The Exorcist Review

I cannot stress enough how much I loved this book. Blatty has a way with words. The opening paragraph does a beautiful job of setting up the rest of the book. This had the right balance of character and horror elements of most of the readings this semester. Blatty’s verse has this literary quality to it, which lends it a quality which lends the story an unearthly tone and carries the mood throughout the novel.

I found Chris to be stronger character than I think most people will give her credit for. In some ways, she reminds me of my own: if there was a problem, why not tackle it head-on? And if it doesn’t give, take a few more whacks at it. Reagan, yes, she is a child, but she does show an acute sense of self up until her possession. Father Karras is a deal more complex. However, Blatty doesn’t ignore any supporting characters, like Dennings the drunk.

What is truly frightening about this novel was certainly the demon, but the fear is multilayered. In one sense, the plight of the characters pulls the reader in and drags them through their own personal Hell. Father Karras, has the plight of his faith, his profession, and his ailing mother. Karras was an Everyman in this sense. Chris, too. Her attempts to balance her career, raising a daughter on her own. This is what gives this novel its power. When confronted with the evil that has taken her daughter, she was literally and figuratively, watching her daughter die.

During Reagan’s possession, we see the true evil, and the true terror of this novel. Not only does the demon take a child, but it speaks vulgarities against the divine aspect of creation, but it is aware of events. Such as Damien Karras’s loss of his mother. It is moments like this that made me wonder if evil will win. Another frightening aspect of the demon is surely its disdain for human life, calling Reagan a piglet on several occasions. With Blatty’s writing, we see a weakness I the demon. When Karras questioned whether or not it was in fact the devil (Satan), the demon became irate. Surely, if this was Lucifer himself, the possession would not be as violet. I would even go so far as to say this was a lower demon.

If Dante’s Divine Comedy is any parallel, Lucifer is stationary in the center of the ninth circle of Hell with the lower demons acting as emissaries to give him souls. God is the center of Paradise, and usually acts through His angels. With this in mind, it seems that the demon was lying to itself, but it couldn’t fool Karras.

If there’s anything to be said about Blatty’s writing, I would have to say he is a bit long-winded at times, but he makes up for this with his high-tension scenes. I’ve noticed he has his calm periods, but the tension is still there and it builds in such a way where I spent entire afternoons turning pages. One of the most chilling aspects of Blatty’s writing style is the combination of simple and yet literary style: you know what’s going on around you, but you’re utterly helpless to stop it.

Paranormal Activity Review

The first time I watched this some years ago, I found it to be a solid scare. However, after some thought, I found it to have an incredible flexibility in its limiting yet unblinking perspective: the camera. Then again, that took away from something. I compare it to the Blair Witch Project. The limited yet unblinking perspective captured the fear that only a handheld camera can.

The couple, Micah and Katie move into their new home and Micah must record everything (because that’s what nerds do). Honestly, this seemed homemade sex tape but with an unseen demon thrown in for some extra spice in the bedroom. Everything seems fine and well-to-do, until things start to move around. In some ways, the home became a Chess board from Hell: action and reaction.

Katie seemed to be more aware of more than what she let on. In fact, she let her fears take the reins for much of the film, though she did have her few-and-far-in-between moments. She was more of an archetype that wasn’t fully fleshed out. Another limitation from the camera-only perspective is that it caught everything, but it didn’t go deep enough. The character development relied on typical responses to the paranormal.

Micah was much the same. But then again, this is where the appeal comes into play. They were designed to be a normal as possible. Sure, they moved into a haunted house, in no small part to Micah screwing around with a Ouija Board. Perhaps Micah’s strongest trait was his curiosity, which turned into fear near the end.

One place Katie shined was when she called for specialized help, whichever could be found. Even that was little help, typical of this kind of tale.

What I found to be a solid scare was eventually I sympathized with the couple. Sure, I had my gripes and groans, but they wiggled their way into my cold, dead heart. Sure, they had their annoying traits, but that added dimension.

What I found to be oddly true in many demonic haunting tales is if you fear it, whatever it is, that fear becomes its strength. Katie was the easiest target for whatever was in the house. The psychic help did say that it follows them around, mainly her. Now, this may be my inner feminist coming out, but that signals her as the weaker or the duo. On the flip side of this, the most useful tactic is to target the strongest first my using their inherent weaknesses. Or making one by simple mind games.

In hindsight of this, Paranormal Activity stands as an entertaining take on the haunted house, or better yet, the haunted person subgenre of Horror. Given the limits, there were several moments that stood out to me: one being the scene where the three-digit feet appear on the floor, denoting this thing isn’t quite human in form. This reminded me heavily of Lovecraft: if you could see the thing, surely, you’d go mad. I would have the say my favorite scene is when Katie was pulled from her bed and down the hallway.

Grave's end Review

Grave’s End didn’t fill me with the kind of dread I was expecting. Sure, it had its moments, but it was tame by many standards and compared to other pieces like this. However, this piece, did have its moments. I found myself thinking Karin possessed or at the very least empathic enough to pick up on the negative emotions left in the home.

            

 I found this well written to be sure. But, this reminded me of something I would see on the Travel Channel: family-oriented horror. It is certainly enjoyable, but not something I would find particularly frightening. This also does go against the ghostly grain in a number of ways.

           

 Granted I found this typical of the real ghost story subgenre, I found some of myself in some of the people mentioned in this. I would find it reasonable to seek outside help,

         

However (again), I didn’t find this very frightening. It may be due to the nature of the haunting. Sure, things were weird at the beginning and the poltergeist activity increased. It takes more than that to scare me. It would take a full apparition capable of harm. I will give the bumps in the night their credit, but they only work up to a point. This seemed to be a common restless spirit story. Though entertaining, it was far from was I would have expected.

             

Mercado’s scientific background comes into play early on and it serves her well, up to a point. When the poltergeist activity picks up, it sets her entire family on edge, and so her reaching out to spiritual help is not unheard of. It could be expected, with her children being easily affected by whatever entity is around. I found it a reasonable approach to the issue.

             

What I found difficult to understand was her family’s reaction to this. It seemed well within reason, but it didn’t have a real quality to it. I found it difficult to really understand how this could stand out against the other true ghost stories. Granted the Exorcist house is one of the most famous haunted locations in the United States, Grave’s End seems a dim flame in comparison. Perhaps an unfair comparison considering the presence didn’t seem demonic.

             

Another aspect I found a bit difficult to accept was the parapsychology course. It seemed too convenient. I wasn’t too fond of that. Scientific reasoning versus the paranormal/supernatural would have been an easy topic to conjure up interest. However, I just didn’t find this all too intriguing of a read. Her portrayals of her family didn’t give me cause for concern. It sounds harsh, but I wanted to know more about the people in her life and how the haunting affected them. I know it was all in the book, but I felt something missing and I can’t quite pin point it. I would have liked to have known whom lived in my home before me and started from there.