CNET Networks Entertainment GameSpot | GameFAQs | SportsGamer | Metacritic | MP3.com | TV.com
Home | About Metacritic | About Metascores | What's New | Wireless Versions | Discussion Forums | Advertising Inquiries | Contact Us | RSS
Metacritic.com: We Deal With Criticism
     Help
> Switch to Advanced Search  
Film Video/DVD Music Games TV

Film

Upcoming Release Calendar
Weekend Box Office
Film Awards & Top 10s By Year
All-Time High Scores
All-Time Low Scores
How Metascores Are Calculated
Discuss Film In Our Forums

 

Wide Releases

sort by name sort by score

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

 

Limited Releases

sort by name sort by score

85 Alexandra
xx All of Us
53 Allah Made Me Funny: Live in Concert
57 Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela, The
40 America the Beautiful
66 American Teen
74 Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer
63 Appaloosa
xx Ashes of Time Redux
65 August Evening
xx Bachna Ae Haseeno
62 Baghead
81 Ballast
55 Battle in Seattle
59 Beautiful Losers
xx Beer for My Horses
47 Before the Rains
80 Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
xx Billy: The Early Years
63 Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story
56 Bottle Shock
75 Boy A
55 Bra Boys
xx Breakfast with Scot
61 Brick Lane
64 Brideshead Revisited
61 Bustin' Down the Door
xx Call and Response
49 Children of Huang Shi, The
47 Choke
xx Choose Connor
xx Christmas on Mars: A Fantastical Film Freakout Featuring the Flaming Lips
54 CSNY: Déjà Vu
41 Cthulhu
64 Duchess, The
85 Edge of Heaven, The
66 Elegy
33 Elite Squad
52 Elsa & Fred
80 Encounters at the End of the World
26 Everybody Wants to Be Italian
64 Fall, The
28 Fireproof
86 Flight of the Red Balloon, The
65 Flow: For Love of Water
37 Forever Strong
39 Forgiveness
82 Frozen River
73 Girl Cut in Two, A
62 Girls Rock!
xx Goal II: Living the Dream
73 Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
57 Good Dick
54 Hamlet 2
68 Happy-Go-Lucky
25 Hell Ride
44 Henry Poole is Here
31 Hounddog
53 Humboldt County
72 I Served the King of England
71 I.O.U.S. A
40 Igor
64 In Search of a Midnight Kiss
46 Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer
67 Jellyfish
xx Just Buried
62 Kabluey
63 Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
78 Last Mistress, The
52 Last Stop for Paul
70 Love Songs
xx Lower Learning
63 Man Named Pearl, A
89 Man on Wire
62 Mister Foe
86 Momma's Man
74 Mongol
80 Moving Midway
46 My Mexican Shivah
xx Nights and Weekends
73 Obscene
80 Order of Myths, The
67 Patti Smith: Dream of Life
xx Phoebe in Wonderland
55 Ping Pong Playa
77 Pool, The
72 Priceless
82 Rachel Getting Married
61 Red
55 Religulous
71 Roman de gare
78 Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
51 Savage Grace
58 Save Me
72 Secret, A
45 Shoot on Sight
57 Sixty Six
55 Sukiyaki Western Django
16 Surfer, Dude
82 Tell No One
56 Then She Found Me
63 Thousand Years of Good Prayers, A
71 To the Limit
57 Towelhead
72 Transsiberian
83 Trouble the Water
83 U2 3D
84 Up the Yangtze
52 Virtual JFK: Vietnam If Kennedy Had Lived
79 Visitor, The
xx W.
61 Wackness, The
xx Whaledreamers
54 What We Do Is Secret
66 When Did You Last See Your Father?
67 XXY
55 Year of the Fish
39 Young People F**king
75 Young@Heart

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

 



Printer-Friendly Version Email This Page Discuss In Our Forums

Exorcist: The Version You've Never Seen, The
Warner Bros.

Exorcist: The Version You've Never Seen, The reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 82 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
8.0 out of 10
based on 24 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 28 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: R for strong language and disturbing images

Starring Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty Winn, Jack MacGowran, Jason Miller, and Linda Blair

In this re-release of the horror classic, a 12 year old girl (Blair) becomes possessed by a malevolent spirit, and her only hope is an exorcism. Two priests are summoned to exorcise the demon.


