E non liberarci dal male

I was part of an extremely fortunate bunch of people who got to see this rare gem of euro-cult cinema on the big screen; moreover inside an authentic old-fashioned grindhouse type of theater where the walls threaten to fall down at any given moment and the equipment has surely seen better days already. I can assure you these rather primitive viewing conditions add a large portion of raw atmosphere to an already gritty and unsettling film. But nevertheless "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" suffers a little from its own controversial reputation, as it has got a lot more to offer than just graphic shocks and gratuitous nudity. The film poster proudly announces, in letters that are far bigger than the title itself, that this is the only French film to be banned in France. It's a nice promotion stunt, but it only forces potential viewers to anticipate a non-stop sleazy and exploitative smut flick, whereas Joël Séria's film is primarily a beautifully dark and almost poetic depiction of how adolescents of high social descent deal with boredom and sexual curiosity. The script may be loosely inspired by the real-life Parker-Hulme murder case (the same case Peter Jackson used for his "Heavenly Creatures") but I strongly believe Séria also used the opportunity to criticize the hypocrisy of the Catholic Church as well as the unfair French social classification system. During the long & boring nights at the boarding school, 14-year-old Anne becomes interested in salacious literature and she quickly convinces her friend Lore to join her into exploring the exact opposite of all the Catholic mumbo-jumbo that is forced upon them by the nuns and their deeply religious parents. It all starts with naughty, yet harmless games and the discovery of their own bodies & sexuality, but the situation escalates into something genuinely malice. When summer vacation begins, and the girls spend two months away from authority, they perform a ritual to become accepted as disciples of Satan and cross the line for good. Their innocent games are gradually replaced with the the dangerous seduction of mentally unstable men, vicious rites of animal cruelty, arson and eventually murder.

Séria's criticism towards the Catholic Church and the authorities' obnoxiousness is mainly illustrated through the lack of response by the adults! The film exclusively revolves on the acts of the two girls and never at one point suggests that the grown-ups in their surrounding are even aware of the evil they commit. Anne and Lore actually even bring themselves down in the (downright staggering and jaw-dropping) finale because they THINK they'll get caught. The performances of Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener are simply amazing and also very courageous. It's almost unbelievable to accept they 19-20 years old during filming as they honestly look like inexperienced girls who barely hit puberty. Their age and especially the nude sequences they're in often make "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" a terribly difficult film to watch. It feels incredibly wrong to watch at these girls as they're parading in their panties and provocatively seduce men, but it more or less remains a tasteful film at all times. The impact of the message Séria brings probably was a lot more shocking in the prudish France of the early 1970's – which is undoubtedly why the Church insisted on censorship – but it's still intense enough to upset audiences even today, and particularly the end-sequence will haunt your thoughts for several days afterwards. It's a beautiful film, with enchanting cinematography by Marcel Combes and an excellent 'La La La' theme song that regularly gets repeated during the most essential sequences.

'Mais ne nous délivrez pas du mal' ('Don't Deliver Us From Evil') is a French film from 1971 loosely inspired by the Parker-Hulme murder case, the subject of Peter Jackson's 'Heavenly Creatures' two decades later. However, if you've seen 'Heavenly Creatures', it's not much of a spoiler, because the story plays out very differently.

The film revolves around two teenage Catholic schoolgirls who have a close relationship and a penchant for pulling very nasty pranks. The two seem feed off of each other and the chaos, as their games become more dangerous.

While I can't say I enjoyed 'Don't Deliver Us from Evil', director Joël Séria does do an admirable job pf creating beautiful, memorable images. The film has a timeless quality and because it's a period piece, it's hard to tell when it was shot. It feels like it could have come out this year.

My issue with the film is, it lacks heart and a certain logic. Yes, it's difficult to create an emotional connection to despicable sociopathic characters. But we have to care about them, or at least understand what motivates them. Religious oppression? Dysfunctional family? Domestic abuse? There's nary a hint as to why the girls are acting out in such extreme ways.

And so 'Don't Deliver us from Evil' delivers on the evil in spades, but it all ends up seeming pretty pointless. Yes, nihilism is a thing, but even nihilism needs an impetus in human behaviour. It's a shame, because everything else is so well executed.

