in Regan's bedroom. Maybe Blatty switched the main character from a boy to a girl to make her seem more sexually vulnerable. In the early 70s, sexual abuse of children was simply not in people's consciousness. Awareness came later, as more stories and research of sex abuse were publicized in the late 70s and 80s. Readers of the book and viewers of the movie would more readily accept a story of a girl being tormented by a demon than they would accept a story of a girl having a mental breakdown because a man, or men, in her life were abusing her. Blatty and Friedkin definitely presented a story of the supernatural, but it clearly has a sex-abuse subtext which is more obvious today than it was in 1973.
I have only seen the movie a few times but I never thought of this being a case of sexual abuse.
I've always felt the film Repulsion has a back story of the protagonist being abused by her father. Hopefully Rob will do an analysis of that someday.
Robert Borges I love that film.
Directed by Roman Polanski...hmm.
I just saw the film a few days ago. First time in 20 years. The guy being up in her room made my eye brow raise but this new theory really fits. By the way, my wife was out of town so I watched without being harrased. But I did think I heard a few noises. A few dvd cases flipped off the shelf. Just enhanced the movie
Friedkin also does something like this in his movie Bug. It makes us see the people paranoid about aliens, but in reality they have all the syptoms of methanfetamine abuse withut ever mentioning it in the movie.
I know it's not a classic, but it could be an interesting analysis for you to do
I've not actually watched that one yet. Thanks.
It is an teriffic film, but even more interesting to me is Killer Joe. Now there has to be more going on in that movie! Friedkin is such an interesting guy too. After hearing he did the famous chase in the French Connection without permission, speeding around New York at 90 mph, endangering pedestrians, his crew and cast and himself, I figured he is capable of anything!
Yes. Criminally discarded as a horror movie as well, but fortunately it's not banned for being unpopular.
I think there's a little more flesh to the story than meth. You have Agnes, a woman longing for the company of a man, medicating her loneliness with drugs; and Peter whom at the beginning, while odd, was a paranoid schizophrenic staying grounded in his reality only thru the support & treatment he was receiving, plus when relaxed. he was empathetic, something that gave Agnes a sense of trust. Agnes's loneliness catered to everything Peter was saying because of the fear of him leaving, which from what I understand potentiates symptoms. Doesn't take long before Folie a deux happens. Shared psychosis + stimulants + isolated 'world' = a boiling kettle.
I thought Bug was an incredible movie.
“Smoke Meth and Hail Satan”
"The sexorcist"
Fayd Bills nice one. Write on
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Fayd Bills #metooxorcist
Lol. Ha ha ha. LMFAO. Good one.
There is a real parody called "The XXXorcist"
*Rob I think this is a MASTERFUL interpretation of a masterpiece of a film*
09:07 Very few viewers have ever spotted that the infamous line "Do you know what she did?" is said in BURKES voice!
It adds a deeply disturbing undercurrent to an already horrifying story.
If the sexual abuse was taking place, it may have actually led to Reagan being vulnerable to possession. As Father Merrin explained, the devil wants to demoralize us, to make us believe we are animal and ugly and incapable of Gods love. What a powerful description of how a victim of such abuse must feel about themselves...
Thank you for doing this analysis. Ever since I first saw the film, there was something just absolutely wrong with the whole film that I have never been able to shake. And... this was 17 years ago. Your discussion on this literally hit the nail on the head and helped put some of my own feelings together. Not to mention that this theory helps capsize on the true emphasis of evil that this film was able to capture. Thank you. This is not an easy subject to talk about and I'm glad I came across your channel. Well thought-out and put together. I look forward to watching more of your work down the road. :)
I think your interpretation is spot on. I recently read David Foster Wallace's short story collection, Oblivion. In one story he mentions the guilt the Priest experiences at not being able to prevent his mother from dying alone. This could have warped the Priest's interpretation of the childs behavior, whereby he is embarking on a crusade of righteousness, albeit entirely warping his empirical faculties with religious dogma
I rewatched this film for Halloween and was struck by how strong the sexual abuse themes and subtext were. Like you said, I'd never heard anyone talk about that when they talked about this film. But to my mind there were quite a few indications that give credibility to this reading of the film, most of which you also picked up on. That line, "do you know what she did?" felt like such a powerful indicator, the fact that it was only said to and heard by her mother (and her mothers reaction), to me, felt like Chris being confronted with that possibility.
