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“Exorcist II: The Heretic” has long been regarded as one of the worst movie sequels ever made, even topping AV Club’s list of “The 25 Worst Movie Sequels of All Time“. It ranks above infamous films like “Son of the Mask”, “Grease 2”, “Batman & Robin” and “Jaws: The Revenge”—stiff competition in the realm of cinematic disasters. Yet, according to them, “Exorcist II” surpasses all in sheer awfulness. I’ve never been much of an “Exorcist” fan; I did catch the 2000 re-release in theaters, and I watched the director’s cut of Part III about six years ago. But until now, I had never braved the notorious first sequel.
The story follows a now-adolescent Regan MacNeil, who appears to have no memory of her traumatic demonic possession from the first film. However, she is undergoing psychological treatment to cope with the lingering effects. Father Philip Lamont, a priest struggling with his faith, is tasked with investigating the death of Father Merrin, who performed the original exorcism. His investigation leads him to uncover a connection between Regan’s past possession and an ancient evil force known as Pazuzu. As he delves deeper, he becomes drawn into a mystical journey involving hypnosis, visions, and a confrontation with the demonic entity once again, all while grappling with his own beliefs.
The events that occur in “Exorcist II” reminded me in a way of the events in “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. In that movie,” Indiana Jones plays a key role in the action but ultimately has no influence over the final outcome. Whether or not he intervenes, the Nazis still find the Ark, open it, and are destroyed by its supernatural power. Indy’s actions don’t change the course of events; the Ark’s inherent power seals the villains’ fate on its own. In “Exorcist II”, Regan would have been perfectly fine if not for the priest’s decision to investigate Father Merrin’s death. His insistence on using experimental technology to unlock her repressed memories only stirs up trouble, dragging her back into the demonic chaos she had left behind.
It doesn’t make any sense that Regan’s doctor would go along with the whims of a random priest who just shows up at the treatment center. There’s no way she’d be allowed to discuss Regan’s medical file with some stranger, priest or not. The whole setup stretches credibility, as it’s a blatant breach of patient confidentiality and medical ethics.
But from that point on, the movie turns into a meandering fever dream, packed with flashbacks of Father Merrin, James Earl Jones as a leopard man and endless swarms of locusts. And somehow, this fever dream takes up an hour and forty minute. The plot goes everywhere—quite literally—as the middle section suddenly shifts to Africa, or at least a sound stage awkwardly trying to resemble it. It’s been an hour since the end credits rolled, and I’m already struggling to recall what I just watched, as if the film is slipping away from memory as fast as it unfolded.
Eventually, the movie circles back to where it all began: Regan’s bedroom. I’m not entirely sure what happened there, but the priest seemed to be under some kind of spell, though Regan willingly followed him anyway. Suddenly, there are two Regans—one of them transforms into the possessed version from the first movie. The priest fights the possessed Regan, someone’s heart gets ripped out, a nurse sets herself on fire for no apparent reason, and then, it’s over. Spoiler alert for a movie that’s nearly 50 years old, I guess!
At least Linda Blair gave it her all and was actually quite enjoyable to watch. She was charming as this carefree, tap-dancing teenager who seemed to have overcome the horrors of the first film. Too bad that priest had to show up and ruin everything for her. It really highlights the contrast between “The Exorcist” and “Exorcist II: The Heretic”. In the original, a priest shows up at the end to save the day; in this one, a priest shows up at the beginning and unleashes chaos. The original is hailed as one of the greatest horror films ever made, while the other is remembered as one of the worst.
