Michael Reeves directs Vincent Price, Ian Ogilvy and Hilary Dwyer in this true tale of a genocidal witchfinder exploiting the hysteria of the English Civil Wars for his own wicked gains.

This is often mentioned in the same breath as The Wicker Man which I feel is a little unfair. I guess they match each other in genre smashing ambition but this is a beast with its own bloody heart. On location production values that outstrip Hammer or Amicus, transgressive violence that matches Straw Dogs or The Wild Bunch and a chilling lead turn from Vincent Price. Reeves and Price did not get along, Price was told to tone down his hammier instincts, hated being bossed by a young director and turned out his finest piece of acting. The historical basis grounds the action but also makes it a bit of a romp with horse chases and flintlock shootouts between the sexual torture and mob mentality. Evil in all the best ways. This one gets better and better with every rewatch.

9

Perfect Double Bill: The Blood On Satan’s Claw (1971)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/ and my own Substack https://substack.com/@edinburghlaughterbulletin