Haxan - Witchcraft through the Ages [Criterion Collection]

Director: Benjamin Christensen

Overview

"Considered by many to be one of the truly great (and peculiar) silent films ever, H?xan is part documentary, part horror film, part social commentary, and always fascinating. Originally directed by Benjamin Christensen, the film regained a whole new audience in 1967 when British filmmaker Antony Balch recut the film and had beat novelist William Burroughs record narration (voiced in Burroughs' typically droll and ironic manner) and included a new avant-garde jazz score. The Criterion Collection has made both versions available on this DVD, which is great considering the many strengths of either cut. Christensen's longer 104-minute version has been beautifully restored by the Swedish Film Institute, utilizing a fine-grain master print taken from the original camera negative. New Swedish intertitles with optional English subtitles have been added, as well as a fantastic new orchestral score (available in robust 5.1 surround) that replicates the film's original music when it premiered in 1922. A wide variety of different scores (some orchestral, some using an organ) have been used for the film for its various video incarnations over the years, so it is a great delight to have the original music cues reinstated. The film, which is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1 (full screen), has also been re-tinted to its former glory. The film is also equipped with an optional commentary track by noted Danish silent film historian Casper Tybjerg. The track is informative (giving detailed accounts of the director's career, as well as the peculiar originality of the film itself and how it incorporates many disparate film styles into a cohesive whole), but the track occasionally grows turgid in spots. Overall, the track is worthwhile and Tybjerg's obvious enthusiasm for the film is commendable. Also available on the disc is the 76-minute version of the film called Witchcraft Through the Ages. This version is most notable for its acerbic narration and its sometimes inappropriate jazz soundtrack (featuring violinist Jean-Luc Ponty). An interesting version (and one useful for comparisons with the original), but an inferior cut of the film nonetheless. The black-and-white image is acceptable, though it does not compare to the beautiful appearance of the longer version. The disc also contains a very brief selection of outtakes, an optional introduction to Haxan by the director himself (taken from the 1941 re-release of the film), an excellent overview of many of the historical sources which Christensen used for the film, a great stills gallery, and useful liner notes. An overall excellent disc for a film which continues to cast a strange cinematic spell upon its viewers even after all these years."

Product Details

Release Date:	10/16/2001
UPC:	0037429161722
Original Release:	1922
Source:	CRITERION
Sound:	[stereo, Dolby Digital]
Language:	English
Time:	1:44:00
Sales rank:	17,253

Special Features

New digital, speed-corrected transfer of the Swedish Film Institute's tinted restoration; Music from the original Danish premiere, arranged by film music specialist Gillian Anderson and performed by the Czech Film Orchestra, presented in Dolby Digital 5.0; Commentary by Danish silent film scholar Casper Tybjerg; Benjamin Christensen's introduction to the 1941 re-release; A short selection of outtakes; Biblioth?que Diabolique, a photographic exploration of Christensen's historical sources; Stills gallery; New English translation of intertitles; "Witchcraft Through the Ages [1968]: the 76-minute version of H?xan, narrated by William S. Burroughs, with a soundtrack featuring Jean-Luc Ponty; English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired; Optimal image quality: RSDL dual-layer edition

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Clara Pontoppidan	Nun
Maren Pedersen	Witch
Oscar Stribolt	Doctor
Benjamin Christensen	Satan/The Doctor
Astrid Holm	Anna
Elith Pio	Young Monk
Tora Teje	Modern Hysteric
Gerda Madsen	Nun
William S. Burroughs	Narrator

