L'Exorciste III : La légion

A much much better version of the film. Here the film has been tidied up a great deal so that the original concept of one character being played by one actor is restored. I also found it much slower and firstly much more of a detective story, which we only latterly come to consider might at least involve forces from the first film. The ending is also far better too. I think the director was trying to tell a slower more mediative story and in the end that vision wasn't allowed to come through. Instead they wanted a big showy elaborate finale where everything but the kitchen sink is thrown at us. Stick to this version though, it's far better, even if some scenes are still missing.

Oddly enough this comes out literally just as William Peter Blatty dies. Maybe it is a fitting end to his brilliant writing and filmmaking.

Yes you have to look past the fact that much of the "new" footage is old, bad quality and looks like it was ripped from an old VHS tape but that just leaves so much more to the imagination - much like the first version of the film did. Also a brilliant movie.

Gone are some sub-plots and even people from the original film and this version has definitely been de-Hollywootized and instead been Twin Peaksed.... stripped of many of the more elaborate sets and special effects - but it still works.

The part that was so amazing in the first film was the mood, the moments, the small things - and it's carried on into this version. I don't want to do any spoilers so I'll leave it at that. But if you loved the original you don't want to miss this one. Great acting, great lines and moments that get under your skin in a way few (if any) movies manages to do today.

Judging from the two flicks he made, William Peter Blatty was a talented director. He had vision and ambition. But that didn't make him infallible. THE EXORCIST III is a case in point. The theatrical version was flawed and we loved to blame the "suits" who demanded changes and re-shoots. But now here's LEGION, the version Blatty intended to make and I'm sad to report that it's even more flawed than the theatrical version. The theatrical version had that silly exorcism at the end, which brought an up until that point thoughtful flick down to the level of bargain basement horror. But the ending of the director's cut isn't much better, it's extremely anti-climactic and a million miles removed from the theological ending of the book. Another big difference is that in the director's cut Brad Dourif plays both the Gemini Killer/Patient X and Karras. You gotta hand it to the "suits" at Morgan Creek who insisted on re-shoots with Jason Miller, because the going back and forth between Dourif/Gemini and Miller/Karras in the theatrical version works like a charm. That part is much better in the theatrical version.

What's great about EXORCIST III remains great in the director's cut: the performances, especially the lead role by George C. Scott, the eerie atmosphere and photography and the best jump scare I have ever seen.

All in all, EXORCIST III remains flawed in both versions. But it's great that we can establish that by ourselves, thanks to the good folks who assembled the director's cut from whatever crude material they could get their hands on. In that respect, it's mostly historically interesting.

This is a fantastic bit of cinema. It hits a lot of the same home runs as the original "Exorcist" - stellar performances and cinematography, gripping plot and a strong script. But where it diverges (brilliantly) is in theme: this is a mystery movie with supernatural elements, as opposed to a horror film with Christian elements. Legion: Exorcist III uses a serial killer plot to explore overarching themes of existentialism, faith and - yes, there's a clue in the title - demonic possession.

This is a very different experience to the 1972 predecessor, and so comparisons are unfair. While not unsettling in the same ways as the first film, Exorcist 3 still provides ratcheting tension and impressive scares over the course of its generous runtime. The lasting impression we're left with is one of a riveting story, supported by outstanding performances from Scott, Dourif and Nancy Fish (whose work here isn't recognized enough - she's unsettling, and brilliant).

As before, William Peter Blatty (in my opinion, one of the finest writers. Full stop, no qualifiers.) adapts his own excellent novel into a tense, finely-drawn screenplay which runs along at a brisk pace. One could argue that the final act is more explicit, and ultimately less effective, than the rest of the movie - but that's a matter of personal taste, as opposed to an objective quality issue.

I can't recommend this enough - it treads difficult water, between an epic prequel and its own subtler self, with great success. A definite recommendation!

The theatrical cut is in my opinion better. But I think it's a matter of taste. It doesn't matter which version you like, they are both great. But I think the theatrical cut is a little better.