Mutter Johanna von den Engeln

A slow-burn horror for the imagination, atmospheric and superbly acted, the players get more expression from their eyes than I've seen in any film since the silent days. Yet the voices of the 'devils' as they speak through Mother Joanna are all scarily differentiated. A great setting, empty and expressionist, which I believe was a rubbish tip or an old quarry near Lodz. The convent set was, like Black Narcissus, entirely a studio construction. I can't remember the last time I saw such crisp pellucid black and white photography. In plot terms, this is a sequel to Ken Russell's The Devils, near the beginning we see the stake where Grandier (his name changed to something a bit more Polish-sounding) had been burnt. There are no more burnings in this film, but the shadow of the stake overhangs the action, underlining that even when a story ends, the characters go on. As they will go on in your mind after you've watched this film. You'll talk about it - What will happen to them next?

In what could be viewed as a sequel to Ken Russell's The Devils (1970), Jerzy Kawalerowicz's bleak but brilliant drama tells the infamous story of the so-called 'Loudon Possessions', in which a convent of nuns were said to have been possessed by a variety of demons, seducing men and indulging in sinful activities while the Church sent priests to exorcise them. It resulted in the death of French Catholic priest Urbain Grandier, who was burned at the stake after suggestions were made that he had succumbed to evil himself, forging a 'diabolical pact' that bound his soul to the Devil. It's an event that has caught the imagination of many artists, including the aforementioned Russell, as well as Aldous Huxley. but never has it been portrayed with such terrifying foreboding as in Mother Joan of the Angels.

Father Suryn (Mieczyslaw Voit) is sent to a Polish convent in the seventeenth century, where talk amongst the sparse townsfolk are of the wicked acts committed by the nuns of the convent that looms over the town like a ghost. At the head of this apparent possession is Mother Joan (Lucyna Winnicka), who tells Suryn of the fate of the previous priest, whose charred remains still lie at the burning post. Suryn is so horrified by what he sees as the purest of evils that he promises to rid Joan of her affliction, even if it is at the expense of his own soul, becoming a martyr in the fight against Satan's influence.

The picture is black and white and the cinematography is dark and empty, capturing the hopelessness of this small, insignificant and nameless town. It resembles the minimalistic work of Ingmar Bergman and Carl Theodor Dreyer, and shares many of the conflicted representations of religion that frequented the auteur's back catalogue. The film occasionally branches out into horror, with close-ups and shadows used to powerful effect as Satan's influence creeps into Suryn's soul, leading him to reach out in desperation to a rabbi in what is one of the film's most powerful scenes. It's also a twisted love story between Joan and Suryn, transcending mere desire into something deeper and unspoken. Complex and courageous, Kawalerowicz's film will most likely always be overshadowed by Russell's more provocative work, but this is one of the finest works to come out of 60's Poland.

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The subject of this film is a fascinating one and it has been portrayed in several media with great eloquence. I know nothing at all about the director of this film except that he is apparently not an experienced director at all. He might be a writer or theologian or philosopher but his field of expertise does not extend to direction. The film is poorly paced, verbose and it drags on for at least thirty minutes in excess. It repeats itself almost literally near the end to make a rather feeble point that it actually does have structure with apologies, I suppose, for the talk fest for the past two hours plus.. Frankly,I can't find anything to admire in it.

Curtis Stotlar

This has nothing to do with the reality of the so called devils of Loudun and the case of the local vicar Urbain Grandier and his conflict with Cardinal Richelieu, eventually leading to his burning at the stake. This is an entirely Polish paraphrase on the phenomenon set somewhere in the wilderness in an apocalyptic landscape of desolation with no trees, no music except monastic monodies, sterile surroundings and a bleak environment, like changing the whole situation into some dark medieval times. Instead, this is a thoroughly stylistic film using the obsession of the nuns for ballet-like performances of striking cinematography and efficient beauty, while there is no actual story here. A young priest comes to the convent of the nuns to do something about their obsessions, which he ultimately fails in, as he himself becomes infatuated with the beautiful abbess mother Joan, who dominates the entire film. A previous priest has been burnt at the stake for being alleged to have seduced the nuns and caused their obsession, here is the one parallel to the case of Urbain Grandier, but all the rest is Polish conjecture. The film is worth seeing for its stylistic treats, but there has never been made any correct or convincing film of what really happened at Loudun. The only one who has tried to investigate the case thoroughly, as far as I know, was Aldous Huxley.

A priest is sent to a small parish in the Polish countryside which is believed to be under demonic possession and there he finds his own temptations awaiting.

I had never heard of this before it ended up on one of my lists and the title did not instill much confidence. Instead, it shocked and amazed me. Whether this is a "horror" film or not is open to debate. I think it is, but it is done in such a way that it will appeal to a wider audience than just the horror crowd. At the time his film was made, how many possession movies existed? To my knowledge, not very many.

The gritty lack of color, this is a film that deserves to be highlighted by scholars and movie lovers alike. I understand Martin Scorsese gave it some love, but perhaps there is more that can be done.