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SEE PAGE 76 62 C I N E M O N T A G E B O O K R E V I E W Beatty and Leslie Caron. Yet Blatty's faith remained with him, even if only scant traces could be discerned in his work up to that point. But in 1969, he was still profoundly distraught by the death of his mother two years earlier. "I would say in my case, my grief could be described by an outside observer as neurotic [and] over- drawn," he said. In response to his grief, Blatty remembered the real-life exorcism he had once read about and set about fictional- izing it for his first non-comic novel, "The Exorcist." By his lights, the novel would not only be a gripping, chilling tale but would achieve something even more profound: prove the existence of a higher power. "Here, at last, was tangible evidence of tran- scendence," Blatty said of the real-life case. "If there were demons, there were angels and probably a God and a life everlasting." Proof of a higher filmmaking power, at least, may be discerned in the numerous bits of chance and coincidence that helped get the movie made, including Blatty's HIGH PRIEST: William Friedkin directing "The Exorcist." P H OT O : P H OT O F E S T. initial instinct to hire Friedkin, who, at the time that the manuscript for "The Exor- cist" was being circulated, was completing what would be his breakthrough film, the Oscar-winning "The French Connection." In seeking Friedkin's services, however, Blatty was not merely latching onto the directorial flavor of the month but following his gut. Years earlier, when he was still in the em- ploy of Edwards, Blatty had crossed paths with Friedkin, who had reacted unfavorably to a script Blatty penned for Edwards — a script about which Blatty shared Friedkin's low opinion. Holding the director in high regard for his rather merciless honesty, Blatty came to believe that Friedkin could make "The Exorcist" into an authentic and believable film. Crucial to that believability was the film's casting. Although superstars such as Paul Newman and Jack Nicholson lobbied for the part of Father Karras — and Stacy Keach had been cast in the role — Friedkin would hear of no one but Jason Miller, a Catholic University of America-educated playwright who had the manner and coun- tenance of a man of the cloth. Meanwhile, the search for a young thespian to play Re- gan had largely been a frustrating, fruitless aair until the almost-accidental discovery of Linda Blair. "There came a time when I thought we were not gonna be able to make this film with a twelve- or thirteen-year- old," Friedkin said, but when Blair's mother arrived unannounced with her daughter in tow, the director had the foresight to agree to see her — another miracle, at least of the casting gods? Casting Max von Sydow as Father Merrin was comparatively straight- forward, although the Swedish actor made no bones about the fact that he did not share his on-screen character's religious convic- tions. Although he had been cast as Jesus in George Stevens's "The Greatest Story Ever Told," von Sydow told Friedkin, "I played Jesus, but I didn't play him as a Christian, I played him as a man."