Exorcist II: The Heretic (Arrow Video)

[i-kari]

I couldn’t care less for a 4K, but the question is is this worth upgrading from the Shout release?

[rip63]

Great news. I have the original Warner Bros release, but never got around to going for the SF upgrade because of their generally absurd overpricing.

[rip63]

Great news. I have the original Warner Bros release, but never got around to going for the SF upgrade because of their generally absurd prices.

[Anthony Thorne]

I thought this announcement was a pleasant surprise, will grab it the month it comes out.

[RossyG]

I’d love to read the Making Of book, but it goes for silly money. Shame it couldn’t be reprinted for this release.

I’m really looking forward to this, though, and it’ll be my first viewing of the original version. My only quibble (other than it not being 4K) is that I wish the reverse sleeve were the slipcover. I love that image. As a boy of about 14 I had a book about horror films - none of which I’d seen, but that would soon change - and that was in it.

I’d never encountered the word heretic before and assumed it was pronounced to rhyme with emetic. In fact, I still think of this film as being called Exorcist 2: the Huh-RETT-ic.

[oddbox83]

Originally Posted by i-kari

I couldn’t care less for a 4K, but the question is is this worth upgrading from the Shout release?

Well, there's some room for improvement. Their newer scan than the Warner BD should have looked better in all areas doesn't resolve grain (and thus any extra detail) great. I suspect a better encode of the Shout master will help. https://caps-a-holic.com/c.php?a=1&x...1&l=0&i=0&go=1

[DaylightsEnd]

WB really annoys me with this crap. It keeps happening. Eight YEARS into the uhd format, WB still can’t be arsed to release the grand bulk of their stellar back catalog on 4k, or generate new 4k scans, and won’t license out the 4k rights and/or provide a 4K scan to boutiques. So we get yet another blu ray. Coma, Last Man Standing, Exorcist II, etc. That would’ve been swell and all in 2014, but they can piss off in 2024. I hate that slumlord WB almost disdainfully treats most of its back catalog films as an undesirable liability rather than an asset.

[oddbox83]

It's probably more that there isn't a 4K scan and Warner don't want to bother for this movie, as opposed to them purposefully preventing anyone from a 4K. The Shout scan was 2K. Presumably Warner won't let any indie near the OCN.

[DaylightsEnd]

Exactly. They’re squatting on a gold mine, the bulk of which will not see its highest and best use. Gobs of pure classics in their catalog sit parked on decade-old blu rays often from dated transfers and have likely dead-ended there. It’s a crying shame. The Warner Archives should be renamed the Warner Mausoleum. Wake me when films like Omega Man and Logan’s Run start seeing the light of day in uhd.

[SpacemanDoug]

Originally Posted by DaylightsEnd

Exactly. They’re squatting on a gold mine, the bulk of which will not see its highest and best use. Gobs of pure classics in their catalog sit parked on decade-old blu rays often from dated transfers and have likely dead-ended there. It’s a crying shame. The Warner Archives should be renamed the Warner Mausoleum. Wake me when films like Omega Man and Logan’s Run start seeing the light of day in uhd.

As much sh-t as Paramount gets, at least they do regard their back catalog

[Anthony Thorne]

Originally Posted by RossyG

I’d love to read the Making Of book, but it goes for silly money. Shame it couldn’t be reprinted for this release.

It's on free hourly loan at Archive dot org right here.

https://archive.org/details/makingof...0pall/mode/2up

[Paul4films]

Would have been nice if Exorcist II was a least a 4K scam of the original camera negative even on standard Blu-ray would have brought NEW life to this film... However let's see how this Arrow release fairs hopefully it's a strong source?

[SpacemanDoug]

Originally Posted by Paul4films

Would have been nice if Exorcist II was a least a 4K scam of the original camera negative even on standard Blu-ray would have brought NEW life to this film... However let's see how this Arrow release fairs hopefully it's a strong source?

it'll likely be the same scans that Shout released a few years ago

[BNex99]

Originally Posted by RossyG

I’m really looking forward to this, though, and it’ll be my first viewing of the original version. My only quibble (other than it not being 4K) is that I wish the reverse sleeve were the slipcover. I love that image. As a boy of about 14 I had a book about horror films - none of which I’d seen, but that would soon change - and that was in it.

When did you first see the movie? The original version has been widely available since the late 1980s, and it was only in 2018 that Shout finally released the recut version for the first time since the Japanese laserdisc (though it did play on TV a bit in the 90s).

[snipemonkey]

Originally Posted by JackForrester

Yes sir! Read it last year and can't recommend it enough for fans of the film. Boorman and his collaborator Rospo Pallenberg were so sure they were making something truly epic, it's very sad.

What do you mean "were so sure"????

This movie is the definition of EPIC.

Kidding aside, I love this movie unconditionally. It's amazing and I will gladly die on that hill. I will probably have to buy this just because there can never be enough Exorcist II in my life.

[JackForrester]

Originally Posted by snipemonkey

What do you mean "were so sure"????

This movie is the definition of EPIC.

Kidding aside, I love this movie unconditionally. It's amazing and I will gladly die on that hill. I will probably have to buy this just because there can never be enough Exorcist II in my life.

Oh don't get me wrong, it's a fascinating film and there are many aspects of it that I love

[CompleteCount]

This reminds me of when I shat my denims a while ago. The stains came out, but I was worried that tell-tale signs would give me away.

I resorted to hypnotising my Wrangers into forgetting the incident, repeating the words:

"Jeans, you will not remember...".

[drush9999]

Originally Posted by BNex99

When did you first see the movie? The original version has been widely available since the late 1980s, and it was only in 2018 that Shout finally released the recut version for the first time since the Japanese laserdisc (though it did play on TV a bit in the 90s).

Think there's confusion over what is the original version, the longer Boorman preferred 118 min cut has been the standard version for years, but the altered shorter version was the Theatrical Cut.

[DomH75]

From what I understand, the original materials of Exorcist II have gone the same way as the additional materials for Exorcist III. There is no negative. Remember, this is often called 'the worst sequel of all time'! Ashamed, the various Warner owners ensured the materials were buried away and they are currently lost to time.

All Warner/Shout/Arrow have is the materials used in Shout's release, which, IIRC is from prints. And it's likely a 4K would produce little of benefit that a Blu-ray wouldn't.

So I'm glad to have anything at all. I love Exorcist II. The original Exorcist film is one of my favourite films of all time. I recognise that Exorcist II is a terrible sequel to the original, misunderstanding the entire point of the film, but, taken on its own merits as a deranged science-fiction/fantasy film, it's full of intriguing ideas and visuals that would resurface in later Boorman films such as Excalibur.

I'm delighted we're getting a two-disc release. A 4K of Exorcist III coming out in the UK from Arrow was inevitable sooner or later. This was completely unexpected. Consequently, I bought Exorcist III 4K, Exorcist II, J-Horror Rising and Trick'r'Treat 4K in one big shopping cart. Probably the most I've spent on discs since I imported the complete Dark Shadows coffin set over a decade ago!!

Exorcist II deserves some sort of reappraisal. It's flawed as heck and there are some terrible jump cuts, but there are some great, eerie moments. I'm delighted to be able to put a Blu-ray version on my shelf.

And yes, a commentary by Mark Kermode and Kim Newman would be awesome on this film!!

[surfinhank]

Still, it's hard to believe that a major studio film would destroy a negative for one of their own films, no matter how bad or poorly received.