Very interesting video, it's remarkable how much discussion this film still generates all these years later!
Being a victim of sexual abuse i can say the signs you brought up were spot on. Im not far enough in therapy but i hope someday to recognise these signs on other victims who need help. There are a lot of things I'd like to tell the world, I don't know which is more important.
What I can't understand is if this is what happened to her,why is it at the end of the movie Regan appears cured,happy and well again? Doesn't support the abuse theory.
Because she is still under their thumb and she better behave or else is my theory. She's been shown what happens when people step out of line in their circle of abusers. Dennings, Merrin, Karras, with a flex like that you'd comply if you saw 3 people murdered and the media frame it as possession. That's why the cop at the end tries to befriend the other priest, he's a suspect and that cop isn't giving up on cracking open the abuse ring.
I have never seen that CGI face during the hypnosis scene. Goodness, that's some George Lucas level awful right there.
LetsPlayPC Good Answer!!!
it was 1973 so it wasnt like it is now, give them a break
I've seen this movie many times. That cheap demon face has never been on any copy I've seen.
That was only in the Directors edition that come out recently enough, same with the updated spider walk, which also looks a bit shite and out keeping with the movies dark tone.
No, that face was definitely in the movie when I saw it on cable TV back in the early 1980s - it was the only part of the movie I found scary, for some reason, perhaps because it was so out of place and unexpected, and wasn't really followed up on - it never appeared anywhere else in the movie. I've not seen the movie since then, certainly not in the era of CGI and "enhanced" director's cuts and such.
It’s definitely Burke. He’s a Hollywood Elite after all. It explains the references to witchcraft, because he was the one who gave Regan the ouija board and taught her about “captain howdy”. He’s hanging around the house while the mother (his supposed love interest and friend) isn’t even at home. Why was he there in the first place when the babysitter went to get the medicine? Chris was his only reason to be there and she was not at home. That is because he wasn’t there for her at all. Also when Chris and Regan have that conversation about Burke, the person that put all those ideas in her head was Captain Howdy aka Burke. The only thing that blows all this out of the water is the telekinetic stuff going on, however this might be happening because of the extreme stress of the abuse situation surrounding the girl has definitely invited some weird demonic activity, so yes there is some possession but it was brought in by Burke. Also there is the Alcoholism. Some drunks can shapeshift. I grew up in an alcoholic household and I do believe that alcohol opens up the spiritual pathway to invite things in. You can see their eye color change from brown to red, their size change and their features morph. It’s bizarre. Burke has all the right elements. it’s Burke.
I think you’ve hit on something, but I’d twist it just a bit. The reason that the movie is so disturbing is that Regan is being sexually abused, but by the demon that is possessing her. After all, we literally hear the demon abusing her and Regan fighting back, albeit in vain. That’s why we have all of the acting out moments in the film. It’s not that the movie is secretly not about exorcism at all (after all, it’s not like the priests or the mother leap to “it’s definitely a demon” conclusions) it’s that it’s about what it would really be like if your abuser was also inside of your body.
but for most victims (women and girls) they are literally inside your body ... .
I still think Megan's father, now absent, is the abuser. Him gone, she now lets out her PTS symptoms, and aims her anger at all adults, especially her mother who didn't stop her husband's abuse of Megan.
The Father is an interesting aspect of the story. If I remember rightly the novel says he left when Regan was 3 yrs old. He also said he didn't phone on her birthday because he got stuck on a yacht off shore so had no phone access.
Collative Learning
Didn't know that. The movie does not specify when he left, but since she is reading a movie magazine, it could well be the parents in the movie split up rather recently. Far off imagining: Father may have been friends wtih the director who visited Megan in her bedroom, for unspecified reasons. There may have been several perpetrators; A child trafficking ring based in Hollywood. Quite a few people have come forward since those days, speaking of a high prevalence of pedophile activities in Hollywood. The film is not clear enough to make it a whistleblower narrative, though.
