It’s fair to say that Exorcist II: The Heretic is one of the most problematic/ controversial/ at times downright puzzling of all sequences. The late 70’s film brings together a confusing African subplot, lots of flying by the wings of hornets footage, hamming it up/ overplaying it acting, and wacky science. Here from Arrow Video is a double disc Blu-Ray release of the film- bringing together two cuts of the film, two new commentary tracks and a new visual essay- as well as three archive commentary tracks, and a few archive extras.

Exorcist II: The Heretic appeared in 1977 four years after the first film. It was directed by Rosehill, Carshalton, Surrey, England-born John Boorman. He had a total of eighteen features to his name- these take tense crime thriller Point Blank (1967), backwoods thriller Deliverance (1972), wacky sci-fi fantasy Zardoz (1974), Jungle action adventure The Emerald Forest (1985), post-Apartheid South Africa dark drama In My Country (2004).

The film finds Regan( Linda Blair) now a seemingly demon-free teen trying to get over the events of the first film, she’s doing top-hatted dancing in a stage show, hanging out in a grand/ mirrored apartment, with a large white pigeon bound balcony, and working with therapist Dr. Gene Tuskin(Louise Fletcher) in a soft furnished sliding glass-walled lab with other troubled children/ teens.

Our other lead character here is Father Lamont (Richard Burton) a moody/ sweaty priest who is sent to investigate the death of Father Merrin(Max Von Sydow) from the first film.  Blended in with these two key characters/storylines we have trips often via the wings of locus into a red-brooding skied Africa where tribal chief Older Kokumo(James Earl Jones) seemingly knows something of the first film's demon.

The film moves from overtly dramatic encounters between Regan, the doctor, and the priest within the see-through glass-walled lab- as they strap black tape/ red light-lit wired crowns to their heads & stare in a pulsing white for memory regression. Regan drifts around her plush apartment and out on the balcony, and  Lamont has intense encounters with other holy men, and we get the mentioned trip into brooding skied Ethiopian. With the whole thing moving towards an only in the 70’s total OTT resolve.

I can still recall when I first saw the film in the early 90’s and really saw it as a puzzling, messy & OTT experience. I’ve now seen it many more times, and I’ll have to admit I find the whole thing rather charming/enduring in its 70-ness over-the-topness. I guess you’d call it a blend of supernatural thriller & horror fantasy-fed fair- it’s never very chilling or gory, yes there are a few tense/ taut moments- but these can be( depending on your mood) effective/ unintentionally amusing. 

Moving onto this double Blu-Ray set. On the first disc, we get the uncut/ original premiere version of the film, four commentary tracks- two new & two archive ones, and a few other new/ archive extras. Disc two takes in the International/ original cut of the film, as well as archive commentary track, and trailer. Both versions of the film take in a new HD scan- I only watched the original version of the film for this review, and I must say it’s a nicely bold/ bright print, with wonderfully clarity and depth.

Moving onto the new extras on the set, first off we get two new commentaries- one film historian Lee Gambin and filmmaker David Kittredge, director of the feature-length Exorcist II documentary, Heretics. And one with screenwriter and author Kelly Goodner and film historian Jim Hemphill. I played the first of these, and it’s a most enthusiastic and informative track. They open by discussing the film's opening credits- which were designed by Dan Kerry, who did credits for the first film, as well as those for the first/ original Star Wars film. Moving on they talk about their first experience with watching the film on VHS. They point out the impressive in-camera effects, and talk about how the film is full of big ideas- but often comes off as silly. We find out the film had the biggest budget of any Warner Bros until that time, and the pair point out ornate and complex shots in the film.  We find out that both Jon Voight and Christopher Walken were up for the role of Father Lamont, with details given as to why they didn’t get the role.  We find out that Linda Blair got a million $’s for her role, with Burton receiving Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand $’s- which he used to pay off his divorce settlement. We find out Burton didn't give his all to the role, often forgetting his lines & drinking at lunch time which made him unpredictable. Later on, they discuss how the film got cut by sixteen minutes after its premiere- with a new ending. They comment on the in-depth research done on Ethiopian costumes. They point out the more disco-like visuals in the picture, and we find out the makers removed blue & green colours from the film- as they were seen as light and optimism.  So a most worthy/ interesting track.

The only other new extra here is  It’s Okay, He’s Gone ( 12.31) which is a visual essay from film critics BJ and Harmony Colangelo. It focuses on the development of the Regan character between the two films- this is ok I guess, though didn’t really add anything new/state the obvious.

On the archive side of things on the first disc, we get: two commentary tracks- one with director John Boorman, and one with special consultant Scott Michael Bosco.  What Does She Remember?- interview with Linda Blair, and  Interview with Editor Tom Priestley. Theatrical trailer, Teaser trailer, & Extensive image galleries. On the second disc, we have by film critic Mike White of The Projection Booth podcast.

The finished release features a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Peter Savieri. And an illustrated booklet featuring new writing by film critics Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, Glenn Kenny and Matt Rogerson, plus an archival interview with cinematographer William Fraker.

It certainly is wonderful to see this definitive release of Exorcist II: The Heretic- with this new Arrow Video release featuring a classy & crisp new HD scan, and a good selection of new/ old extras.