Maleficarum

Maleficarum (2011) by Jac Avila is a good screen play by an independent Bolivian film company. It is a good historical fiction loosely based on María Francisca Ana de Castro, a Spanish immigrant to Alta Peru, who was renowned for her beauty and wealth. She was arrested and accused of "judaizing". After many days of Torture before confessing; She was burned at the stake in 1726. This event was a major spectacle in Lima, but it raised questions about possible irregular procedures and about the corruption within the Inquisition, this lead to the end of The Holy Office (The Inquisition) in Peru. The director, Jac Avila, and actors try to recreated the actual realistic suffering in great detail of what the victims of the Spanish Inquisition had to endure. The best was the director's use of the actors' facial and body language, it was very cerebral and visual at the same time. This viewer marveled at the simplicity of that movie and how it got its complex message across, the script and the story plot was very well thought out. The dialogs of the accusers and witnesses did well in showing the bias and superstitions of that time.

These reviews are obviously being written by cast & crew, friends & family because this movie is absolute trash! Now I'm a fan of torture films as much as the next guy but there's really nothing going on here. It's just girls being whipped to death for practically 2 hours. I get it, this is a fetish for some guys, but to me it's a bit boring. Especially as badly as this story is told. And the talking head segments like it's a reality show is completely perplexing with a time period drama. Comes off quite comical actually. Which seems to be the exact opposite of what this film is going for. Yea this movie is extreme. But its also extremely boring and terribly acted. The only reason to watch this is the nudity, which is plentiful. But so much so it comes off boring as well. Nothing about this flows well, just boring badly scene after another. Don't waste your time with this!

Many film were produced on behalf of the Holy Iquistion and their extremely brutal ways of obtaining a confession .... Most of them were exploring rather the side of the fault, the trial testimony, judgement, and finally, the punishment! They represented all of it, with very few torture scenes! Jac Avila brings us, with his film Maleficarum (2011), in the depths of dark dungeons and explore more thoroughly the torments inflicted on the victims.

Each of the torture scenes are incredibly realistic and the acting is excellent and especially that of Amy Hesketh.

The story of two women in love with each other, falsely accused facing the Holy Inquisition .... A must see movie ....

To Parents Who Read Info About This Movie Please Read This Since I Cannot Put Anything On The Parental Advisory Part Of This Movie This Movie Contains Graphic And Explicit Scenes Which May Not Be Suitable To All Viewers VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED

I Have Been Since Yesterday Watched A Free Version Of Maleficarum Starring Amy Hesketh And Mila Joya As They Faced Inquisition I Think Mila Joya Should Have Gotten The Same Amount Of Torture As Hesketh But In Spite Of This I Think Its Really Good And Very Realistic I Like To Watch It Over And Over Again In Short I High Recommend It On A Scale Of One To Ten I Give It A Eight Or In The Words Of Ebert And Roper Or Siskel And Ebert I Give It Two Thumbs Up Or In The Words Of Some Other Movie Critic I Give It Four Stars

And In My Book This Movie Is Rated R For Graphic Violence Nudity Sensuality And Adult Situations

Maleficarum is getting a lot of attention. This is a review that appeared online: "A pretty powerful and disturbing movie: Disturbing because the film doesn't really hold back in its many torture scenes, some of which are less than easy to stomach, but powerful because despite all the torture, the film manages to tell a rich story full of interesting characters, it manages to make the love between the two tortured girls who go through hell together rather than betraying one another, and the direction (successfully) aims for atmosphere rather than sleaze.

To put it shortly, a very nice, well-made film. Recommended – but for above reasons probably not for everybody." Mike Haberfelner (re)Search My Trash