universal answer to the exorcist isn not a very good one . unfortunately and the film offer bland and unimaginative direction from michael winner who waste an outstanding cast with a screenplay mass crater size plot hole . not to mention and it unbearably silly never explain certain key element within the story . model cristina rain move into a high rise own by the catholic church with a creepy and blind priest john carradine and who hole up in there always at the window . she begin to suffer faint spell and nausea . what bad be tenant she meet in the building such a burgess meredith ( with a cat and a canary . ) and a young beverly dangelo a a lesbian . ava gardner ( look great at 55 ) be the realtor who show rain the place . cristina lover be chris sarandon and whose wife commit suicide after find out they be have an affair . josé ferrer have a small role a the priest of the brotherhood who inform monsignor arthur kennedy to be careful a he head to the very high rise not only housing carradine but raines as well . sarandon send a hired hand up to the high rise one night to check out a certain room above cristina apartment where she hear metallic clanging and other loud racket . he wind up dead the very same night cristina kill her dead father in a nightmare . scream mad on the street and cristina do indeed have blood on her which lead police detective eli wallach and partner christopher walken to investigate them with sure certainty that it all somehow lead back to sarandon who be a hot shot lawyer who once beat the cop in court regard the whole wife suicide . that case be really a motivating factor be wallach dogged approach to find out whose blood be really on cristina and if sarandon have anything to do with it . you also have martin balsam a a professor who understand this type of latin cristina mysteriously understand and unbilled actor such a jeff goldblum a a fashion photographer and tom berenger a a man interested in this certain room that have become available in the very room ( now renovate ) that cristina once stay in . what bother me more than anything be lack of explanation . towards the end of the film wallach and walken be forget and we be left wonder why they just up and quit investigate . their character be just leave on the back burner . how the priest know that now be the time when a certain man will die and must be replace to guard a certain gate in that high rise and why cristina suffers through the trauma she do isn not adequately explain . how certain ghost just appear to cristina and disappear when she try to show gardner the room they occupy during a cat birthday ( see for yourself ) isn not adequately explain . not to mention gardner role in the grand scheme of thing . she bring people to that high rise and but what be really her reason in the film . it seem like this film should have be long and clear thing up left lose to a rushed conclusion that be just laughable when it should be scary .