The Exorcist

The New Hollywood movement arose in the late 1960s and early 1970s, enabling young and innovative directors to take greater creative control of their films and breakaway from the traditional studio system.  This era introduced more personal, experimental and socially conscious films that resonated strongly with contemporary audiences.  The industry shift allowed for greater artistic freedom, significantly altering cinematic styles and leading to a wave of iconic and influential movies that redefined American cinema.

The emergence of New Hollywood was marked by groundbreaking films like “Bonnie and Clyde” and “Easy Rider” but was solidified by the record-breaking success of “The Godfather”, directed by Francis Ford Coppola.  These films and others like them showcased unconventional storytelling and complex characters, and a notable shift towards more realistic and gritty subject matter.  As studios recognized the profitability of these auteur-driven projects, they increasingly invested in visionary directors, paving the way for a more diverse and provocative cinematic landscape.

In the immediate aftermath of “The Godfather’s” release, the moviegoing audience was gifted films as diverse as John Boorman’s “Deliverance”, Martin Scorsese’s “Mean Streets”, Sidney Lumet’s “Serpico”, and Franklin J. Schaffner’s “Papillon”.  Each were the risk taking visions of their director’s, featuring actors in some of their most demanding and uncompromising performances, all outside the conventional studio system that had fueled the industry for decades.  And – most importantly – each netted their distributing studio a sizable profit.

As I wrote previously, I hope to build a “definitive” list of the auteurs who have delivered four essential movies in quick succession.  And I will attempt to build the list without foresight, judging the titles and their placement on the list as audiences and critics did at the time.  With that said, I will discuss two directors who achieved their peak in 1973, benefitting from the expanded theater distribution begun with “The Godfather”, and building upon the success of their earlier New Hollywood releases.

George Roy Hill began his career in the 1950s as a television director, before making his transition to film in the 1960s.  It would be at the end of the decade, with a script by William Goldman and the soon-to-be iconic pairing of Paul Newman and Robert Redford that Hill would make his initial mark.  “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” would ride the zeitgeist of buddy anti-hero stories in 1969, becoming the year’s top grosser and an eventual Best Picture nominee.  Hill would follow with the ambitious but largely forgotten “Slaughterhouse Five”, before reteaming Newman and Redford and leaning further into their anti-authoritarian charisma as a pair of con man in 1930s Chicago.  Endlessly charming and seamlessly entertaining, “The Sting” did their previous collaboration two better, exceeding “Butch Cassidy’s” box office tally and this time taking home Best Picture.  With a lively score, a surprising twist and an end that spared our leads and left the audience with gratifying smiles, the movie proved that not every release of New Hollywood needed to be realistic and gritty – they could also be escapist and fun.

William Friedkin also began his career as a television director, mainly filming documentaries in the 1960s, before moving to film and solidifying his status with a Best Director award for “The French Connection”.  Seemingly built in a lab expressly to convey realism and grit, the almost cinema-verité style and captivating performance by Gene Hackman resulted in a Best Picture Oscar for 1971.  With his now found cache, Friedkin could seemingly follow his triumph with any story of his choosing.  He chose a recently completed frightening novel by the former comedy screenwriter William Peter Blatty.  Simply put, it would go on to surpass the impact of “The French Connection”.

The release of “The Exorcist” in 1973 was a seismic event in cinema history, terrifying audiences to their core and redefining the horror genre.  Its visceral depiction of demonic possession and groundbreaking special effects left viewers physically ill and fainting in theaters, while its controversial themes sparked widespread debate and censorship battles.  The film did not just scare people, it altered the cultural landscape, embedding itself in the public consciousness and setting a new standard for what horror could achieve both artistically and commercially.

Revisiting it today, it is undeniable the power that the film delivers.  Though not a period piece, the film remains undated due to its intimate location and focus as well as its use of traditional Catholic settings and rituals that saturate the mood.  For all its supernatural fireworks, the tone stays heavily grounded in realism, and benefits significantly from a uniformly brilliant cast that maintains the dread. 

In the end, it is the immense imbalance in the conflict at the center of the film that truly chills the viewer.  This is not the story (as so many New Hollywood films had been) of a man who has lived his life by playing outside the rules, and now finds himself up against a corrupt but all-too powerful group that he must bring down or die trying.  This is the story of an adolescent girl, who was chosen, with no explainable reason, for seemingly endless torment at the hands of unfathomable evil – the devil himself.  What is the true nature of innocence and corruption?  How will we react when confronted with our deepest fears and vulnerabilities?  Is there a limit to faith in the face of such unimaginable suffering?

It is the final choice of Father Karras that provides the film’s only answer, serving as a profound statement on redemption and grace.  By taking the demon unto himself and leaping to his death, he embodies the ultimate act of sacrifice and selflessness, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil through personal martyrdom.  His actions suggest that true redemption requires profound personal cost and that the fight against darkness demands not just faith but a willingness to confront one’s own demons.  In this moment, the film underscores the theme of salvation, wrestles with the complexity of human faith, and embraces the enduring power of love as the only choice against hate.