HAXAN: WITCHCRAFT THROUGH THE AGES; DVD DVD (1922) - (1968 re-release) Directed by Scandinavian filmmaker Benjamin Christensen, 'Haxan -Witchcraft Through the Ages' (1922) is a strange silent film depicting black magic, witchcraft, and demonology from the middle ages to the 20th century. Shot and presented in documentary form, the film is more akin to a pseudo-scholarly lecture with moving visual aids. Not as intense or as shocking today as upon its initial release, the film is filled with nightmarish images that are certainly profane and explicit, but also humorous.  Yes, sex goes hand-in-hand with Satan, and Christensen's flamboyant portrayal of the aforementioned character, complete with flicking, wanton tongue, drives home the point (well, that and a peppering of nudity). Unique to say the least, 'Haxan' is a rather weird curio of a film with some incredibly atmospheric, somewhat graphic images, esp. for that era. The 1968 re-release with an electric jazz-fusion score by Jean Luc Ponty and narration by William S. Burroughs is a treat in itself.

ALICE; (Jan Svankmajer) DVD DVD, New Alice is a 1988 surrealist dark fantasy film written and directed by Jan Svankmajer Its original Czech title is Něco z Alenky, which means "Something from Alice". It is a loose adaptation of Louis Carrol's first Alice book, Alice's adventures in Wonderland(1865), about a girl who follows a white rabbit into a bizarre fantasy land. The film combines live action with stop motion animation, and is distinguished by its dark and uncompromising production design. For Švankmajer, a prolific surrealsit director of short films for more than two decades, Alice became his first feature length film. The director had been disappointed by other adaptations of Carroll's book, which interpret it as a fairy tale. His aim was instead to make the story play out like a darkly disturbing amoral dream. The film has been widely praised and is certainly an astonishing film.