It's quite unbelievable that this film doesn't have a better reputation, as Joël Séria's Don't Deliver Us From Evil is an intricately worked little shocker that is sure to appeal to fans of European cinema. It's clear that the film was made in France, as the plotting, style and atmosphere of the movie is very French indeed, and this benefits the movie as it wallows in the imperfections of its lead characters; two sexy, yet underage convent school girls that decide to forsake God and take sides with The Devil. Both characters clearly have the urge to do evil already in them, but the way that director Joël Séria coaxes them into committing sinful acts is good because the characters are easy to care for; but their acts make them easy to detest; and as we all know - God hates the sin, not the sinner. The themes of straying from the moral acts that we've all been taught since birth shine through well, as the pair at the centre of the story are completely angelic, and on the face of it; look like butter wouldn't melt in their mouths. It can be said that the actual plotting isn't all that shocking; but everything in the film is made more so by the fact that it's stars are so young.

The 'evil' that the young girls do involves reading forbidden material at first, and eventually moves on to teasing men, arson and murdering people's pets. Joël Séria doesn't shy away from featuring nudity in the film; and the pair of scenes that handle attempted rape don't leave much to the imagination. Don't Deliver Us From Evil benefits from a pair of great performances from young French actresses Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener. Both give the film their all and give mature portrayals of their characters. The film is said to be a horror film; but it isn't really the case, as the focus is more on the drama and the corruption of youth than the satanic themes. The director doesn't allow the film to descend into comic book styling's, like some other films handling Satan do; and this benefits the film as it always seems serious and mature. Don't Deliver Us From Evil (great title, by the way!) is not as shocking now as it would have been upon it's release in 1970 - but still the film holds some weight in the shock stakes as many of the ideas that it portrays are still taboo to this day. Overall, this is a fascinating watch and one that should be seen by anyone who has a chance to see it!

DON'T DELIVER US FROM EVIL (Joël Séria - France 1971).

Anne and Lore, two young convent girls become friends and decide to spend the summer together somewhere in the French countryside. However, their relationship soon takes on a much more sinister side. Influenced by their reading of forbidden books, they decide to explore the world of perversion and cruelty. They seduce a farmer but he tries to rape one of the girls after which they barely escape. They also torture a pet bird, which I found an especially cruel. The image of the owner mourning besides his dead bird is quite shattering.

Writer-director Joël Séria largely based the film on a real-life murder case, the famous Parker-Hulme murder that took place in New Zealand in 1954. Two teenage school girls, Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme, who had become obsessed with each other and with a magical "Fourth Kingdom" they had created in their minds, decided to murder Pauline's mother so that they could run away together. The case has inspired a number of books and, most famously, Peter Jackson's 1994 film HEAVENLY CREATURES.

The film was banned for blasphemy in France as it tries to flout catholicism in every way imaginable. In one particular scene, a man imposing himself as Jesus is mocked by the girls while carrying the cross and there's much more. In 1971, it was already very rare for a film to be banned on counts of blasphemy. More recently, I don't know of many films to be banned on these grounds either, but regarding the increasing Christian (and Muslim) sensibilities, a return to this kind of censorship seems almost inevitable. Most of the anti-catholic imagery will probably have little effect on most audiences now, but devout catholics will probably be gravely offended.

With its rather tasteful cinematography, relaxed pacing and well-drawn characterizations, it's more of a surreal art film than anything really exploitational. We're talking about a French film here, after all. However, many scenes, especially the rape- or near-rape scenes, will make for distinctly uncomfortable viewing and the disturbing final scene is quite shocking and came as quite a surprise to me. Although it generally comes of as the typical product of a guilt-ridden catholic (much of the film was influenced by director Joël Séria's own memories of his catholic upbringing) and the pacing was a bit slow at times, it's worth watching.

Camera Obscura --- 7/10

I don't know if I can actually add anymore to what has already been said. The film is raw and amateurish at times. It certainly is no polished piece of work. The editing is abrupt at times which to me says the editor didn't have a lot to work with.

This is not a cerebral piece of work that will linger with you for days or weeks after you've seen it. Certainly won't change your life much. However, there were moments when I felt really uneasy about what was happening on the screen. It's understandable when you are watching a scary thriller or horror flick that you might not want to watch. This isn't a scary movie. It's just disturbing. When it comes to harming animals or babies most people won't want to watch. It's a bit troubling that someone on the set didn't draw the line at some point but this was 1971.

Does the film make a point? The girls here don't have much love in their lives. All they know are rules and the adult world is ugly indeed. They create their own fantasy world but when that turns ugly there is only one way out.

Hard to recommend but there are some moments of curiosity.