Devil Story

I seriously can't tell if this 80s French z movie is ridiculously inept or intentionally a surreal cheese-fest. Either way, it's lack of plot, inane pacing, bad acting, gore, and horrific dubbing are stupidly entertaining. It's like Ed Wood meets Fulci...

After watching this I wondered if the director had actually ever seen a film before. Because this seems to ignore any and all of the conventions of film making we've come to expect. Plot, character development, subtext, all are dashed against the rocks of chaos here.

The movie starts with a mutant dressed in Nazi attire madly tearing his way out of a tent. We then have a prolonged shot of the victim of the mutant bleeding on the ground. Then as the mutant storms of into the woods to kill some one else his foot gets caught on the tent rope and he scuffles with it. Was that intentional? I don't know but they left it in. That question "Was that intentional?" is something I found myself asking a lot throughout the entire movie.

This is one of those film that has to be seen to be believed. There's a demonic cat that lives in the mountains. There's an old witch that controls the Nazi mutant. There's an old man with a shotgun that seems to have an endless supply of bullets. There's an Egyptian mummy that comes out of an old galleon which is magically drawn from the inside of a mountain by a devil horse.

I Liked it. Despite hearing myself sighing throughout I would definitely watch it again.

For anyone who feels that class and subtlety is an unavoidable facet of French cinema then this is the film for you! This no budget splatter movie is both incoherent and technically appalling in a combination that could almost be described as pretty impressive. The story (such as it is) has a demented Nazi uniform wearing, homicidal mutant - who looks like what you would get if you combined Leatherface with Frank Bough - roaming the countryside murdering anyone he encounters; add to that a pirate ship embedded in a cliff, a mummy, a possessed horse and a very evil cat. Its absolutely ridiculous from start to finish and concludes with a suitably biscuit-taking ending. On the one hand, it's utter rubbish of course, yet at the same time, it deliriously strange and relentlessly unpredictable. And it doesn't really resemble any other film I can think of at all, its a z-grade island all of its own in the cinematic pond. It's really entirely down to how high your tolerance is for severe levels of cut-rate psychotronic madness as to whether or not you are going to get anything out of watching this one.

French horror has given us some of the most elegant, most poetic horror in the genre. Franju, Rollin and others, they of tender velvet fingers to caress the soul. Devil Story is a long way away from them. A million blood spattered, brain curdled miles away in fact. Its plot seems less considered than the congealed vomit of an all night geek brainstorming session fuelled by counterfeit Gauloise and antifreeze laden plonk, its script a furied migraine ravaged dash to pull all together in time for filming. There's a deformed headcase in soldier gear who likes to kill everyone he meets, a horse that may be the devil, a creepy old lady, Gothic castle and more, and yet by some alchemy that surpasses even the most shredded synapses it all more or less holds together in the end. No doubt this alchemy plays significant role in making the film work, but much credit goes to the unrelenting attitude of director Bernard Launois on display (this is apparently his only horror but he should have made more). No matter what the absurdity, the film remains focused. Blood spray clearly from somebody pumping a tube? Keep the camera on it. Supposedly dead person clearly still breathing? Who cares? A mummy that appears wrapped in gauze rather than bandages and either has a codpiece or a big schlong? Artistic license! There's a fearless drive that renders all such silliness near irrelevant, and on occasions of an effectively gruesome effect the camera really lingers, the wounded don't get away with dignity here and it conveys a nice brutality. And altogether the no holds barred approach to plot and visuals pays off, however inept there's an aura of unhingement here that at times becomes really quite potent. Not quite as potent as Orgroff (its closest brother in French trash horror cinema), but much better ordered and marginally less inept, with technique that at times could pass for pretty much sane in a less demented product. Basically this is a film for select audiences, more or less just the hardiest of insane trash fiends. But for anyone dedicated enough to have read this far, this is a film for you. Find it, watch it, and watch Orgroff too, the order matters not so much. You can thank me later...

This French art-house snoozer has to be seen to be believed.Nonsensical and completely absurd plot involves perpetually grunting man-freak-beast dressed in Nazi-garb,medieval castle,a mummy and an annoyingly loud black stallion,which is hunted by the old man.If you have seen Norbert Georges Mountier's inept "Ogroff" you should watch "Devil Story" just to compare these two grade Z flicks from the depths of low-budget grave.The script of "Devil Story" is an incoherent mess with plenty of blood and gore.Unfortunately the action is pretty dull and moves at snail's pace even during its short 72 minutes time.If you are a fan of "Ogroff" or "Sexandroide" give this one a look.5 out of 10.