Mark of the Devil

Rating:
Summary: Atmospheric Euro-exploitation flick
Review: Back in the day (1970), this film was probably the most controversal movie ever made as it depicted the witch trials going on Europe during the darkest page of human existance. I remember reading all the controversy and I couldn't help but watch the film that caused such a ruckous. I was expecting some really cheap, gory, pointless Eurotrash exploitation flick. What I got was much, much more. First of all, THERE'S A STORY! Yes this film actually has a good plot and story and is actually fairly accurate to some of the real happenings in history. Second, THE ACTING IS REALLY GOOD. The entire cast gives it their all and makes this film believable. The only hinderence is the dubbing, but for foreign horror film fans like me, dubbing just adds to the charm. I was pleasently surprised and got a much better film than I was expecting. I would actually recomend this film to fans of Hammer flicks that came out at about the same time. I however do not recommend this film for fans of pointless gore/trash cinema as they will not get what they expect. The tagline on the box is also misleading as it tags the movie as "the most horrifying movie ever made" which isn't exactly true. Yes it had some shocking moments, but in no way is it really horrifying. By today's standards, the shocks are pretty tame. So if your a fan of atmospheric Euro horror, don't believe all the bad hype as this film is a true gem of the genre.

Rating:
Summary: Mark of the Devil
Review: Mark of the Devil is a great movie about 18th century witchfinders in Europe. There are some pretty good torture scenes keeping in mind that the movie was made in 1969 and the score is effective. I would not exactly agree with the slogan that states "Positively The Most Horrifying Film Ever Made" but it's a damn good movie. Blue Underground once again puts together an awesome dvd, packed with interviews,poster and still galleries, and more.

Rating:
Summary: But does she have the Mark? Watch this one!
Review: Mark of the Devil left its mark on me. In college it was one of the few films I owned and too poor to own cable it was viewed quite often. However these were pre-DVD days and now that this DVD has arrived I have resumed my love for this film. With a truly remarkable amount of extras for such an old film including an interview with Gabby Fuchs, who became somewhat of a cult icon among my friends, this film is worthwhile to buy.

I need to inform you that this not the "most horrifying film ever made". It is mildly sadistic and a little gory by today's standards but this film runs its entire course without any intentional humor or stupidity that is so common in today's horror movies. As Albino says "I may not be educated but I am not stupid": I want movies that at least try to take themselves seriously. This movie does that.

For a 35 year old horror film from Europe this film has had some staying power. I recommend this one to fans of horror of all ages. It is certainly something different from the hackneyed plots that the genre is so susceptible to. If you've seen the movie before get this DVD too you will be pleased with the digital quality and the copious extras... Enjoy the torture...

--Ted Murena

Rating:
Summary: Get your puke on with "Mark of the Devil"
Review: Released in 1969 this movie came attached with the tagline "positively the most horrifying movie ever!" and once the film was released in America, became famous for the distribution of barf bags to customers. Does it live up to its tagline? Well, sort of but only when you consider when the film was made. It predated by a few years other more graphic torture films such as "Ilsa", "Salo" and "Bloodsucking Freaks" films released in the 70's , an era when things really got wild. So yes I guess back in 69' this was about as hardcore as it got.

In a small village of a by-gone era, witch-hunting has reached its peak. Villagers accused of sins such as "having illicit intercourse with the devil" or "defiling the sacraments of the church" are submitted to public displays of torture and execution. Into the village arrives the character played by Udo Kier, who is a witch-hunter apprentice. As he begins to learn the tools and tricks of the trade, Kier comes to the realization that the witch trials are actually a scam to rob people of their wealth and their land and also as an excuse to lay paws on beautiful women. Kier attempts to organize a revolt against the crooked witch-hunters which in turn will lead to him getting his own taste of a little torture...

To my surprise, "Mark of the Devil" is not as pointless a film as I expected it to be. I really figured this would be mindless exploitation consisting of nothing more than torture, however the torture scenes are not at the forefront of everything here. This movie actually has a carefully constructed plot, as well as beautiful scenic shots of the Austrian countryside and a heartfelt romance story between the lead female and Udo Kier. The costumes are stunning and the acting is not all that bad. What is REALLY bad however is the dubbing which goes from awful to absolute ridiculous. I'm referring especially to the scene involving two small children trapped in a cage, their voices sound like they're coming from adults!

As for gore, yes the film displays all sorts of atrocities such as women being burned alive, guys getting their limbs and fingers chopped off with meat cleavers and other things I know I would not be allowed to list here. What makes these scenes shocking (and rather goofy in retrospect) are the matter-of-fact ways in which the torturers carry on their deeds, all the while as honky-looking villagers look on and cheer. I have trouble imagining, in any era, middle-aged women and grandmothers gleefully pointing and laughing as people get decapitated right in front of their eyes but that's what we get in this movie. Sure it drags after a while but "Mark of the Devil" is not such a bad movie and people who dig these types of flicks are bound to enjoy. Barf bags are encouraged but not mandatory.



Rating:
Summary: An Early Splatter Film
Review: This is one of the early splatter films that just does not live up to it's own inflated tagline of the "most terrifying movie ever made!"

As with every movie that I have come across that tags itself as the most terrifying movie ever made, Mark of the Devil is neither the most terrifying movie, nor terrifying at all. This movie gives you a look at the witch trials through the eyes of a town that is plagued with a rash of witch indictments that lead to subsequent tortures and executions. The main character is a apprentice witch finder that questions his career's worth after falling in love with a wrongfully accused witch.

The torture scenes, for which the movie is known for, are not all that. The movie almost makes you believe that the violence that is shown is for a cause, to show you how wrong and unjust it was. But when it comes down to it, the movie decides to go from a fairly entertaining and intriguing movie on the churches involvement in the trials, to a drab kill fest of a movie. And the kill fest is so littered with extra's that you don't see much of it. All though they don't shy away from themselves, they aren't the most gruesome and shock inducing scenes that i have ever seen (any of the Ilsa movies beat it out). Too serious to be considered cheesy and too satisfying to be worth your time.


Rating:
Summary: A really cool movie, but...
Review: This may be the most complete version of the film still available, but unfortunately, this is not the complete version. I saw "Mark of the Devil" in the theater when it first ran, and the opening scene with the nuns being ambushed was longer and more graphic. But it's a great 70s horror flick nonetheless. As always, Blue Underground did a great job with the restoration and extras, and even tracked down a lot of the original stars for interviews. Check out their Spaghetti Westerns!