Hoop-Tober | 10/31 | Decades 10/10 | 1910s
Dante attempts to ascend the hill of salvation, but the beasts Avarice, Pride, and Lust block his bath. So, the poet Virgil guides Dante through the Nine Circles of Hell so that Dante may learn to recognize and reject sin.
The film follows their journey, the stories they hear, and the horrific sights they see.
Through me, you pass into the city of woe. Through me, you pass into eternal pain. Through me among the people lost for aye. All hope abandon ye who enter here.
The first full-length film to come out of Italy, the filmmakers designed it to put the fear of God into the viewer’s heart.
With trippy special effects, intricate sets, and nude bodies for days, this film has perhaps the best depiction of hell I’ve seen in a movie.
My only complaint is the frequent and text-heavy interstitials — they’re necessary for the story, but I wish they could just let the images speak for themselves.
Still, this movie rules. Put on some brutal music (I chose Colin Stetson’s The Love It Took to Leave You), and watch the bodies flail and nightmare unfold.