Witchhammer (1970)

Original title

Kladivo na čarodějnice

Directed by

Otakar Vávra

Genre

drama film, horror film, historical film

Country

Czechoslovakia

Runtime

1h 47m

Rating

7.6 of 10 from 73 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A priest in 17th century Moravia speaks out against witch trials and becomes a target of the inquisition. The film shows how a community turns on itself under fear and authority.

bleaktensehistoricalsomberslow-burnunsettlingatmosphericserious

What happens

Witchhammer (Czech: Kladivo na čarodějnice) is a 1970 Czechoslovak drama film directed by Otakar Vávra and starring Elo Romančík. Based on the novel Kladivo na čarodějnice by Václav Kaplický, Witchhammer relates the story of the Northern Moravia witch trials of the 1670s, focusing on the priest Kryštof Lautner, played by Romančík, who falls victim to the witchhunt after opposing the trials. The film contains possible allegory about Communist show trials in Czechoslovakia. The film had a limited release in Czechoslovakia. Despite this, it won awards at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival in 1970 and is considered one of Vávra's finest films. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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