MovieChat Forums > The Exorcist III (1990) Discussion > Blatty Audio Interview

Blatty Audio Interview

posted 8 years ago by apollo86
4 replies | jump to latest

Just been working through all the Blu-ray extras, and the audio interview with Blatty really stands out for me as the best special feature (plenty of competition though!) I thought it would be brief enough but it actually plays over the duration of the Legion cut like an audio commentary would and is really wide-ranging and full of great information. I'm going to listen again soon as there's so much discussed, but some of the standout nuggets for me are:

- Blatty's first choice for Kinderman was Marlon Brando. Imagine what his Kinderman could have been like! He would have been coming back into acting after retiring for almost 10 years, and returned more eccentric than ever (see Island of Dr Moreau). It never came to pass because of Brando's salary and schedule demands. Also thought it was funny that Kinderman actually mentioned Brando in the original book :)

- He spends a bit of time talking about the production of the Ninth Configuration too, sounds like the cast went crazy being stuck in Communist Hungary, especially Nicol Williamson, who got sent home after trashing a hotel room and throwing a phone out the window. By luck they managed to get Stacy Keach on short notice. Jason Miller and Joe Spinell got up to some crazy exploits as well

- Blatty speaks glowingly about Ed Flanders, saying that he wanted him to play Karras in the original and auditioned him. Also speaks poignantly about his death and how he felt partly responsible as he spoke to him about the afterlife shortly before he died. He acknowledges that Jason Miller is unsurpassable as Karras.

- There's a nice few funny jabs at Exorcist 2 as he recounts seeing it in the cinema and being the first to crack up, and sums it all up with "Poor Linda Blair!" :)

- When asked about doing fan conventions/signings, Blatty says he doesn't move too far away from home these days. He is happy with his life's work and has no plans to release any new work

- George C Scott wanted to play down Kinderman's Jewishness.

- Loves Brad Dourif and was a fan of his since One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. He had written an early draft screenplay for Cuckoo's Nest which he thinks would have been even better than the released film.

- He is overall satisfied with the film and is happy that it has a following, as he saw that it started appearing on some lists of greatest horror movies.

That's what I can remember off the top of my head, it really is a treat though. It's so great that Blatty still has a good recall of events and great sense of humour at nearly 90- what a great ol' guy!

[–] AFriendOfMrWhite 8 years ago

I honestly didn't think much of Blatty's audio commentary, but what really stood out for me was how little involvement he had with the filming of the new ending. He understandably speaks lowly of it ("people raising out of hell and all that stuff"), and says he had nothing to do with it. Later on he says "well, I guess I supervised that at some level" or something like that. While he doesn't give much details, my guess is that he wrote Father Morning's character and the "I believe" speech, and left special effects people do their magic on their own.

And the best extra is not Blatty's interview, it's Brad Dourif giving his opinion on "The Exorcist II"!

[–] apollo86 8 years ago

Yes, he was fairly vague on a lot of the technical aspects of the movie. He was asked also about how the Mrs Clelia ceiling effect was achieved and didn't really have an answer, making reference to the special effects team. Judging by the documentary, the filming of the new ending was fairly disorganised and chaotic with a lot of stuff not working.

Brad sure didn't hold back, was a very funny moment.

[–] Crazyhorse30 8 years ago

That interview might be the last piece of oral history we get from Blatty, who is 88. He seemed pretty spry with most of his responses. Maybe he forgot a lot of information, but if I make it to 88 I'd love to have a mind like his!

My film work and movie reviews: https://gcaggiano.wordpress.com/film-work-reviews/

[–] apollo86 8 years ago

Agreed, he seemed to have more to say about his earlier works, and recalled the odd anecdote about EX3 cast members, but when the interviewer was trying to tease out some specific production info he didn't recall too much. Got me thinking that a full commentary from all the effects guys moderated by an interviewer would have been a great companion track.

It was still a fascinating conversation though, and as you say may very well be the last time we hear him speak at length about his work. He seems to be content and enjoying life anyway!