After winning Academy Awards for his 1971 film The French Connection, William Friedkin dove into the world of Horror in a big way with 1973’s The Exorcist. Almost immediately making an impact, The Exorcist’s story about the demonic possession of a young girl shook audiences around the globe. Largely considered one of the best, most effective Horror films of all time, following The Exorcist’s success a list of other possession-based films piggybacked. In fact, within a year many emerged, like 1974’s Beyond the Door from the Italy region, plus the underrated American Blaxploitation feature Abby.
Something which saw each film be served a copyright infringement lawsuit by The Exorcist’s distributor Warner Bros., these were not the only films arriving in 1974 following a similar theme, because there was also The Antichrist. Also out of Italy, a booming pocket of Horror cinema during the ‘70s with talents like Mario Bava, Dario Argento, and Luci Fulci leading the way, The Antichrist was directed by Alberto De Martino. Done so from a script co-written by Gianfranco Clerici (known for the infamously 1980 film Cannibal Holocaust), the cast was led by the talented Carla Gravina as the possessed Ippolita Oderisi, as well as American actors such as Arthur Kennedy (known for 1949’s Death of a Salesman and 1955’s Trial) as Cardinal Ascanio Oderisi.
Taking part in a story that finds a paralyzed Ippolita Oderisi mentally distressed about her father’s relationship with another woman years after her mother was killed in a car accident, matters only get far worse. It is soon discovered something is brewing inside Ippolita that is beyond any logical scientific explanation.
Similar to The Exorcist only in base plotlines, the characters, theme, and mood of The Antichrist are vastly different otherwise. The Antichrist takes a different approach, developing the idea of repressed past traumas and manifesting them into something extremely terrifying. Furthermore, The Antichrist has some graphically disturbing imagery that burns in your mind for a lifetime. In fact, you could argue the demonically erotic initial possession dream of Ippolita is one of the most bizarre and frightening captured in film.
Brought to life wholly by Carla Gravina’s performance, you can feel every emotion in each scene, and truthfully, she sells that infamous possession described in a very believable manner. So, is The Anchirist a copycat of The Exocrist? Perhaps, but chances are the average individual who enjoyed The Exorcist will probably not dig into the symbolism of The Antichrist. In short, The Antichrist is very much Italian Horror cinema, and you must be in tune with that style to truly appreciate the mood.
Nonetheless, The Antichrist did pretty well financially at the time of release and even made a splash in the US market. To this day it is considered a cult favorite and thanks to the 2002 DVD release, as well as a more recent Blu-ray and DVD release in 2022, the legacy remains alive. Speaking of which, in 2024 Kino Lorber, the company that put out the 2022 Blu-ray, has opted to release The Antichrist this time in 4K Ultra HD.
Available since September 10, 2024, Kino Lorber’s new 4K Ultra HD 2-disc set as part of their Kino Cult Series. Utilizing the same 4K Restoration by StudioCanal as the 2022 Blu-ray, the only difference between the two editions is that this 2024 one gives you The Antichrist for the first time on a 4K Ultra HD disc. A factor that makes a world of difference for some collectors, the 4K transfer looks pretty much flawless. Joining this with the fact that it, much like the other DVD/Blu-ray releases of the past, is completely uncut, you have a receipt for the most complete home media option of The Antichrist ever.
Packaged with the two discs, disc one has the film in 4K, while disc two has the same 4K film, but on a Blu-ray. Matched with the same bonus content such as the interesting Raising Hell featurette, and a nice cardboard slipcase, you cannot overlook that you also get a reversible artwork that features the US domestic title of The Temper tile on one side. All making this a perfect addition to any Italian Horror lover’s collection, Cryptic Rock gives this new 4K Ultra HD release of The Antichrist 4.5 out of 5 stars.
){kind=link}
No comment