Ken Russell's The Devils Horror Movie Review: A Brutal Masterpiece

by The Baron
(AL)

Release: July 16, 1971 (U.S.)
Directed by: Ken Russell
Written by: Ken Russell (screenplay), John Whiting (play) and Aldous Huxley (novel "The Devils of Loudon")

Starring:
Vanessa Redgrave as Sister Jeanne
Oliver Reed as Urbain Grandier
Dudley Sutton as Baron De Laubardemont
Max Adrian as Ibert
Gemma Jones as Madeleine

Here it is, folks, one of the most notorious films ever made. Ken Russell’s film, The Devils, is one of those rare films that lives up to its reputation, and even exceeds it. The surprise here is that Russell has succeeded in crafting an intelligent film that makes some valid points about corruption in both religion and government. I must offer a word or warning to the potential viewer. The director pulls no punches in depicting rape, torture, blasphemy (including a scene where a group of naked nuns defile a life-sized statue of Christ) and death by burning at the stake. This film is not for those who are easily offended. If, however, your viewing tastes run to the adventurous side, and you are willing to look beyond the veritable parade of atrocities on display here, then you may well get the message that Russell is trying to send.

Based on real events, The Devils stars Oliver Reed as Father Urbain Grandier, a priest in the city of Loudon, a place where Catholics and protestants are living together in peace. He is popular among the people, especially women, something which greatly pleases the worldly Grandier. Unbeknownst to him, he has attracted the eye of Sister Jeanne (Vanessa Redgrave), the deformed Mother Superior of a group of Ursuline nuns. Sister Jeanne is tormented by sexually charged visions of Grandier, visions which depict him as a Christ-like figure (including a scene where Christ is nailed to the cross but turns into Grandier as he comes down and ravishes Sister Jeanne). Russell maintains a dream-like ambience in these scenes, making them all the more effective. When Grandier refuses her request to become her confessor, Sister Jeanne’s sexual frustration turns to first to hate and then to madness as her unfulfilled desires consume her. She confesses to Father Mignon (Murray Melvin in a wonderfully twitchy performance), a priest who has reason to dislike Grandier, that Grandier has seduced her with the powers of the devil.

Grandier’s popularity has also put him at odds with the powerful Cardinal Richelieu, who wants to tear down the city’s fortifications, thus taking away their independence. Grandier’s opposition to this plan has made him a prime target of the Cardinal’s wrath. Sister Jeanne’s accusations come at a politically expedient time for Richelieu, who has the ear of the King. They send for an exorcist, the mad Father Barre (Michael Gothard), and soon public exorcisms erupt in Loudon. Russell really takes the gloves off in these scenes. The nuns, so long repressed, give full vent to their sexual desires with their so-called exorcist and his cohorts, creating what amounts to a three ring circus. The exorcisms, obviously a sham and nothing more than an excuse for debauched behavior, grow steadily more bizarre and disturbing as the film progresses. This culminates in the “rape of Christ” sequence I mentioned earlier. Grandier is arrested and put on trial.

Russell wisely contrasts the growing madness of his accusers with Grandier’s own spiritual awakening. He is a flawed man who has made many mistakes, but the ordeal that he is going through allows Grandier to grow closer to God, and to finally realize his own potential for good. In the end, the film is not about decadence or even blasphemy. It is about an essentially good man who is destroyed by a corrupt government and who is betrayed by the very religion he has dedicated his life to. The Devils is not an easy film to watch. It is, however, a brutal masterpiece that deserves to be seen by a wider audience.