“Demons are a girl’s best friend”? Femminilità in rivolta e oppressione patriarcale in The Exorcist

The present paper intends to offer an overview of the analysis of the movie The Exorcist (L’esorcista, 1973, William Friedkin) drawn up by Barbara Creed, the first that offered an innovative interpretation of the film from the point of view of the gender studies, the article aims to provide a mapping of the stylistic features of the genre within the film that can be subjected to a gendered interpretation. Another purpose of the paper will be that of focalizing on the points of strength and on the points of weakness of Creed’s interpretation, suggesting additions or partial deviations from Creed’s lecture of the film. The ultimate intention of the article will be that of producing a study that, taking into account the sequences of the film that show Regan’s body, tries to understand if those manifestations of Regan’s body fall within the domain of the gesturality of a body clearly in revolt or within the domain of a body oppressed by strict patriarchal dictates.