Editorials
‘The Exorcist III’ at 30: Brad Dourif’s Incredible Performance as the Gemini Killer is Legion
The mere mention of The Exorcist III tends to bring to mind two things: one of the most effective and iconic jump scares of all time, and Brad Dourif‘s intense performance as the Gemini Killer. That William Peter Blatty‘s sequel already boasts a stacked cast, led by powerhouse George C. Scott, only speaks to the strength of Dourif’s scene-stealing appearance in the sequel. In the thirty years since the film’s release, on August 17, 1990, the discourse has explored just about every corner of Blatty’s vision. Even still, not enough praise has been heaped upon Dourif for what he brought to the table, or the effort he put into the character.
Blatty, who wrote the original novel and then a screenplay for The Exorcist, eventually conceived of a story for a sequel for William Friedkin to direct. When creative differences caused Friedkin to back out, Blatty instead turned the story idea into a novel, Legion. After it landed on the bestseller list, he then decided to turn it into a screenplay. After more creative differences with potential directors, including John Carpenter, Blatty took on the director’s seat. He cast Scott as Lt. William F. Kinderman, and Dourif as Patient X, a psychiatric patient claiming to be both the deceased Gemini Killer and Father Karras.
Set fifteen years after the events of the first film, a new series of murders plagues Georgetown, and they bear an uncanny resemblance to the murders of serial killer James “The Gemini” Venamun. The only hitch is that Venamun was executed around the same time as Karras sacrificed his life to save young Regan MacNeil. Kinderman’s investigation leads him to an amnesiac psychiatric patient in the hospital, who claims to be both the Gemini Killer and Father Karras.
The scenes between Scott and Dourif are mesmerizing; Dourif’s long monologues contain every bit of the actor’s trademark intensity. The actor has a way of humanizing even the evillest of characters, which makes them far more compelling as a result. The sheer volume of dialogue spoken, and while Dourif’s role remains confined to a straightjacket, meant a tricky performance to get right. It took time… a lot of time. Both Blatty and Dourif went through it line by line, breaking down each singular thought to get the character right, to make it engaging for an audience. He nailed it- the progression of emotions in his monologues are enthralling to watch. As is the push and pull between Venamun and the stoic Kinderman.
The only catch? The studio wasn’t happy with the cut Blatty turned in. His more character-focused, less supernatural movie ended on a bleak note- with Kinderman shooting Patient X in the head- and contained absolutely no exorcisms. They demanded reshoots that would include an exorcism. Moreover, they wanted Jason Miller, the original Father Karras, to play Patient X for brand recognition. That resulted in Blatty calling Dourif to break the news that his part in the film would be cut entirely.
Blatty’s plans would quickly be changed once again when Miller’s declining health and battle with alcoholism proved too difficult for the actor to retain the large swaths of dialogue his part entailed. So, Blatty called Dourif back and asked him to return to the role, in a slightly different capacity. To appease the studios, Miller would play Karras, and Dourif would play the Gemini Killer. He had roughly only two days to prepare for the altered role and script, still with an overabundance of monologuing to study.
This wasn’t the first time Dourif came through on short notice. On Child’s Play, Dourif was only cast to play killer Charles Lee Ray in the opening, with Jessica Walter providing the voice of Chucky. Director Tom Holland realized her voice didn’t fit the character and called Dourif back in to voice the now-iconic killer doll. All of which to say, that throughout Dourif’s career, he’s shown immense reliability and professionalism. Chucky is his most recognizable role, for good reason, but the Gemini Killer marks arguably his strongest performance in horror. Dourif made portraying such a tricky role look effortless, which is no small feat.
Dourif himself prefers Blatty’s original version over the theatrical, and it makes perfect sense; playing all components of Patient X gave added complexity and even a little ambiguity to the part. He still shines just as bright in the theatrical cut, though, digging in and grabbing hold of Venamun’s family issues to give a grounded, empathetic performance that makes for one of the most memorable characters of all time. To scene-steal from the likes of George C. Scott alone makes Dourif an actor worth celebrating.
The problem with filming sequels back-to-back is that, unless you can afford expensive reshoots, there’s no easy way to adjust course in between movies if fans react badly to where the story is headed. That’s why it’s important to have a complete narrative thought out well in advance lest you accidentally kill a budding franchise.
However, this isn’t always the case. Every once in a while, it seems like the cinema gods smile upon certain chaotic productions and gift moviegoers with complete franchises that feel like more than the sum of their hastily produced parts. Ted Nicolaou’s Bloodlust: Subspecies III is precisely one of these miraculous pictures, with the raw talents of the artists involved (as well as the continued support from Romania) turning the feature into an effective conclusion for a series that kind of made things up as the filmmakers went along.
That’s why I’d like to invite my fellow readers to join me on this third part of our journey through the Subspecies franchise as we look into Bloodlust and talk about how it remains a surprisingly satisfying finale to the original trilogy.
