The Exorcist (film) Siskel placed it in the top five films released that year. BBC film critic Mark Kermode believes the film to be the best film ever made, saying: "There's a theory that great films give back to you whatever it is you bring to them. It's absolutely true with The Exorcist—it reflects the anxieties of the audience. Some people think it's an outright horror-fest, but I don't. It was written by a devout Catholic who hoped it would make people think positively about the existence of God. William Peter Blatty, who wrote the book, thought that if there are demons then
Exorcist II: The Heretic turkey." Steven Scheuer wrote, "This may be the worst sequel in the history of film." Gene Siskel of the "Chicago Tribune" gave the film zero stars out of four and declared it "the worst major motion picture I've seen in almost eight years on the job." Danny Peary dismissed "Exorcist II" as "absurd." In his 1984 book "The Hollywood Hall of Shame", Michael Medved called the film "a thoroughly wretched piece of work," and added, "Richard Burton is a laugh a minute." Edward Margulies called the film a "calamitious, head-scratching, sequel..a rollicking mess" and wondered "whatever possessed them?" "The Blockbuster