SEVERIN FILMS ILLUMINATES FRANCO-ERA/POST-FRANCO SPANISH GENRE CINEMA WITH EXORCISMO COLLECTION
Release Showcases 19 Feature Films Including Award-Winning Documentary,
Plus New 168-Page Book & 21+ Combined Hours of Bonus Features
Severin Films today announced a landmark new exploration of transgressive Spanish cinema with the release of EXORCISMO: DEFYING A DICTATOR & RAISING HELL IN POST-FRANCO SPAIN. This groundbreaking box set includes 18 pivotal feature films released both during and in the wake of the Franco dictatorship, the award-winning documentary EXORCISMO: THE TRANSGRESSIVE LEGACY OF CLASIFICADA “S” narrated by Iggy Pop and produced by Severin Films, plus the new 168-page book EXORCI“S”MO!
Having endured decades of strict censorship laws under General Franco’s authoritarian rule, Spain’s entertainment industry fought to liberate cinematic expression before and after the dictator’s death in 1975. Faced with an opportunity to subvert the regime’s values and protest the Catholic Church’s rigid restrictions, Spanish filmmakers began to defiantly explore banned themes such as sex, violence and horror. With the post-Franco Clasificada “S” rating, which restricted these films to audiences over 18, this active rebellion marked a shift in the nation and audiences considered this period of cinema to be a cultural ‘exorcismo.’ Honoring the art of resistance-by-cinema, EXORCISMO: DEFYING A DICTATOR & RAISING HELL IN POST-FRANCO SPAIN spotlights 18 films that launched a celluloid revolution, including infamous features directed by Eloy de la Iglesia, León Klimovsky, Javier Aguirre and Eugenio Martín.
Also included is writer/producer/director Alberto Sedano’s acclaimed 2024 documentary EXORCISMO: THE TRANSGRESSIVE LEGACY OF CLASIFICADA “S”, which explores the history behind the notorious rating that rocked Spanish culture, changed the face of genre films and left its mark on global cinema forever. The 168-page EXORCI“S”MO! features new essays by Alberto Sedano, Alejandro Melero, Álex Mendíbil, Shelagh Rowan-Legg and Daniel Kowalski, plus poster/stills galleries and more. The majority of the titles in this unprecedented collection are Worldwide Blu-ray Premieres scanned in 4K from original camera negatives, with over 21 combined hours of new and archival Special Features.
Pre-orders for the EXORCISMO: DEFYING A DICTATOR & RAISING HELL IN POST-FRANCO SPAIN box set begin today at SeverinFilms.com
Disc 1: Exorcismo: The Transgressive Legacy of Clasificada “S” / Far from the Trees (Lejos de los árboles)
Exorcismo: The Transgressive Legacy of Clasificada “S” Special Feature:
Trailer
Exorcismo: The Transgressive Legacy of Clasificada “S” Disc Specs:
Runtime: 123 mins
Audio: Spanish / English 5.1, Spanish / English Stereo
Subtitles: English For Spanish Audio, English For All Audio
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Far from the Trees Disc Specs:
Runtime: 103 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Disc 2: The Bell from Hell (La campana del infierno) / Creation of the Damned (El refugio del miedo)
The Bell from Hell Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Kat Ellinger, Author Of Daughters Of Darkness
Audio Commentary With Rod Barnett, Film Historian And Co-Host Of NaschyCast, And Robert Monell, Writer And Editor Of I’m In A Jess Franco State Of Mind
Censorship And Curses – Film Scholar Dr. Álex Mendíbil On THE BELL FROM HELL
Trailer
LUCIANO (1965) – Short Film Co-Written/Directed By Claudio Guerín, Director Of THE BELL FROM HELL
The Bell from Hell Disc Specs:
Runtime: 97 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono, English Mono
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Creation of the Damned Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Antonio Lázaro-Reboll, Author Of Spanish Horror Film
I’m Proud Of My Films – Interview With Director José Ulloa
Being There – Interview With Camera Assistant Paco Marín
Trailer
Still Gallery
Creation of the Damned Disc Specs:
Runtime: 96 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono, English Mono
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Disc 3: The Devil’s Exorcist (El juego del diablo) / After… Part One: Can’t You Be Left Alone? (Después de… Primera parte: No se os puede dejar solos?)
The Devil’s Exorcist Special Features:
Play Film With Alternate Opening
Audio Commentary With Shelagh Rowan-Legg, Author Of The Spanish Fantastic, And Film Critic/Educator Simon Laperrière
A Daring Film – Interview With Actor Jack Taylor
Horror Comes From The Church – Interview With Cinematographer José Luis Alcaine
Sound Experiments – Interview With Composer José Nieto
Trailer
The Devil’s Exorcist Disc Specs:
Runtime: 84 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono, English Mono
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
After… Part One: Can’t You Be Left Alone? Disc Specs:
Runtime: 94 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Disc 4: The People Who Own the Dark (Último deseo)
The People Who Own the Dark Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Rod Barnett And Troy Guinn, Film Historians/Co-Hosts Of NaschyCast (Spanish Cut Only)
Joking On Set – Interview With Actor Antonio Mayans
A Unique Iconography In Spanish Terror – Ángel Sala, Head Of Programming At The Sitges Film Festival, On THE PEOPLE WHO OWN THE DARK
Trailer
The People Who Own the Dark Disc Specs:
Runtime: 100 mins (Spanish Cut) / 83 mins (U.S. Cut)
Audio: Spanish Mono (Spanish Cut Only) / English Mono (U.S. Cut Only)
Subtitles: English (Spanish Cut Only) / English SDH (U.S. Cut Only)
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 (Spanish Cut Only) / 1.85:1 (U.S. Cut Only)
Disc 5: Battered Flesh (Carne apaleada) / The Priest (El sacerdote)
Battered Flesh Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Shelagh Rowan-Legg, Author Of The Spanish Fantastic, And Spanish Cinema Professor/Scholar Alejandro Melero
A Spain To Break – Interview With Actress Sandra Alberti
Battered Flesh Disc Specs:
Runtime: 99 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
The Priest Special Features:
The Socialist Priest – Interview With Actor Emilio Gutiérrez Caba
A Provocative Filmmaker – Interview With Actor Martín Garrido Ramis
EL OTRO LUIS (1975) – Short Film By Eloy De La Iglesia’s Friend And Collaborator Alejo Loren
The Priest Disc Specs:
Runtime: 100 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Disc 6: Sins of a Nympho (Bacanal en directo) / Dimorfo
Sins of a Nympho Special Features:
I Regret Nothing – Interview With Assistant Director Alejo Loren
Trailer
Sins of a Nympho Disc Specs:
Runtime: 85 mins
Audio: Spanish Stereo
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Dimorfo Special Features:
The Haunted Cartoonist – Spanish Film Scholar Dr. Álex Mendíbil On The Films Of Rodjara
Alternate Credit Sequences
Dimorfo Disc Specs:
Runtime: 95 mins
Audio: Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English
Region Free
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Disc 7: Bloody Sex (Sexo sangriento) / Morbus