A Trilogy Planned on the Fly
Released only a year after Bloodstone found plenty of success in rental stores and mail-in VHS catalogues worldwide, 1994’s Bloodlust was produced at the same time as its predecessor in (mostly) the same locations and with the same team. This means that the movie benefited from all the same upgrades as Bloodstone, with the crew now being more experienced with the ins and outs of surviving a low-budget Romanian production and the cast really settling into their characters.
At this point, everything from location scouting to the makeup process had been streamlined, with Wayne Toth and Norman Cabrera, the main duo behind special effects, even switching out time-consuming prosthetics for latex gloves in order to speed up Anders Hove’s monstrous transformation. The titular “subspecies” demons were also once again relegated to a mere cameo appearance due to the laborious puppetry required to bring them to life.
The only real hiccup came from the fact that actress Denice Duff had replaced the first film’s Michelle (Laura Mae Tate) and was immediately expected to portray the character as both an innocent victim in part II and as a secondary villain in part III. According to behind-the-scenes interviews, the hectic production schedule that blended two different movies meant that Duff would often find herself having to alternate between two incredibly different versions of Michelle during the same shooting day – though it’s obvious that she’s having more fun with Bloodlust’s more traditionally vampiric version of her character.
In the finished film, we pick things up immediately where the previous entry left off as Rebecca (Melanie Shatner) is forced to leave her vampire sister Michelle (Duff) behind in the dungeons of Castle Vladislav due to the rising sun. This allows Mummy (Pamela Gordon) to use Michelle’s blood to revive the vicious Radu (Hove) so that he may continue his quest for the coveted Bloodstone – a magical artifact that perpetually drips the Blood of Saints.
Meanwhile, the dreamy US embassy agent Mel (Kevin Blair) agrees to help Rebecca plan a rescue mission, though they’re unaware that Radu has become infatuated with Michelle during his attempts to guide her growing bloodlust. This all culminates in a climactic confrontation meant to tie up all of the series’ loose ends in one of Full Moon Pictures’ most ambitious productions.
The Evolution of Radu
Like its predecessor, Bloodlust: Subspecies III was also warmly received by fans who argued that the series was an even bigger success than Full Moon’s other major horror franchise, Puppet Master. This praise wasn’t unanimous, however, as 1994 had seen the rise of a more modern breed of sexy vampire popularized by Anne Rice, with old-school Nosferatu like Radu being viewed as obsolete when compared to the likes of Lestat and Gary Oldman’s take on Dracula.
In a way, one might argue that Nicolaou’s film is something of a swan song for the classic vampire story, as Bloodlust combines all of the traditional elements we tend to associate with these tales into a single tragic yarn that ties a neat little bow on Radu’s story as well as the old-fashioned monster movies that he represents. The finale remains shocking despite the fact that this is the third time we see Radu get brutally killed onscreen, with the brief tease that he may one day return feeling more like a nod towards the nature of evil rather than sequel bait.
The film dabbles a bit in gothic romance and even explores the inherent power fantasy behind transforming into an immortal creature of the night, but the filmmakers never lose sight of Radu as a demonic force even when he’s willing to betray his beloved Mummy for Michelle’s sake. In fact, his twisted “love” for his fledgling makes him even creepier as we get the feeling that his passion comes from a dark and disturbing place.
Anders Hove is at his absolute best in this film, with the effects department boosting his moments of what the younger generation would call “aura farming” whenever Radu emerges from shadows like a 90s version of Count Orlok. There are even a couple of surprisingly effective jump-scares here, which is why I’d argue that Bloodlust cements Radu as one of the most memorable cinematic vampires of all time despite his humble origins.
Subspecies Saves Its Best For Last
Nicolaou and Vlad Panescu also saved the best for “last” (more on that in a bit) regarding the film’s visuals, with the cinematography and overall atmosphere of Bloodlust absolutely surpassing what we saw in the previous films. Everything feels appropriately climactic this time around (including the wonderful soundtrack that was co-composed alongside an authentic Romanian orchestra), and I appreciate how this is the fastest-paced entry in the trilogy since the film doesn’t need to waste time setting anything up.
Bloodlust still suffers from some of the same low-budget blemishes as its predecessors, but there’s so much creative passion here that no amount of wonky effects work or stilted dialogue can get in the way of appreciating the flick’s gothic grandeur. That’s why it’s not surprising that the movie’s definitive(-ish) ending would later be retconned as fans begged for more Radu.
Of course, the next entry in this series would be a different kind of vampiric endeavor altogether, with the filmmakers attempting to engage with the same trends that ultimately killed Radu and his antiquated kin. That, however, is a story for another time. For now, I’ll merely insist that Bloodlust: Subspecies III remains a highlight of Full Moon’s expansive catalogue and is definitely worth seeking out today.
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