L'anticristo (1974)

Director:

Alberto De Martino

Writers:

Gianfranco Clerici (writer)
Alberto De Martino (writer)

Release Date:

22 November 1974 (Italy)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Deliver her from evil.

Plot:

Ippolita is a paralyzed young woman with serious mental problems stemming from the death of her mother...

Plot Keywords:

Exorcism | Faith | Past | Death | Inquisition

Cast

Carla Gravina	...	Ippolita Oderisi
Mel Ferrer	...	Massimo Oderisi
Arthur Kennedy	...	Bishop Ascanio Oderisi
George Coulouris	...	Father Mittner
Alida Valli	...	Irene
Mario Scaccia	...	Faith Healer
Umberto Orsini	...	Dr. Marcello Sinibaldi
Anita Strindberg	...	Greta
Remo Girone	...	Filippo Oderisi
Ernesto Colli	...	Possessed Man
Bruno Tocci	...	Possessed Man's Friend
Beatrice De Bono	...	Woman healed by statue
Vittorio Fanfoni	...	(credit only)
Luigi Antonio Guerra	...	(credit only)

Also Known As:

Blasphemy (USA) (poster title)
The Antichrist (International: English title) (informal literal title)
The Tempter (USA) (dubbed version)

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | UK:18 (uncut DVD version) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Australia:R | Finland:(Banned) (1975) | Norway:18 (1975) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (cut) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Capitolina Produzioni Cinematografiche

Movie Connections:

References The Exorcist (1973)

Pretty entertaining as "Exorcist" imitations go.

Ippolita (Carla Gravina) has been crippled since an accident for which her father Massimo (Mel Ferrer) was responsible. She's despondent over not only her physical condition, but her father's union with a younger woman, Greta (Anita Strindberg). Furthermore, she's suffering a severe crisis of faith. All of which makes her ripe for demonic possession, especially when, during a bout of hypnosis, she flashes back to a previous life as a heretic. It's up to her uncle Ascanio (Arthur Kennedy), a bishop, then a dedicated priest, Father Mittner (George Coulouris), to perform the necessary exorcism.

Co-writer / director Alberto De Martino brings flair to this decent horror film. Even if some of the details here - green regurgitation, demonic voice, levitation - are familiar stuff, "The Antichrist" is potent entertainment. It's got a whopper of a scene involving a goat, and the rituals performed also include eating a frog's head. There's even a brief image of Christ that will need to be seen to be believed. The movie may be long and move at a rather sedate pace, but it does a good job of being outrageous and delivers strong, wild, colorful entertainment. The climactic exorcism is worth waiting for, for it's here that De Martino and company really go all out.

Granted, some of the special effects are tacky and unconvincing, but there's enough to take in here to make the film fun. A stylish look (Aristide Massaccesi, who's better known as Joe D'Amato, was the cinematographer) is a plus, with heavy accents on red in some scenes and blue in others. The music by Ennio Morricone and Bruno Nicolai is effective; Morricone's violin-based compositions are especially unnerving. And the acting is good: Gravina plays her role with real gusto, with good supporting performances by Ferrer and especially Kennedy. Alida Valli ("Suspiria") also co-stars as the concerned Irene.

"The Antichrist" rates as an enjoyable bit of trashy European horror, right from beginning to end.

8/10