Witchhammer (Blu-ray)

WitchhammerGenre: DramaLabel: Second RunDescription: PRODUCT DESCRIPTION Otakar Vávra's Witchhammer co-written by Ester Krumbachová (Daisies Fruit of Paradise) from Václav Kaplický s 1963 novel chronicles the series of notorious 17th Century Czech witch trials undertaken using the infamous Malleus Maleficarum (the Witchhammer of the title) the Catholic treatise on witchcraft which endorses the extermination of witches and developed a detailed legal and theological theory for this purpose. Using genuine court transcripts from the forced confessions of those accused of sorcery and collusion with the Devil it is a powerful and often shocking allegory of life under totalitarian rule. With echoes of Bergman and Franti ek Vlá il and with literary antecedents in Arthur s Miller s The Crucible and Aldous Huxley s The Devils of Loudon it is a disturbing political fable; and like Ken Russell's controversial expressionistic adaptation of Huxley s text The Devils (1971) and other films of the period such as Michael Reeves' Witchfinder General (1968) and Michael Armstrong's Mark of the Devil (1970) it serves as both grim genre film and compelling historical drama.BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS * Witchhammer (Kladivo na arod jnice 1969) presented from a new HD transfer from original materials by the Czech National Film Archive * New and exclusive filmed appreciation by writer and film historian Kat Ellinger * Otakar Vávra's short film The Light Penetrates the Dark (Svetlo proniká tmou 1931) * Booklet featuring a new essay by writer and film critic Samm Deighan * New and improved English subtitle translation * Original soundtrack in Dual Mono 24-bit LPCM audio * World Premiere on Blu-ray * Region Free REVIEW Made with relentless precision rhythm and logic... beautifully staged in CinemaScope with stylish photography by Josef Illík and a compelling score by Ji í Srnka --Peter HamesIts generic qualities recall the perfectly-executed excesses of Witchfinder General... A humanist horror film and an indisputable work of art --Senses of CinemaShocking and provocative Witchhammer is another excellent Czech film from the period --Letterboxd