In 1645, against a backdrop of bloody civil war, Matthew Hopkins is a self-appointed lawyer bringing trumped-up cases against those accused of witchcraft, and pocketing hefty commissions for his so-called work. Can anybody stop this cruel murderer hiding under the pretence of law ?
Watching Witchfinder General is not a pleasant experience, but it is a very good film. As a straight depiction of the ignorance, brutality and debauchery of the late Middle Ages it is a powerful statement. As a bloody horror film it has dozens of scary and disturbing scenes. At the same time, it's strangely beautiful; Paul Ferris' lovely score counterpoints the horrible moments, and John Coquillon's exceptional photography recalls the period paintings of Rembrandt or Vermeer. Reeves eschews any comic moments or unrealistic moralising, focusing purely on trying to recreate the period accurately in his effective hybrid of revenger's tragedy and historical drama. Everyone is bad; the authorities are all corrupt, the common people are stupid sheep, women are chattels to be abused at will and merely staying alive is the only goal in life. Price is magnificently horrible and sinister in one of his most effective performances. Because of its tone and relentless violence, the film suffered greatly at the hands of the UK censor; had it been made just a few years later it would probably have survived better, although the TV print I just watched is a lovingly restored widescreen cut with all the vicious scenes tenderly spliced back in. The most astonishing thing about the movie however is that the talented Reeves was only twenty-four when he made it, an unheard of feat in the British film industry at the time. It was his third film (the other two are La Sorella Di Satana / The Sister Of Satan and The Sorcerers, both also starring Ogilvy) and tragically he died of a (probably accidental) barbiturate overdose in 1969. What could this great young filmmaker have achieved had he lived ? Based on a historical novel by Ronald Bassett (Hopkins and Stearne were both real people who wrote accounts of their work) and retitled The Conqueror Worm in the US (an odd reference to a poem which appears in Edgar Allan Poe's short story Ligeia) presumably to try and link it to the Corman/Price Poe series. A great first date movie, and good to watch as a double bill history lesson with The Elephant Man.
2 out of 3 found this helpful