RIP William P. Blatty

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/13/books/william-peter-blatty-author-of-the-exorcist-dies-at-89.html?_r=0
 
 
I was 12 when I watched the movie with my grand-mother. My grand-mother being a very religious person, I suppose that there was a vibe in the house that made me even more receptive, with all the crucifixes and religious gear all around the house. Not to mention that the cellar trap door was right above my bedroom door and that it was often quite noisy up there. 
 
At any rate, the good thing is that no other movie managed to scare me after The Exorcist.
 
I can't tell you how many times I've watched it. We used to rent and watch it every weekend with one of my friends when I was a teenager - almost as if I needed to exorcise myself from it. It's also the first VHS I purchased. But no matter how often I watched it and read the book, it still freaked me out for years. 
 
And though it has long ceased to freak me out, I still watch it once or twice a year.  It was a good story and the film aged pretty well I think.

I'm embarrassed to say I saw it when it came out and I don't know why but it is the only movie that has ever scared the living crap out of me. I went with my wife and she thought it was "dumb" and unscary.  I've never admitted it to anyone that I sunk down in my seat while I was watching it. I saw it again years later and that time it wasn't scary at all.

Interesting.  I still recall laughing my ass off at the ridiculousness of it all the first time I saw it.  It's amazing how your preconditioning contributes to the effect it has on you.

jamesg1213

craigb
Interesting.  I still recall laughing my ass off at the ridiculousness of it all the first time I saw it.  It's amazing how your preconditioning contributes to the effect it has on you.

Interesting...what would you say was in (or not in) your preconditioning that stopped it scaring you?

Well, let's just say that the answer would probably be a TOS violation and leave it at that for now.

craigb
Interesting.  I still recall laughing my ass off at the ridiculousness of it all the first time I saw it.  It's amazing how your preconditioning contributes to the effect it has on you.

Ditto.
 
As I said, I grew up with my very Christian grand-mother in a house full of religious gear with few outside influences and no friend my age to speak of - we lived across the street from the cemetery, practically sandwiched between 2 funeral homes, a Catholic church and a convent.
 
It would have been hard no to end up being me. 
 
And The Exorcist was bound to leave a mark.
 
But even though it has long since stopped spooking me out, and even as a non-Christian, I do think it's a terrific movie. I mean that's how movies work - suspension of disbelief. So long as it is coherent within a given set of boundaries... Same way that I don't need to believe in it to enjoy Batman or Dracula.