The Exorcist III - Some quick thoughts

I am now the proud owner of the 3 film set of The Exorcist, The Exorcist 2 and The Exorcist 3. This is in no small part down to the genius of MM's father, who managed to find said object of horror (pun intended) on a ghoulishly good auction site (am I on fire or what?!).

Naturally we've mentioned The Exorcist round these parts already, and I may have touched on the bizzare and unintelligible sequel. However, the third film brings the goods once again, with no less than a nicely OTT performance from genre vet Brad Dourif as the Gemini Killer.

Spoiler Alert!
A quick recap for those of you who want it/want to spoil the film if you haven't seen it already: a spate of murders was brought to an end when the Gemini Killer was caught and executed. However, the killer looks to have returned - which creates a mystery of just how this is possible. Eventually, the cop on the case (a brilliantly acted George C Scott) realises that more than simply a case of copycat killing is taking place, leading him to suspect that an asylum lunatic is somehow responsible for the murders, despite his incarceration.

The greatness of The Exorcist 3 is in how subtle the whole damn film is. It helps to have seen both films previous to it before sitting down to watch, as references are made to time frames and it'll piece together more clearly for you. Almost a murder mystery, it'll have you guessing quite early on just who is responsible for the murders, before exposing you to a shocking revelation that provides some truly unnerving imagery leading up to the brilliant climatic battle of good versus evil.

One thing that Marvel Man did mention was how engrossed I appeared to be during a number of key sequences in the film. I really enjoyed The Exorcist 3 on that particular viewing, despite having to spell out the sequences to Marvel Man who isn't as familiar as I with the plot/background story. If truth be told, there's something to be said for atmosphere - especially of the tense, nerve creating kind - and The Exorcist 3 is filled with moments that'll have you wondering not only what the hell is going on but just about whether you'll be able to get any sleep at all during the night.

As a film that hasn't seen too many bad sequels, despite casting an incredibly large shadow, The Exorcist and The Exorcist 3 should be must haves for any genuine horror fan who prefers their scares more metaphorical than literal - after all, battles for the very nature of humanity and the soul don't come much more metaphysical...