Jump to content

File:The Exorcist levitation scene.webm

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The_Exorcist_levitation_scene.webm (WebM audio/video file, VP9/Opus, length 2 min 14 s, 640 × 480 pixels, 991 kbps overall, file size: 15.8 MB)

Summary

[edit]
Media data and Non-free use rationale
Description Excerpt from 1973 film The Exorcist in which Fathers Merrin (Max von Sydow) and Karras (Jason Miller) are attempting to exorcise the demon Pazuzu from the body of Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair). Her body begins to levitate as the two priests chant "The power of Christ compels you!", whereupon it begins to lower itself back to the bed.
Author or
copyright owner
Warner Bros. Pictures
Source (WP:NFCC#4) YouTube
Date of publication 1973
Use in article (WP:NFCC#7) The Exorcist
Purpose of use in article (WP:NFCC#8) Several things:
  • The levitation scene was performed live before the camera and was one of the visual highlights of the film. The article contains extensive sourced discussion of how the special effect was achieved.
  • Director William Friedkin had the bedroom set refrigerated to −20 °F (−29 °C) so that the actors' breath would be visible on camera, per a description in the source novel, even though that often meant scenes could only be filmed for a few minutes at a time before the camera equipment and lights warmed the air too much. This is discussed at some length in the article with citations to reliable sources. The resulting effect is particularly noticeable in this scene.
  • Owen Roizman, the cinematographer, discussed in a lengthy interview around the film's release the challenges lighting it posed, since Friedman wanted to use as much natural or practical light as possible, an interview which several paragraphs in the article are sourced to. This scene was particularly challenging, but Roizman believed he produced the effect he wanted whereby the scene feels like black and white save for the fleshtones of the priests' faces.
  • In the half-century since the film's release, "The power of Christ compels you!" has become a popular catchphrase, and the scene has been referenced in other popular culture.
  • It also includes the possessed Regan addressing the priests with foul language, another aspect of the film that was much commented on at the time of its release.
Not replaceable with
free media because
(WP:NFCC#1)
The software or website from which the screenshot is taken is copyrighted and not released under a free license, so creation of a free image is not possible.
Minimal use (WP:NFCC#3) This excerpt, approximately 2 minutes from a movie slightly over 2 hours in length, is limited to just this scene and those elements relevant to the aspects of the movie listed above as discussed in the article
Respect for
commercial opportunities
(WP:NFCC#2)
The use of a low resolution screenshot from software or a website will not impact the commercial viability of the software or site.
Fair useFair use of copyrighted material in the context of The Exorcist//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Exorcist_levitation_scene.webmtrue

Licensing

[edit]

File history

Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time.

Date/TimeThumbnailDimensionsUserComment
current20:07, 28 March 20232 min 14 s, 640 × 480 (15.8 MB)Daniel Case (talk | contribs)Uploading an excerpt from a non-free work using File Upload Wizard

The following page uses this file:

Transcode status

Update transcode status
Format Bitrate Download Status Encode time
VP9 480P 352 kbps Completed 20:09, 28 March 2023 1 min 22 s
VP9 360P 251 kbps Completed 20:08, 28 March 2023 56 s
VP9 240P 188 kbps Completed 20:08, 28 March 2023 56 s
WebM 360P 613 kbps Completed 07:30, 31 October 2023 39 s
QuickTime 144p (MJPEG) 1.04 Mbps Completed 02:34, 9 October 2024 7.0 s

Metadata