Why would it have to be the father? Why not Carl? Why not Sharon? Why not Chris herself, taking it out on the daughter who's a constant reminder of her ex-husband. Better yet, why NOT just the devil, who on face value, is the Bad Guy this horror movie is all about? You know... Sometimes a cigar really is just a cigar!
Bill Anthony it was Burke who abused her , its pretty obvious. What was he doing in her room in the 1st place ?
Well, that's your thoughts on Megan, how about Regan?
"You're going to die up there" could be Regan talking to the entire room, meaning anyone in the room, including her mom, will die up there. I always thought it was Dennings attempt to sexually abuse Regan when he was killed. I never read the book and just took clues from the film. The fact that the demon used Denning's voice and asked, "Do you know what she did?" placing the blame all on Regan was what made me think Dennings tried something. Only thing is, killing Denning could be seen as the demon protecting her, which is too kind for a demon, unless the demon thought Regan was in danger of dying, and the demon will be forced to get a new host. The fact that the book says different does not have much meaning. Any movie based on a book, no matter how loyal to the book, cannot be judged as the book but must be regarded on its own.
READ THE BOOK YOU MORON
The rapist probably went to “silence” here, killing her off, and thereby was killed in the process.
The Astronaut is Capt Billy Cutshaw, USMC. Watch the movie "Ninth Configuration" written and directed by Peter Blatty. Very funny/morose, insightful, charming, enlightening. It's about Vietnam Vets suffering PTSD.
th-cam.com/video/YXs6rsN-8_4/w-d-xo.html
@@joecoupon8299 Thank you for reminding me of tthat great film. I actually have it but have not watched it in three years. Will watch it tomorrow. Thank you again.
Shrink: is there someone inside of you¿ Reagan: sometimes...
corey andersson woah...
Shivers..... urrgh. My stomach turned ow remembering that scene.
Rob I can't understand how you don't have 100s of 1000s of views. I find your videos riveting. Keep up the great work!
I think we may have a case here of an agenda, unintended by the film makers, being perceived by viewers because a pattern for one type of scenario can be superimposed over another in a way which seems convincing. Humans are relentlessly good at finding patterns where none exist, so in cases where there is a close match, the effect can be even more compelling.
But I think the reason Blatty never mentions sexual abuse at any point Is because it never occurred to him that this might be a part of Regan’s story; I think it exists entirely in the eye of the beholder. I think we can rule out this possibility, at least in the case of Blatty’s intentions.
Blatty has stated quite clearly that his decision to include sexually vulgar behaviour in Regan was because of the fact that she was a child, and that such behaviour would be disproportionately shocking for that very reason, and would suggest that a more adult personality was in control of the innocent child.
His reasoning for the sexual assault with the crucifix went pretty much as follows:
“I had to ask myself, ‘what can I do that will be so shocking that it will drive this atheistic mother to go to priests’ and the answer came to me at once: the masturbation with a crucifix.”
This reveals more about Blatty’s devotion to Catholicism than it does about his scale of values, since he obviously regards the violation of a sacred object to be much more shocking than the fact that Regan has already murdered someone.
But his motive has been clearly expressed: It had to be something so shocking that Chris would finally be driven to put events in motion which would eventually attract Merrin to the house. At no point, it seems, was he ever asking himself, “How can I best allude to a history of sexual abuse.”
The novel also makes it clear that all of Regan’s behaviour mirrors exactly the accounts of possession which are described in the book about witchcraft which is discovered to be under Regan’s bed. Her symptoms could easily be the result of suggestibility tied to these descriptions, the results of which just happen to mirror the symptoms of sexual abuse.
It’s entirely possible, of course, that these traditionally recorded symptoms of “demonic possession” were themselves often the psychotic manifestation of a history of sexual abuse in childhood, and so the close approximation to such symptoms in this modern story would have naturally matched them.
In the book there is much more ambiguity concerning whether Regan is actually possessed or not, right up until the final chapter, and the impossible acts which Regan performs in the movie (the head rotation) never occur in the novel except as a hallucination which Chris thinks she sees at one point. If we only consider the novel, then there’s room for the sexual abuse hypothesis, although I’m almost certain that no such sub-text was ever considered by Blatty.
Blatty himself seems to have proceeded on the assumption that the possession was real, because he was inordinately convinced by the flimsy and unimpressive accounts of the so-called possession of Roland Doe in Maryland.
