The Bear says:
This week's City News bore the sad tidings that Brisbane was to lose another indie cinema venue, this time the Dendy at George St. As part of the winding down, we were going to get a double-feature of classic 70s horror in the form of The Exorcist and Carrie, plus an "after party". This sounded way too good to miss, so off we went.
The Exorcist screened first, in its "Director's Cut" version. This is an old favourite, and I think that the film has stood the test of time and while maybe not as shocking today as it was thirty years ago, I think remains confronting, disturbing, and "wrong". This was the first time I've actually seen it on the big screen, and I was interested that the crowd's reaction to the more grotesque parts of the film was laughter, particularly to Regan's sexually-laced obscenities. The wrong crowd? Or are we just that jaded now? This is the version of the film with the "spider walk" sequence restored to it, and finally seeing it in its original context I agree with Friedkin's original decision to remove it; I think it does work to "confirm" the supernatural aspect of what's happening to Regan far too early in the piece. Anyway, I thought the film still worked and was glad to see it on the big screen.
On the other hand, I don't think Carrie has weathered nearly as well. But I don't think this is really the fault of the film-making (except for maybe the gratuitous nudie shots in the girls' locker room at the beginning of the film). Rather, Carrie looks dated largely because the fashions of the 1970s look so absolutely ludicrous to us now (case in point - Tommy Ross' hair and frilly prom shirt). On the upside, I found Sissy Spacek's wide-eyed, blood-soaked vengeful Carrie to be eerie and compelling even today.
I'm really glad that the Dendy did this. I used to enjoy the double-features of classic films that the Village Twin was doing a few years back, but I guess that with home cinema taking off more and more there's less and less demand to see old movies on the big screen. What a pity.
Thanks, Dendy. You'll be missed.
PS: Does anyone else find it amazing how much people smoke in 70s movies? Even doctors in hospital wards (The Exorcist) or teachers in principals' offices (Carrie)?
The Girl says:
When I saw this advertised in the City News, I was very excited - I love going to the movies and I especially love double features and themed specials at the movies.
I was probably in a minority of viewers in the cinema, in that I had never actually seen either The Exorcist or Carrie previously. Of course, I'd read the Stephen King novel, but so many years ago that I really can't compare them. With that in mind, it is somewhat difficult for me to comment on whether the audience had any effect on the films' impact - but I can say that The Exorcist was mostly laughable - creepy and yes, wrong, but not really horror by todays standards. The acting was great though and there was a real mood set in the film, so I did enjoy it, I just wasn't scared! Carrie was just offensive - all that gratuitous teenage nudity, horrid bullying by awful American cheerleader girls and a purely evil main character that you were somehow meant to feel sorry for. Nah, it just didn't work - even if I did jump when Carrie's hand came out of the grave!
Despite the somewhat questionable quality of the films, it was a terrific night. It was very nostalgic sitting in the uncomfortable Dendy chairs and admiring the garish faux balconies on the walls. Yet another great loss to Brisbane cinema - with only the Myer Centre cinemas remaining, this will probably be the last time I see a movie in the Brisbane CBD :-(
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