To me it was almost like watching a tug of war between two directors with different aims. Was there animosity between them?

For some reason I'd pretty much avoided this for 4 decades, but on watching it now it seemed to fall a bit between two stools, lagged a bit in the middle and I found it difficult to dedicate my attention towards it. It just didn't engage me from around the point of the tree attack. I ended up watching it more to try and appreciate it rather than because I was being entertained. Its 9 years after The Exorcist and to me is inferior in almost every way. Yet it is clearly adored by millions.

5/10