Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

The Exorcist III Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 8, 2016

Rarely has a film so completely reinvented a genre as The Exorcist did when it was released in 1973. William Peter Blatty’s original source novel had already become a publishing phenomenon, shooting to the top of virtually every bestseller list and then staying there, and the intense speculation about how the book would matriculate to its screen version grew to a fever pitch in the months before the film premiered. In a perhaps “kinder, gentler” era, it’s notable that The Exorcist did not open on Christmas Day (as I suspect it might in current times), but the day after Christmas, becoming a sort of demonic “present” for fans of the book and horror films in general. Audiences had never experienced an intellectual horror film like this before, and certainly had never seen anything like the astounding special makeup effects that made the transformation of Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair) so disturbing and unforgettable. The film, much like its source novel, became a hit of unimaginable proportions, scooping up two handfuls of Academy Award nominations (winning one of its two for William Peter Blatty’s adapted screenplay), which of course led to a slew of “possession” movies and, ultimately, to the first “official” sequel, the much lamented Exorcist II: The Heretic. That film’s troubled production and release history would seem to have been enough to permanently kill the supposed franchise, but dreams (demonic or otherwise) die hard in Hollywood, and Blatty himself felt he needed to rescue his “baby” (possessed or otherwise), leading to 1990’s The Exorcist III. Due to the vagaries of the typically obstacle laden film industry, Blatty’s original screenplay had initially been rejected by a number of studios, and so he did an end run by retooling it and releasing it as his novel Legion. When Blatty and producer Carter de Haven (interviewed extensively on some of the special features included on this new Blu-ray) were finally able to ink a deal, Blatty then re-retooled things for the film version. Kind of like a lost soul forced to relive the same (bad) experience over and over in Purgatory, The Exorcist III met with the same kind of response and eventual recutting that Exorcist II had encountered, with studio imposed changes that did not meet with Blatty’s approval. This new Scream Factory release will be an interesting “study piece” for students of film history who love to explore the original visions of directors, for it offers both the standard theatrical cut of the film, as well as a more or less reconstituted version which more closely aligns with what Blatty wanted to bring to the screen. As is usual with Scream Factory’s releases, the two disc set is stuffed full of appealing bonus material.

As I’ve done with several previous Scream Factory releases of films that have already had other Blu-ray releases (The Thing, Carrie), I’m going to assume most coming to this review are already going to know the basic plot outlines and will instead be looking for comparisons in audio-video quality, as well as the supplements this release includes. For those who would like a recap of The Exorcist III’s plot, I refer to you Michael Reuben’s The Exorcist III Blu-ray review of the original Warner Blu-ray release.

The Exorcist III Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Exorcist III is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Shout is touting a new 2K scan of the theatrical cut, and there are some notable differences between this release and the previous Warner release. As with several other re-releases I've reviewed, I've tried to recreate or at least come close to several of the screenshots accompanying Michael's review so that those interested can compare and contrast, something I find to be preferable in some ways to me trying to describe the differences. Detail levels and especially some fine detail levels are noticeably improved in this transfer, and the palette is more vivid and perhaps just slightly warmer looking (flesh tones are just a bit ruddier in this presentation), though the overall transfer is a bit darker than the Warner release. In his The Exorcist III Blu-ray review, Michael mentioned a number of anomalies, including noise and weak contrast. To my eyes, the Scream release may actually have boosted contrast a bit, though not to the point that anything looks unnatural. I frankly didn't notice any noise or major compression artifacts (bitrates are healthy throughout), and the grain typically resolves naturally, though along with contrast boosting it appears that some digital sharpening has been applied, something that can give grain a somewhat coarser than expected appearance. As Michael noted in his review, occasional blacks look slightly crushed, with elements like dark clothing (including priests' vestments) tending to blend with shadowy backgrounds. There's some recurrent image instability at play at times, with minor wobble evident. Overall I consider this to be a commendable upgrade to the Warner release, even if there are still a few issues to address.

The Exorcist III Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Exorcist III offers DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 mixes, both of which provide excellent fidelity but which are hobbled a lack of separation or even discrete channelization in the case of the surround track. As Michael noted in his review of the Warner release, the surround track is very front and center heavy, with only occasional protrusions from the side and rear channels. While some effects have decent force, nothing ever really rattles the floorboards as some might expect (or hope). Barry De Vorzon's evocative score occasionally spreads through the surrounds, but even it seems contained at times.

The Exorcist III Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Theatrical Version (1080p; 1:49:59)


• Vintage Featurette (1080p; 7:13) perhaps unsurprisingly features footage from the original film.


• Photo Galleries

  Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p; 3:37)

  Posters and Lobby Cards Photo Gallery (1080p; 5:45)

  Still Gallery (1080p; 4:07)

• Trailers (1080p; 3:10)


• TV Spots (1080p; 2:25)


• Deleted Scene, Alternate Takes and Bloopers (1080p; 5:44)


• Deleted Prologue (1080p; 2:44)


• Vintage Interviews (1080i; 38:35) feature William Peter Blatty, producer James Robinson, Larry King, C. Everett Koop, Ed Flanders and even a few brief comments from the notoriously recalcitrant George C. Scott.

Disc Two

• Director's Cut (1080p; 1:44:58). Some may find it impossible to really properly assess this version, since it's cobbled together from less than optimal sources (see screenshot 19 for Scream's text proviso at the beginning of the film), but my personal initial reaction to it is that it doesn't really offer a huge reinvention of the film as much as it provides a few added nuances, including a better overall presentation of Brad Dourif's character. Screenshots 16-18 show some of the VHS inserts this version features.


• Audio Interview with Director / Writer William Peter Blatty features Michael Felsher of Red Shirt Pictures interviewing Blatty in a rather far ranging and at times provocative discussion. This plays as a kind of quasi-commentary under the film and is accessible either through the audio option on your remote or either as a separate supplement or vis a vis the setup menu (in other words, they really want to make this accessible).


• A "Wonderfull" Time (1080p; 24:30) is, like the following supplements, listed separately but is in fact part of one multi-part documentary entitled Death, Be Not Proud. All of these featurettes offer some great interviews with a wide array of talent involved with the film, as well as others tangentially involved.


• Signs of the Gemini (1080p; 17:42) features Brad Dourif.


• The Devil in the Details (1080p; 18:03) features Lesley Dilley, production designer, and others involved with the film's physical production.


• Music for a Padded Cell (1080p; 15:16) features composer Barry De Vorzon.


• All This Bleeding (1080p; 28:49) talks about some of the drama surrounding the shooting and production of the film.

The Exorcist III Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Exorcist III is probably better than its general reputation, which is not to suggest it's any undiscovered masterpiece. Unfortunately Blatty wasn't able to complete his original vision, though in seeing some of the footage from the cobbled together Director's Cut, I have to say at least some of the decisions made with regard to the Theatrical Cut are at least defensible. Technical merits are generally very good to excellent, and as usual Scream Factory has assembled some great supplements. Recommended.