The Exorcist (film) film's plot. In the book, the spider-walk is somewhat more muted, consisting of Regan following Sharon around near the floor and flicking a snake-like tongue at her ankles. A take of this version of the scene was filmed but went unused. A different take showing Regan with blood flowing from her mouth was inserted into the 2000 Director's Cut of the film however. "The Exorcist" contained a number of special effects, engineered by makeup artist Dick Smith. In one scene from the film, Max von Sydow is actually wearing more makeup than the possessed girl (Linda Blair). This was because
The Exorcist (film) in "The New Republic", wrote, "This is the scariest film I've seen in years—the "only" scary film I've seen in years ... If you want to be shaken—and I found out, while the picture was going, that that's what I wanted—then "The Exorcist" will scare the… (shit) out of you." "Variety" noted that it was "an expert telling of a supernatural horror story ... The climactic sequences assault the senses and the intellect with pure cinematic terror." In "Castle of Frankenstein", Joe Dante called it "an amazing film, and one destined to become at the very least a horror classic.