Is The Exorcist woke?
The Exorcist (1973)
Movie
Released: January 1, 1973
Wokeness Score
0/10
Not woke
No political or woke messaging whatsoever. Focuses entirely on story, characters, fun, or escapism.
Key Summary Points
- No woke messaging; promotes faith and traditional Catholic values over secularism.
- Portrays single motherhood and feminism-era changes as leading to demonic vulnerability.
- Centers male priests restoring order; rejects science for religious solutions.
Wokeness Analysis
The Exorcist (1973) contains no progressive social or political messaging, representation of marginalized groups, indoctrination, or social commentary aligned with modern woke ideology. Released in an era of cultural upheaval including second-wave feminism and challenges to traditional authority, the film instead promotes conservative themes of faith, the dangers of secularism, and the restoration of patriarchal order through Catholic exorcism. The single mother Chris MacNeil's career focus is portrayed as contributing to family vulnerability, while science and medicine fail, requiring religious intervention by male priests to save the possessed girl Regan. Analyses from conservative perspectives highlight it as a reaction against 1960s counterculture, feminism, and moral decay, emphasizing traditional values, the reality of evil, and the supremacy of Christianity. Modern reinterpretations attempting to frame it as feminist or queer are retrospective projections without basis in the film's intent or content, which prioritizes horror, character drama, and supernatural terror over any ideological agenda. The story focuses entirely on plot, characters, and escapism through religious horror.
Plot
In 1973's The Exorcist, successful actress Chris MacNeil and her 12-year-old daughter Regan live in Georgetown while Chris films a movie. Regan begins exhibiting bizarre behavior, including violent outbursts and unexplained phenomena. Medical and psychiatric interventions fail to help, leading Chris to seek assistance from two Catholic priests, Father Merrin and Father Karras. They perform an exorcism to battle a demonic entity possessing the girl. The film explores themes of faith, doubt, evil, and the supernatural in a tense, graphic horror narrative that shocked audiences with its intensity.