S-t-a-r-c-h

Absolon attempting to glean a confession from the torture-traumatized Herloff's Marthe, accused of sorcery.

    

    

 There is nothing quite like the backdrop of 18th century German witch trials to set the mood.  This is certainly the case with Day of Wrath, a Criterion Collection gem that I recently rented from the video library.  The sterile and tense mood of this fascinating film is amplified by it's black and white images, of which the costuming takes full advantage.  The characters are clothed in restrictive and unblemished period clothing, with ridiculous collars and long, concealing robes.  The film's director, Carl Theodor Dreyer, is on of Germany's cinema masters, and one would recognize the leading and mysterious character of Ann as Lisbeth Movin, from Babette's Feast, another classic.  This riveting movie discloses the insane torture and forced confession techniques implemented in the time in order to theoretically deduce who was and was not a witch, and by the end of the film, the notion of who is truly evil is blown wide open.

Most every shot of the film is a stunning image, taking full advantage of value and tone, surprisingly vibrant for being in black and white.

Herloff's Marthe being raised to her execution by fire