Sémantique

Rarely have I found it possible to read a book after I have already seen the movie. The process, I think, is much better the other way around , i.e. you first read the book and then read the movie. However, I have a penchant for horror tales and movies, and laying my hands on a tattered copy of The Exorcist at home was the best medicine for sleepless nights. I was very impressed with the book - the movie having made a general “green-pea-soup-vomit” impression on me. (Don’t get me wrong, I think the movie is nice and super-scary).

Moving to the book, it was extremely entertaining, fast-paced, and impressively enough - scientifically sound. While the movie deals with the exorcism, the book deals with the exorcist and his struggle to deal with Regan McNeil’s possession from the point of view of a priest and a psychiatrist. The book will be especially interesting for people who are scientifically inclined and even for an uninitiated person like me, it was an compelling read.

You may know how it all ends, but that won’t stop the book from being suspenseful and nail-bitingly chilling. I think we all agree that book versions are always better and that a book can never be translated into a satisfactory 70mm version. But the movie The Exorcist is a classic, and no one can argue about that. It is no wonder that it is, because it’s based on a brilliant book.