The Exorcist is so much more than a horror film (partly explaining why it got a look in at the Oscars), it is in fact a thoroughly realistic look at what at modern America, with a possessed girl at the centre of the story. Blatty's script brings depth to the characters and delves into the sense of horror that runs like a hot current through biblical texts - the terror of not knowing, the unease when confronted with the unexplainable.