GENRE(S): Horror  
WRITTEN BY: William Peter Blatty (also novel)  
DIRECTED BY: William Friedkin  
RELEASE DATE: DVD: December 26, 2000 
Video: December 26, 2000 
Theatrical: September 22, 2000 
RUNNING TIME: 131 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100
Portland Oregonian Kim Morgan
Isn't just a horror film, but an American classic. Watch again and reflect for days after -- at your own risk.
100
Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman
Classically scary.
100
San Francisco Chronicle Peter Stack
Friedkin has said the new, expanded version of his film has a more spiritual tone. But it's still a shocker.
Read Full Review
100
Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington
Re-released now in a digitally enhanced, sonically improved and slightly longer version, the movie is even better than it was in 1973.
91
Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
Here, in paranoid, bad acid trip form, is the real birth of girl power.
Read Full Review
90
Film.com John Hartl
The best thing about the new Exorcist is the spiffed-up soundtrack.
Read Full Review
90
Variety Robert Koehler
This edition of the seminal example of genre sensationalism refined by the cream of Hollywood craftsmanship is more complicated than a standard director's cut.
Read Full Review
90
Dallas Observer Robert Wilonsky
That's what directors do when they have nothing new to say: They go back and rewrite the past, if only to avoid facing the future
Read Full Review
89
Mr. Showbiz Larry Terenzi
It's shlock, yes, but at least it's highbrow shlock.
88
USA Today Susan Wloszczyna
Retains the power to turn heads -- and stomachs.
Read Full Review
88
Boston Globe Jay Carr
An upsetting landmark. Don't take the children.
88
Philadelphia Inquirer Desmond Ryan
Suffice it to say I prefer the original conclusion, and I think most Exorcist fans will agree
88
New York Post Lou Lumenick
His (Friedkin) very lack of subtlety is both the strength and weakness of The Exorcist in the 21st century.
88
San Francisco Examiner Wesley Morris
The amazing thing about the film, for anyone who hasn't had an intentional Hollywood scare lately, is that it still delivers on the most visceral level
88
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Was and is a brilliant horror film, one with an archetypal ability to reach and disturb us. If I were showing The Exorcist to a friend, I would show the 1973 version without the slightest hesitation.
Read Full Review
88
Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez
The Exorcist has lost none of its ability to invade your nightmares.
80
Washington Post Desson Thomson
A museum piece, something to be enjoyed for its historical value.
Read Full Review
80
Rolling Stone Peter Travers
There's something elemental about The Exorcist, even with the new hopeful ending that betrays the bleak original.
80
Chicago Reader Don Druker
You're scared witless much of the time, even if you conclude afterward that this 1973 movie was really pretty amateurish and simpleminded.
Read Full Review
75
New York Daily News Jack Mathews
The movie that launched a new era in horror films, and which, for one generation, remains one of the scariest experiences of their lives.
Read Full Review
70
TV Guide Frank Lovece
This truly terrifying film version of the best-selling Blatty novel is far superior to the book.
Read Full Review
70
TNT RoughCut Susannah Breslin
Still packs a wallop of terror for those with the strength of stomach for it.
50
Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
This hugely popular horror yarn is less a cleverly spun story than a disjointed collection of shockeroos, surrounding a few ghoulishly effective moments with overcooked plot twists and in-your-face vulgarity.
Read Full Review
40
Washington Post Stephen Hunter
11 minutes longer than the original, and 11 minutes worse.
Read Full Review

What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 8.0 (out of 10) based on 28 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Vanessa L. gave it a10:
This movie is sooooooooooo scarey that I had to sleep with my parents for a whole week. Just the thought of being in a bedroom creeps me out due to the fact that most of the film is shot in Ragen's room. The effects are brilliant, and the film itself does its job as a horror flick; it lets our imaginations run wild without our control. If you like extreme horror movies, you should definetly consider watching this. Otherwise, KEEP AWAY UNTIL YOU CAN TAKE IT!!!

Marc D. gave it an8:
The original film never frightened me. What it did went much deeper. Friedkin's original film adaptation of the Blatty novel was a landmark in cinematic horror because it was constrained by the limitations of its medium. Instead, it used them to provide the most while showing you as little as possible. Emotions like horror, and its close cousins suspense and tension, don't need to be created within the audience. They need to be brought to the surface. This is why 'The Exorcist' remains compelling viewing after 33 years. The concepts and themes within the film isn't anything we haven't seen before. It's always been there. The fear works because the fear is real on a primal level which we can't truly explain. We fear what we know. Subjecting the audience, the false sense of safety within that dark theatre is now revealed to be a silly misguided illusion. Friedkin knew this. As does fear. This version simply shows the same thing. And it's scary. Not as much though. We see a little more than we should. Ultimately, the best horror told is the one which leaves more to the imagination of the audience. Give us more credit Hollywood. Highbrow horror works.

[Anonymous] gave it a0:
Nothing but terrible.

M D gave it a10:
Miles ahead of its time and fully deserves the title of 'classic'.

Tony B. gave it a10:
For non-believers, a brilliantly conceived and executed horror classic. For the rest of us, it's all that and more, a tale awesome in its implications.

raphaella p. gave it a10:
This is a great film, this excelent!!!!

Rick T gave it a10:
This horror movie will always stand the test of time because it is simple horror with good vs. evil. This movie gets into your mind and you always remember it. I first saw the movie in 1973 and I could not watch in the theatre. I kept my head down the entire time. The gutteral sounds were frightening enough to send me to the lobby. I can now look at the film but it still remains to be very disturbing and thought provoking. I believe the re-release version is better. The spider walk scene scared the .... out of me and was totally unexpected. Most horror films end up becomming slasher movies. You cannot watch this film and not be effected by the disturbing turn of events.

Read more user comments...

Discuss this movie in our forums

Return to top of page
Home | FILM | DVD/VIDEO | MUSIC | GAMES | TV | Forums | About Metacritic metacritic.com

Popular on CBS sites: Fantasy Football | Miley Cyrus | MLB | iPhone 3G | GPS | Recipes | Shwayze | NFL

About CNET Networks | Jobs | Advertise

© 2008 CNET Networks, Inc., a CBS Company. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use