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Overrated

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Neither bad nor plausible work, with no discernible motivation than to make a profit from the outburst of raw emotions and epidermis of the 1970s, with the fall of those moral codes that every now and then emerge in the media industry. It follows the line of «Witchfinder General» but without the indispensable amount of rigour in that historical drama by Michael Reeves (who was supposed to make this one but died too young), to move it from low-income neighborhood to big city respectability, so to speak... The following year Ken Russell would strike gold with a new re-telling of the case of the inquisitors, devils and nuns of Loudon (which was treated as early as 1921 in «Häxän» and later in 1961 in «Mother Joanna of the Angels»). Both Reeves and Russell had larger budgets, but all three movies are tales without hope, in which love and innocence are destroyed. Three aspects most negatively affect this motion picture, in my opinion. First, Michael Holm's Euro-pop score is too contemporary, obtrusive and rather ugly. Second, we have two actors with no chemistry unconvincingly enacting a romance (with bad dialogues, true, but Udo Kier's face is as blank as usual, and Olivera Katarina looks like his aunt). Last, the film editor had no sense of rhythm, sometimes not knowing when and what to cut (like the drops of water that fall on the head of a torture victim). There were some jaw dropping, eye opening exploitation films at the time, a few became classics, but not this one. Compared to them, this movie is just routine.

If you are looking for nunsploitation, this is the wrong film. Yes, some nuns get raped in the opening scene, but nothing is shown and that's all there is.Ther are some interesting tidbits in this film which purports to show reenactments from three real cases of witch hunting. One was seeing a man tarred and feathered, and another was seeing the elaborate contraption they used to burn witches.It doesn't take a very active imagination to see that most, if not all witch findings were lecherous and ugly old men lusting after comely maidens.The various implements of torture used must be the same one they applied at Gitmo. For those who turn against the Bush administration, no punishment is sufficient. Young Christian (Udo Kier) sees that it is all about stealing money and property and using women. If the Church wants your land, you will be found guilty and hanged. It's as simple as that.In the end, as the evildoers are chased from town, others take their place, for evil will always be with us.

We find ourselves in a fictional European country where the people's names are a mix of German or English but which is obviously countryside of Austria. The witch-madness is at its height; people are being arrested, tortured and killed for the most flimsy reason, like having the suspicious birthmarks or being puppeteers. Young nobleman Christian von Meruh (Udo Kier), foster son and apprentice of the local witch hunter Lord Cumberland, is a dedicated follower in the fight against witchcraft but upon falling in love with a fiery inn maid, he begins to question the sincerity of his tutor. Cumberland seems reasonably and benevolent at first but soon enough reveals himself as bigot and, plagued by his impotence, a sadistic pervert.Let's face it: the film is exploitation in its purest form. We're talking hardcore torture, disembowelment, tongue-tearing, amputation of limbs from little toe to head and a lot of beating, whipping and burning. However, it's very tasteful exploitation and doesn't have to shy the comparison to Michael Reeves groundbreaking "Witchfinder General", upon which heel this was filmed. Similar to cult horror-film "Cannibal Holocaust", the soundtrack plays a key role; atmospheric but, in stark contrast to the violence, beautiful and similarly unforgettable as Riz Ortolani's haunting score. .About the cast: no broomstick-riding hags with warts on their noses, actually, all the witches are remarkably pretty. As protagonist, Udo Kier isn't yet at the prime of his skills and, for the sake of argument, seems miscast as a young witch finder-apprentice. Herbert Lom, a master of his trade, plays the villain; he manages to appear very father-like, even trustable until revealed as the symbolizing the hypocrisy and corruption of this era. Olivia Vuco (Olivera Katarina) shines in her role of love-interest and very fiery damsel in distress; unfortunately it would remain her only starring role in Western European cinema. Perfectly cast: character actors Herbert Fux as torturer (never was a role cast more aptly), German trash legend Johannes Buzalski (or "Count Porno" as he's known by his fans) as treacherous advocate and the excellent Reggie Nalder, who's unique facial features would have him cast forever as a villains villain. American's might know him best as vampire Mr. Barlow in the first TV-adoption of "Salem's Lot".Is it as good as "Witchfinder General"? No, it cannot quiet conjure up the same cold, dark atmosphere, it didn't have a brilliant director like Michael Reeves (although it can be felt that director Michael Armstrong was familiar with Reeves style and methods) and was much more geared toward fans of hard exploitation flicks. Yes, you'll have to have a certain morbid taste for medieval torture but don't expect some cheap smorgasbord of blood and gore, like you would expect from contemporary films like "Saw" or "Hostel". "Mark of the Devil" stands far above that sleaze and, within its own subgenre, is only matched by Michael Reeves masterwork.

Wow. Just wow. I started watching this movie thinking that it would be another cheap 70s flick, but I watched more and saw that it was a good movie after all. After watching I went online and found out that they had to give barf bags to audiences because it was so graphic. Well I wish I had a barf bag when I saw this. The torture sequences are so horrendously gruesome. They burn women at the stake. They press hot irons on peoples feet, they rip out a woman's tongue. I'm not going to give everything away. Im just saying that if you like horror movies that are filled with blood and gore, then see this. You won't be disappointed.