Rating: two star

BILLED as 'the greatest movie ever made', William Friedkin's horror classic has been re-released on DVD complete with 11 extra minutes.

But sad to say, it just doesn't stand the test of time as special effects which might once have been ground-breaking now just look amateur and ludicrous.

While that can often add to the general ambience and spookiness of a film (Evil Dead, for example), alas it's not so in this case.

Linda Blair stars as Regan, a girl possessed by no less than the devil himself as she starts acting in bizarre ways.

Which is frightening for a while. But there's only so much vomit spewing and head spinning the audience can take before it becomes tedious and laughable.

There are some genuine freak-you-out moments, such as the subliminal flashes of demonic images in a 'did I really see that' way.

And I defy people not to be greatly disturbed by the infamous 'spider walk' which was cut from the original version.

Max von Sydow and Lee J Cobb are the priests sent to dispel the demon in an unintentionally funny exorcism scene.

The subject matter is possibly why it's still rated as highly as it is. But the reality fails to live up to the hype.

SC