"Positively the most horrifying movie ever made!"

That, my little monsters, is a very tall order to fill. When fears and scares are as individual as a fingerprint on the human psyche, calling a movie "the most horrifying" is a little presumptuous. When fears range from drowning, to arachnophobia, to evil clowns or sexual degradation, it‘s difficult to truly frighten everyone as deeply on the same level. To really be considered "the most horrifying," a film has to explore something a little more universally disturbing. Mark of the Devil sets its sights quite high in this respect, but it does an admirable job doing so.

Based on true events torn from "the blackest pages of human history," (no, not the Eighties) Mark of the Devil introduces us to the despicable Albino (the always-unpleasant Reggie Nalder), who leads an attack on a caravan of nuns(!) killing and raping all save for three. The trio is accused of witchcraft and administered hideous sentences: a man is tarred and feathered, and the two women are burned alive at the stake. Albino’s reign of "witch finding" terror does not go unnoticed, and the Prince sends two of his finest Inquisitors to seize the reigns of control from the corrupt Albino. Lord Christian (Udo Kier), arrives in town first in order to make sure preparations are made for his mentor, the pious Lord Cumberland (the amazing Herbert Lom). There, he protects the vivacious Vanessa (Olivera Vuco) against the accusations of Albino, whose advances Vanessa had spurned (I could never imagine why). Vanessa’s free-spirited nature captivates Christian, planting a seed of doubt against his mentor Cumberland’s ways. When Cumberland finally arrives, he becomes a veritable Inquisition machine, sentencing the accused at an astonishing rate, including a young Baron and Christian’s beloved Vanessa.

For those who expect to snuggle into their sofas and watch a movie on the nastiness level of Jess Franco’s Bloody Judge (part of the Christopher Lee Collection, reviewed here), Mark of the Devil will surely disappoint. While there is certainly no shortage of tongue-tearing, ass-spiking, or rack-stretching, the most disturbing part of the movie is simply how corrupt the "holy" Inquisitors were. The imprisoned Baron, for example, will be pardoned if he gives over his "worldly possessions" to the church. However, if he doesn’t, he will be executed for witchcraft and his estate will revert to the church anyways. Albino exploits his position so that his insane accusations will go uncontested, keeping the townsfolk under his thumb with fear. Even the supposedly infallible Lord Cumberland is prone to fits of rage when his impotence is brought up, with actions raging from spilling wine to throttling Albino (Yay!) to raping gorgeous prisoners in his care. If there’s one thing Mark of the Devil does right, it’s torture and degrade beautiful women with a certain style and class not normally found in films of this type. Period pieces like this can be very hit-or-miss, but Mark of the Devil keeps its head above water with stunning costumes and sweeping sets that are always striking, proving to be an interesting off-set to the nasty gore effects that are shown just enough to convince and disturb the audience, but not taken to the leering extreme that a lot of this sort of European cinema is notorious for.

I hate to sound like a broken record here, but Blue Underground has once again treated us to an amazing quality release. Colors are simply breathtaking, blacks are solid and even, and grain rarely rears its ugly head. Print damage is minimal, and a few frames of the print looked a little washed out, but it’s much less than expected on a film of its age. Audio is similarly clear, with no background noise or distortion. The shrieking, string-heavy soundtrack is bold and full, and the dialogue is crystal-clear. As far as I can tell, they just hopped into their Way Back Machine, traveled to 1970, and took the fresh print right out of the lab. It’s that good. However, they also did their homework in the extras department, giving full audio commentary from director Michael Armstrong, interviews with cast members ranging from Udo Kier (who’s always good for a laugh) to the stunning Ingeborg Shoner. They’re all great fun to watch, and fill us in on the storied history behind the film. In addition, we also get the theatrical trailer and dozens (and I mean dozens) of stills spread across several galleries.

While not nearly as nasty as its reputation would have you believe (or maybe I’m just a desensitized sicko), Mark of the Devil is a great movie, equally brutal and beautiful. It may not earn its "most horrifying film ever made" tag, but it shows just how awful men can be, and that’s pretty damn frightening.