Technical Credits

Benjamin Christensen

Benjamin Christensen

Screenwriter

Scene Index

Side #1 --
0. Chapters
1. Chapter 1: Sources [6:13]
2. Hell [1:58]
3. Witches [5:23]
4. Chapter 2: 1488 [8:08]
5. Grave Robbers [3:03]
6. Deeds of the Devil [9:27]
7. Chapter 3: The Trials [3:54]
8. The Evil Eye [6:37]
9. Chapter 4: Torture [6:27]
10. Satan's Sabbath [2:57]
11. Rituals [4:14]
12. Chapter 5: Sinful Thoughts [4:45]
13. Bewitched [2:12]
14. Trickery [6:46]
15. Thunder from Water [3:10]
16. Chapter 6: Techniques [5:56]
17. Sister Cecilia [4:06]
18. The Mad Nuns Dance [1:04]
19. Baby Jesus [:00]
20. Chapter 7: 1921 [1:28]
21. Hysteria [10:46]
22. Color Bars [6:26]
0. Commentary Index
1. An Introduction to Benjamin Christensen
2. Earlier Films
3. Blind Justice and Sing Sing
4. A Fictional Documentary?
5. An Artistic Argument
6. Historical Sources
7. The Witch Trials
8. The Hammer of Witches
9. Special Effects
10. 75 Broomsticks
11. The Cast
12. "Much Nakedness"
13. International Reaction
14. The 1941 Re-release
15. Surreal Episodes
16. No "Plot"
17. An Early Auteur
18. Later Films
19. Later Films Continued
20. Jean-Martin Charcot
21. "Just Once in a Lifetime"
22. Color Bars
0. Score Index
1. Unfinished Symphony, First Movement, Franz Schubert
2. Aladdin Overture, C. F. E. Horneman
3. Florentine Serenade no. 1, Benjamin Godard
4. Tannh?user Overture, Richard Wagner
5. Stabat Mater (Cujus Animam), Gioachinno Rossini
6. Rosamunde Overture, Franz Schubert
7. "Kol Nidrei," Max Bruch
8. "Danse Macabre," Camille Saint-Sa?ns
9. Titus Overture, W. A. Mozart
10. Symphony in B Minor (Pathetique) no. 6, op. 74, First Movement, Adagio and Allegro non Troppo, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
11. The Oxford Symphony in G Major, Joseph Haydn
12. Iphigenia in Aulis Overture, Christoph Gluck
13. Iphigenia in Aulis, The Slave Dance, Christoph Gluck
14. Meditation Sur le 1er Prelude de J. S. Bach, "Ave Maria," by Charles Gounod
15. Moonlight Sonata, Ludwig van Beethoven
16. Adagio from Sonate Pathetique, Ludwig van Beethoven
0. Chapters
1. Incantation
2. Mythologies
3. "The stars shine bright..."
4. Love Potion
5. Grave Robbers
6. The Devil's Plaything
7. Witch Trials
8. Torture
9. Satan's Sabbath
10. Sinful Thoughts
11. The Judges' Reaction
12. The Magic Knot of Impotence
13. The Krazy Konvent
14. 1920
15. The Hysteric
16. Coda

Menu

Side #1 --
Play H?xan (1922 Version)
Commentary
Play
Director's Introduction
Play
Biblioth?que Diabolique
Stills Gallery
The H?xan Score
Play 5.0 Mix
Play 2.0 Mix
Outtakes
Subtitles
English: On
English: Off
Witchcraft through the Ages (1968 Version)
Play

Editorial Reviews

Häxan is a fictional horror film in the form of a documentary, featuring crude black-and-white cinematography, a nonlinear structure, and grotesque imagery. If this reminds you of The Blair Witch Project (1999), it's no coincidence -- the makers of that film named their production company "Haxan" as a tribute to Benjamin Christensen's film. Häxan's inconsistent production values and rough visual motifs enhance its effectiveness, adding a sheen of authenticity to the film's passively voyeuristic approach. Multiple versions exist, including sound releases in the 1940s and 1960s. The latter features narration by Beat generation icon William S. Burroughs, though his interesting commentary is somewhat offset by a distracting and inappropriate modern jazz score. Despite censors' efforts to ban it, Häxan was a persistent influence on 20th century filmmakers, in particular on the works of Val Lewton.