Matt Greene The rare horror documentary, Haxan is a stone-cold nightmare of haunting visuals, told with a chilling matter-of-factness. Each genre is used to effectively convey the terror within both the victims and the persecutors of witch hunts through the ages. The reenactments, though potentially silly at times, are demented and unrelenting visions of paranoia and true devil worship. A milestone in the horror genre that even stands today as a terrifying movie experiment.

gavin6942 Fictionalized documentary showing the evolution of witchcraft, from its pagan roots to its confusion with hysteria in modern Europe.Two versions of this film are floating around, or if you have the Criterion edition (which you should), you can watch either of them on the same disc. We have the earlier, silent version as it was intended to be seen and the re-cut version with jazz music and William Burroughs doing narration. Generally speaking, it is not a good idea to tamper with a classic, but how can you say no to Burroughs? Whether you consider this horror or a documentary, it is definitely worth seeing. Heck, it is worth owning. The imagery here is hard to beat, something that can only be imitated today, and probably imitated poorly.

Roman James Hoffman 'Häxan', often going under the translated title, 'Witchcraft through the Ages' is a gloriously bizarre film from the early days of cinema which documents the history of witch-cults in the Middle Ages and the church-led inquisitions that hunted them. What's more, the film scandalised audiences at the time with its virulently anti-Church stance and overt suggestion that the superstition which led to the persecution of witches is alive and well today but just in a more respectable guise.The film begins soberly enough with a pseudo-scholarly presentation introducing a variety of paintings and medieval wood-cuts of the Devil presiding over Black Sabbaths and the like, where witches were believed to gather and worship their infernal master. Before long, we are introduced to glutinous and repulsive men of the cloth who, in the dramatised sequences, persecute and torture women accused of witchcraft which they justify with their contorted religious ideology. However, while it is certainly a tragic tale which is being told, these lascivious and diabolic confessions provide the highlights of the movie as Christensen is able to bring them to life using a range of camera effects to produce a stunning and delirious phantasmagoria brimming with the kind of demonic imagery favoured by the likes of Church-sponsored artists like Hieronymous Bosch. Indeed, the film holds nothing back both in its depiction of the Devil ravishing women in their beds, witches kissing the Devil's backside, trampling on the cross, and wild perverse revelries where unchristened children are feasted upon. Furthermore, the accusing finger the film points at the monks who, guilt-racked and hypocritical, perpetrated such horrors on innocent women is unrelenting and rightfully indignant.At the end of the film it suggests that the (then) modern-day phenomenon of hysteria (from the Greek for "womb" and commonly attributed to women's wombs becoming dislocated and floating round the body) is an updated version of medieval witches. Although far from an expert, I think this carries some weight as hysteria has been attributed to social pressures put on women to repress themselves and their sexuality…something which was certainly abundant in the Middle Ages. We should also remember that, although hysteria as a phenomenon is all but extinct these days, it was common throughout the Victorian era and well into the 20th Century (and gave Freud a career) and the parallel the conclusion makes must have been a strange and unsettling one.Perhaps it is this depth of insight that has led to the film being re-released in the 1940s and again (in an abridged version) in the 1960s. However, the latter version has the inter-titles read by countercultural guru William Burroughs and is scored with a Jazz soundtrack. Although, I haven't seen it, I am reliably informed that it should be avoided. If it ain't broke… In conclusion, the film is unique in its ambitions, its content, and its style and is a testament to the skill, ingenuity, and integrity of Christensen himself. Unfortunately, a lot of Christensen's other films have been lost; however, "only" being known for a film with the stature of 'Häxan' is a cinematic fate far greater than many writers or directors will ever achieve.

LeonLouisRicci A Wow Inducing Silent Movie that was, to say the least, Ahead of its Time. A Docu-Drama Study/Presentation of Witchcraft. It Presents in Wild Abandon, Bizarre, Sharply Defined, Horrific, and Surrealistic Images of Satan and His Dominions Performing Diabolical Acts that were and are Impressive, Repulsive, and Highly Entertaining. Things on Screen Rarely Seen and were Never Remotely Approached after the Code.It Adopts a Back and Forth Style of Title Card Information on the Subject, Combined with some Straight Forward Dramatizations of Witches, Clergy, and the Inquisition. Heavily Stylistic Scenes with Pseudo-Animation and Tons of Makeup combine with Disturbing, Ugly, and Pathetic People. There is some Artful Model-Work with Broom Flying Witches that was Liberally Cribbed by Disney in Fantasia (1940).Incredibly Influential and a Phantasmagorical Treat that has been Restored and can be Enjoyed by those who Normally Stay Away from Silent Films. It is a Halloween Perennial for Hipsters and it is one of those that Defies Description. The Criterion Collection Contains two versions that are Equally Inviting with many Insightful Extras.