In What Ways does the Director William Freidkin try to make The Exorcist an unconventional experience for the audience, how does that help to trig...

Freidkin’s The Exorcist (1973) uniquely integrates microelements such as sound and mise-en-scene to devise a distinctive, unconventional style of horror that provides rich, authentic triggers for the audience to respond. Freidkin’s unconventional style focuses on realism, an aspect that many big-budget horror films fail to explore. Realism presented throughout the film explores the taboo topics of the supernatural, demons, and possession – topics that remained hidden in society then and now. Therefore, The Exorcist remains to be one of the best horror films with nine nominations at the Oscars, winning Best Sound, and Best Screenplay and the only horror movie to haunt people 40 years later.

Firstly, Freidkin’s uncanny use of mise-en-scene depicts an eerie and peculiar trigger that establishes the emotional response of the audience feeling entrapped in certain scenes. For instance, the Georgian setting of the house has an autumnal feel, leaves falling off the trees, creating a mysterious vibe, which is reinforced with the windy aspect to it. The house is an important prop as it carries significance throughout the film because there is a lot of foreshadowing especially when the first few signs of Regan’s possession are evident. For instance, as most of the characteristics take place at night, there are numerous wide shots of the house, and this mysterious house presented in the day, creates a sinister and claustropbic setting at night – without the setting feeling extra ordinary for the audience. The impact on the spectator establishes this idea of dark evenings, gloomy weather, and Halloween that takes place in autumn months.

Halloween in itself may be an emotional trigger for audiences, because Halloween, according to Mexican trad...

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...tness a pre-teen using such language like ‘fuck me’ making people even more aware and fearful of the Devil’s work.

Overall, the unsettling atmosphere with the characters feeling a lot more human and ordinary establishes an authentic sensation that is presented throughout the film. The mise-en-scene and sound are micro elements that are brilliant in depicting the raw, uneasiness and tense atmosphere that audiences feel instantly when Regan turns. Throughout the film, the sound remains to be one of the microelements that still chills audiences past and present with a unforgettable soundtrack which contemporary horror movies try to achieve, despite the minimal effort achieved by Boeddeker. Alongside this, Smith (make-up), Fretwell (costume) and Wunderlich‘s (set) all provided an unconventional style of horror that no other horror film manages to achieve effortlessly.