10. Mark Of The Devil (1979)
Witch based shenanigans which were designed to capitalise on Witchfinder General's success and end up being even nastier than its inspiration. Udo Kier is an apprentice witch finder under the auspices of the sadistic Herbert Lom. Kier believes in the church and he thinks what he is doing is the right thing. This is until Lom kills a man for calling him impotent. Kier recognises that the witch trials are nothing but an attempt by the church to rob people of their money and possessions. He falls in love with a woman accused of witchery. The townsfolk have had enough and go lynching for the witch finders. Will Kier escape? A brutal, hard to watch film, Mark of the Devil has some really sadistic and violent scenes that make Witchfinder General look like a Disney production. A poor blonde woman gets her tongue ripped out in similar fashion to Connie Mason in H G Lewis' Blood Feast. The film is well acted and effective in bringing the witch finding era to life. It is as sadistic as heck but the film's realistic gore sequences are merely recreating the truth of what happened to thousands of innocent people all those centuries ago. Plus it is a good story which exposes the corruption of the church - it is a very anti-clerical film. The movie was filmed on a location in Vienna where witch torturing really did go on. This makes the film even more believable. A nice 'sickie' for those who are curious.