Antichrist [Blu-ray]

Overview

Alberto De Martino's imitative occult horror film, photographed by Aristide Massaccesi (aka Joe D'Amato), is probably the best of numerous Italian copies of The Exorcist that flooded theaters in the mid-'70s. Carla Gravina stars as Ippolita, a paralyzed young woman with serious mental problems stemming from the death of her mother. Her crisis of faith and the intervention of a well-meaning psychologist lead Ippolita to remember her past life as a witch during the Inquisition. Eventually, Ippolita becomes possessed and starts seducing local men, only to break their necks. Eventually, she sleeps with her brother, makes a local sorcerer lick vomit from her hand, and levitates out the window. It takes an exorcism performed by an aging monk (George Coulouris) and the family housekeeper (Alida Valli) to restore order. De Martino and the talented cast manage a few chilling moments despite the predictable storyline, and Gravina is quite good in the lead.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/08/2022
UPC:	0738329251024
Original Release:	1974
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Language:	English
Time:	1:52:00
Sales rank:	23,839

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Carla Gravina	Ippolita Oderisi
Mel Ferrer	Massimo Oderisi
Arthur Kennedy	Bishop Ascanio Oderisi
Alida Valli	Irene
George Coulouris	Father Mittner
Anita Strindberg	Gretel
Mario Scaccia	Faith Healer
Umberto Orsini	Dr. Marcello Sinibaldi
Ernesto Colli	Actor
Remo Girone	Felippo Oderisi
Ennio Morricone	Composer
Bruno Nicolai	Composer

Technical Credits

Alberto De Martino

Gianfranco Clerici

Vincenzo Mannino

Alberto De Martino	Director,Screenwriter
Edmondo Amati	Producer
Anis Nohra	Producer
Gianfranco Clerici	Screenwriter
Vincenzo Mannino	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

The Antichrist is not Italian horror's finest 96 minutes. Long stretches of not a lot happening are supposed to create suspense, but all they do is delay the inevitable finale, which was the original audience's entire reason for being there since they knew it was going to include elements of The Exorcist. A Satanic ritual in the woods, which includes a rape-by-goat (you have to look fast and hit the "pause" button to catch the animal in the scene) is sufficiently chilling, but Ippolita's (Carla Gravina) remote cockiness is off-putting from the get-go. The dialogue intervals are maddening and often confusing. As a product of its time, The Antichrist probably was intense, but that intensity has diminished over the years. For Italian horror collectors only.

All Movie Guide