Witchfinder General

I am covering specific films for the month of October but following this I intend to delve deeper into genre, studio, movement and actor. For the moment the focus remains on horror so if you are not interested in all things scary then come back in November!

 Still Here? Good decision…

Filmsite.org offers the following definition

Horror Films are unsettling films designed to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm, and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience

Michael Reeves’ 1968 film Witchfinder General, starring horror icon Vincent Price, fit’s the above description to the letter. Witchfinder General does not rely upon gruesome images but instead a nihilistic atmosphere more horrific than any camp jaunt through another serial killer spree. 

 To offer a historical perspective within the constraints of this short blog would be to do the subject an extreme disservice. It is however difficult to underestimate the influence of Witchcraft, or at least those supposed of the dark acts, on this period of history. Anyone who has read the Malleus Maleficarum will testify to that.  Character General Oliver Cromwell offers the following

The year is 1645, England is in the grip of bloody Civil War. On the one side stand the Royalist party of King Charles, on the other, Cromwell's Parliamentary party: the Roundheads. The Structure of law and order has collapsed. Local Magistrates indulge their individual whims, justice and injustice are dispensed in more or less equal quantities, without opposition. An atmosphere in which the unscrupulous revel, and the likes of Matthew Hopkins take full advantage of the situation. In a time where the superstitions of country folk are still a powerful factor, Hopkins preys upon them, torturing and killing in a supposed drive to eliminate witchcraft from the country, and doing so with the full blessing of what law there is

Vincent Price plays the part of Matthew Hopkins of whom very little is actually known. A figure who appeared and disappeared from history with equal question. Price depicts the character straight, no hint of the camp apparent throughout some of his better known performances. It is Price’s portrayal that helps make the film so effective. Witchfinder General utilises its English setting perfectly and offers a form of torture porn so far removed from that offered by the more modern like of the Saw and Hostel series’.


Made for a very small budget, of under £100,000, Witchfinder General was largely censored on its release due to the sadistic nature of the content. Hopkins is effectively a con-man. He swindles money from the local magistrates for ridding their towns of the witches they didn’t know were threatening their citizens. It’s the root of all great professions, convince someone they need a service before offering your services to assist.

The ending of Witchfinder General is mentally difficult to comprehend in that we get exactly what we wanted, and what we expected, however we are not pleased by it. You should feel satisfied but instead it is that heightened nihilism that reigns.

My favourite review of Witchfinder General was offered by Alan Bennett in a column for The Listener who proclaimed this film to be

The most persistently sadistic and morally rotten film I have seen. It was a degrading experience…

Although probably not one for a Halloween all nighter I found Witchfinder General to be a deeply affecting movie, one which remains with you for some time after viewing. It is difficult to say exactly what stays with you but it feels somewhat like dirt that can’t be washed from your skin. The more recently released extended cut features an increased level of torture and, if you are going for the full experience, this is the one I recommend.

Men sometimes have strange motives for the things they do.