Haxan

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I must apologise to any of my readers who have actually been following my quest to review all ‘1001 films you must see before you die’ (very outdated now). My resolve to complete this quest has been erratic and flimsy –to be kind- and I have not reviewed a canonical classic in donkey’s years!

But today I got back in the saddle.

A lull in a rainy afternoon inspired me to do a quick Youtube search for an early 1920s film that was not over 3-hours long and unearthed a disturbing gem in cinematic history: Haxan.

This ‘documentary’ is from Danish filmmaker Benjamin Christensen and is an exploration into the belief in the devil and witchcraft during Medieval times and the Renaissance.

If my lectures in uni were this engaging and unforgettable, I surely would have gotten all HDs! Christensen’s film is a glorious (and often terrifying) piece of cinema that defies genre as it’s part academic exploration into an earlier time –the early scenes do remind one of being in a university lecture theatre- and part horror movie.

The film is a montage of stills, models, pictures, and dramatic reenactments, which come with their own breathtaking photographical tricks and visual delights. Indeed it’s a piece that really explores all possible avenues of theatre and the artistic industry – it’s a celebration really- that still manages to disturb and awe a modern audience. Amidst the pointer outlining various characters in a medieval painting, the film boasts a mechanical set, photographic layering to depict spectres, and impressive achievement in makeup and costume design during the more dramatic parts that are reenactments of the Sabbath and a medieval witch trial.

Christensen’s attention to detail and the power of mise-en-scene is spectacular and can undoubtedly be held as the inspiration for many a modern horror movie including The Exorcist or anything by Tobe Hooper.

Johns Hopkins Unversity

But my review of Haxan is not all praise. While it still manages to engage a modern audience, there are definite cracks and marks of out-datedness, especially during he film's exploration into the modern day, in particular, mental health and its relations to medieval witchcraft. 2020 viewers, coming from a world where there is more awareness of mental illness than ever, might find some of the filmmaker's opinions on the subject disturbing or offensive. But we must remember that this movie reflects a different time and social attitude, so this flame can't be held against it for too long. 

Whilst its stubborn lack of genre makes it initially hard to warm to, perseverance is rewarded and Haxan sits within cinematic history as a true piece of experimental masterwork.

Director: Benjamin Christensen, 1922

Cast: Elisabeth Christensen, Astrid Holm, Karen Winther, Maren Pedersen, Ella La Cour, Emmy Schonfeld, Kate Fabian, Oscar Stribolt, Clara Pontoppidan, Else Vermehren, Alice O’Fredericks, Johannes Andersen, Elith Plo, Aage Hertel & Ib Schonberg