Unburied Trailers: MORE Demented Exorcist Knockoffs!

As we noted in part 1, the 1973 horror classic The Exorcist was a box office blockbuster. The horror genre up to that point had so far glossed over Judeo-Christian themes of personified evil directly menacing mortals on a one-on-one basis. But The Exorcist made movie-makers the world over switch focus in a big hurry. Before you could say “don’t break my balls, priest,” demons were the “in” thing and any of the other stock horror boogies were yesterday’s news.

Add to that the weird atmosphere of the mid-1970s where the Flower Power generation settled down into a marketable demographic, Italian Giallo was in its golden age, and a general revival of interest in horror, and you have a formula for chaotic confusion. Film culture at large went scrabbling for any demon-possession yarn they could get their mitts on, accompanied by the stock effects tropes: must either (1) spin head, (2) puke glop, (3) talk in a creepy voice-over, (4) levitate furniture, or preferably all of the above.

Without further ado, roll that demented demon footage!

Enter the Devil (1974)

Wait, I thought the whole point of demon possession was that the devil enters you! Anyway, we open with a whole chapel of singing nuns (Catholics! Taking up one-half of the horror genre since 1973!) while our hapless possessee has a Satangasm. And then we get this infernal Hell vision that starts out with Jesus (presumably) breaking down off the cross, apparently pissed about being crucified and looking for revenge... and you won’t BUH-LIEVE what happens next! In case you’re curious, we’re told the rest of this movie is so depraved and sleazy that the trailer is practically showing you the tame parts. You want Giallo, you got Giallo!

Magdalena, Possessed by the Devil (1974)

It’s the German, ginger-haired Exorcist! This one is very tame by our standards. Surprisingly enough Germany doesn’t seem to produce much in the way of horror movies, when you think about it. Our protagonist here, however, makes up for this ho-hum production by swooping around to bounce her copper locks at every dramatic opportunity, and then at the end... Wait, why is this woman dressed like a fusion of Magenta and Columbia from The Rocky Horror Picture Show ?

The Antichrist (1974)

Let this one wash over you like a firehose of crazy. First that hideous logo that looks like the Illuminati putting on a rave. Then the obligatory furniture flying around while the possessee writhes on the ground. Wait, who invited the KKK to Mass? Mmmm, yummy eyeball! Dobermans must have been getting sick and tired of being in horror movies in the 1970s. On a more dignified note, they had some interesting visuals with the sets and costuming amidst the chaos.

Lisa and the Devil (1973)

You are so not ready for this... OK, we have TELLY SEVALAS (Yes, Kojak, lollipops, that guy!) as a demonic butler in what would have been a classic Mario Bava Giallo outing but was instead hastily recut, reshot, and respun as an Exorcist knock-off to cash in on the fad - hence the re-titling as “House of Exorcism.” And then we have a demented trailer, with our possessee being carted down a hospital corridor cussing out the camera. Try to hang in there for lines like “Don’t break my balls, priest!” People usually never get as far as the trailer because by the time you’ve told them “Telly Sevalas in a horror movie...” they’ve already collapsed in laughter until they have a brain aneurysm.

Satan (1974)

What, you survived that last one! You made it all the way down here? You brave soul, what a pity that your reward for your fortitude is to be finished off by none other than... TURKISH Exorcist! Featuring this chubby kid who looks like she was already possessed by a box of Hostess Twinkies, this movie reads exactly like somebody on a shoestring budget trying to copy The Exorcist but without having seen it, just based on rumors. The spinning head effect, treated as a throwaway bit in the original, is presented here as the highlight, despite being as impressive as spinning around on a barstool with a tent over you.

One trailer just does not do Turkish Exorcist justice. Here’s a clip just so you can be sure they really went the extra mile to copy as much of the original as they could. You like how they keep re-using the spinning head effect like it’s supposed to stay scary every time? How about that demon statue - could it be made of cake frosting, a topper for the devil’s wedding cake?

It’s over! It’s finally over!

We can’t take any more Exorcist knock-offs, and we think you can’t either. Even Satan has had enough! Given the indignities that the Devil had to suffer to his reputation in the mid-1970s, it’s a wonder he didn’t sue for defamation.

For a cool-down, you might want to consider a supercut of spinning-head scenes . As if you hadn't seen that trick enough already.

Unburied Trailers: MORE Demented Exorcist Knockoffs! Tweet it