Boorman and the Devil

Boorman and the Devil premiered last year at the Venice International Film Festival last year, then debuted theatrically just this August and on home media in September. I was going to watch it on Amazon, but then I found it for free on Xfinity via TCM. That was lucky.

When The Exorcist debuted in 1973, its unprecedented success got everyone excited for a sequel. Everybody, that is, except for the folks who made the first one. The Bills - director Friedkin and author Blatty - weren’t up for it, and neither was Ellen Burstyn (Chris McNeil). Linda Blair (Regan) wasn’t excited, though she came aboard with stipulations. Now for the director …

John Boorman, who refused and detested the first film, was interested in William Goodhart’s intellectual screenplay (based on the writings of Pierre Teilhard). Boorman and his Creative Associate, Rospo Pallenberg were especially interested in making the first film’s “riposte.” Eventually, a whole bunch of stuff happened, and when the final product, Exorcist II: The Heretic, was finally released in June of 1977, everyone practically hated it. David Kittredge tells us all about it here.

What kind of anecdotes can you expect? Well, you can learn about how hard it was to work with Richard Burton (Father Lamont), whether at table reads or on set. Blair’s own problems aren’t alluded to here, other than her own tardiness. One crew member tells us how he helped maintain the hundreds of locusts used on-screen. You’ll also learn about Pallenberg’s contributions, like gender-swapping Dr. Gene Tuskin for Louise Fletcher (who is prominently posthumously featured), and reworking the ending when Boorman contracted valley fever. You’ll even learn about blind bidding, a process that The Heretic’s failure helped outlaw. These stories are illustrated with some neat graphics, some of which resemble storyboards.

It even elaborates on a famous anecdote. In 2013, Friedkin told an audience at the Chicago Film Critics Festival of how an angry audience chased a few Warner guys out of The Heretic’s first test screening ten minutes in. Chris Landers, who attended the screening as a boy, tells us that it was his slightly older friend, Dave, who pointed out the guys. It’s not only a fascinating revelation, but it makes it all the funnier (I’m sure no one was hurt). It’s also interesting, since going by the film, the scene where they lost it was sixteen minutes in. Anyway, incidents like that forced Boorman to rush out a re-cut, which didn’t help much.

What else can we learn about it? It mostly stuck to the Warner Bros backlot when its international shoot proved unfeasible. It’s fascinating to see how cinematographer William A. Fraker, who was Oscar-nominated that year for Looking for Mr. Goodbar and shortlisted for this one, matched the stage lighting with whatever they got on location. It’s equally interesting to see how the filmmakers pulled off their in-camera effects, including its mirror flashbacks. You’ll be impressed, and shaken, with how they filmed Regan nearly sleepwalking off a building - Warner’s New York offices! Boorman advises future filmmakers to “find a better job,” but I think they can learn a lot from The Heretic.

Ultimately, it functions as a good retrospective on Boorman’s career. Whether it’s his directorial debut - the Dave Clark Five vehicle Catch Us If You Can - or the bonkers Zardoz and yes, The Heretic, all of his films look visually stunning - some more than others. His reminiscences about his second film, Point Blank, are vitally educational for movie color design. You’ll see clips of them all throughout this documentary’s 112-minutes. The Heretic’s failure demoralized him and nearly obliterated his career, and he still has mixed feelings about it. Still, it’s heartening to know that he regained his standing with his next film, Excalibur, and mostly never lost it.

At the end, its talking heads can’t come to a consensus about The Heretic. An admirable effort for some, a dud for others, and a masterpiece for more. Boorman and the Devil invites you to come to your own conclusion. As for mine, I think it does a good job portraying The Heretic as fascinating a failure as David Lynch’s Dune. I’d rather watch The Heretic’s unintentional comedy than Believer ever again. You may disagree, but Boorman provides some vital context for The Heretic's shortcomings. Watch it and learn, that's what I think.