Given the blatant supernatural phenomena in the movie version, though, (right from the bucking-bronco bed which, in the novel, is only ever described as a quivering mattress which Regan is clutching) there is no such wiggle room, and demonic possession is the only option available for consideration. When Friedkin was directing the movie he did make some of the scenes far more visually dramatic than they were in the novel, and this removed the option of ambiguity about the true nature of Regan's condition.
Friedkin was certainly not a religious believer, as Blatty was, and simply recognised good source material for a movie when he saw it. He has stated on many occasions that his one aim was to bring the book to the screen and depict the story as faithfully as possible as described by Blatty. He may well have relished the idea of making a statement in another movie which was an antidote to the Exorcist’s message that “science fails / religion triumphs” but I’ve not encountered any comments from him regarding this, and there’s no indication that he plotted to insinuate a sexual abuse theme into Blatty’s concept, or even that he recognised the existence of such a possibility.
There is no indication whatsoever in the novel or the movie that the character of Burke Dennings is sexually abusing Regan, unless you consider that visiting the room of a sick child while you are supposed to be baby-sitting her is overly suspicious - even though we can just as easily suppose (since 'supposing' is what all of this is really about) that something deliberately attracted his attention and led him upstairs to investigate. The fact that Regan uses Denning's voice at one point is a psychological attack on Chris akin to Regan using the voice of Karras's mother during another scene. We have no reason to suppose that Regan was being sexually abused by either Dennings or Mrs Karras, so why go to unnecessary extremes to explain this tactic on behalf of the demon?
The reason the Dennings personality is employed in the novel is clearly spelled out: This strategy convinces Chris that she must, under no circumstances, have Regan committed to a hospital, but must be kept at home, attended only by herself and Sharon; she doesn't want to take the chance that Regan might admit to the murder of Dennings to any doctors who are treating her. This enables the demon to stay right where it wants to be.
We are, of course, aware that movies (novels and albums) are endlessly excavated by fans who arrive at all sorts of theories for which they can find what appears to be evidence that fits what they want to believe. While this is always interesting, we have to recognise how easy it is to find a pattern in a story with a lot of characters and events, and that it's possible to find just about anything you want to find once you start off with a conclusion already in mind.
(Re, the addition by Friedkin of Regan’s clay object found by Kinderman:
This is a more visually concise way of depicting the scene in the novel where Kinderman surreptitiously takes a sample from Regan’s clay model in the basement, by scraping it with his fingernails, and later confirming, via forensic testing, that the clay is the same material which was used in the church desecrations. It isn’t really an addition to the story, but, rather, a way of making the same information more appropriate for a visual scene.)
You may say that but my immediate thought of burke being in her room is why? And why does he get killed?
The only conclusion is that he did something to Reagan.
The line as well with “do you know what she did? Your cunting daughter?” Sounds like the demon trying to trick the mam into believing that Reagan somehow invited this abuse on herself.
Just my take.
I disagree with this theory completely. In the book it's explained why Dennings was in her room (he heard a commotion). Also, how could a sexual abuse victim learn to speak fluent Latin and to levitate off the bed 3 feet?
And he possesed karres in the end too. And knew merins name before she even meet him
I think this is an interessting idea, and I am not angered by it. But what fascinates me is that I have noticed a trend from atheists that they analyse supernatural movies like they are not supernatural. I have noticed this on other similar movies as well... in The Devil's Tomb (2009) some people said it wasnt really demonic but psychosis. Something the movie do not seem to imply or even seem to be smart enough to have as subtext.
But I like the idea of this being a possibility. Then again, the non supernatural aspekt of this movie is a big part. That is kind of the point isnt it? That they try science until science can not do anything else.
I think it is very similar to stories of werewolves (among other phenomena), to find out that many hirsute people in the past had a genetic disorder (or even mental disorders for some other mythological "beings") that made them grow hair. People in the past found supernatural reasons for things that we later found out with science (and empathy) was due to things normally found in the natural world.
I think some people just like to think about the different angles & meanings of things. It probably has little to do with atheism, that's just your projection.
There is always a degree of projection when someone analyses a movie. Of course atheists will approach a film from an atheistic perspective