17th C.Navarre , during the kingdom of the monarch Felipe , there Lord Fermin De Andueza (Walter Vidarte) , helped by a priest called Angel (Mikel Garmendia) and Fray Miguel (Javier Loyola) , Monastery Prior , all of them bring an inquisitor , Licenciado Azevedo (José Luis López Vázquez) from Santo Oficio . Shortly after , a witch hunt begins , villagers are detained to carry out trials against the local witches . Thanks to information given by some villagers result to be judged Gurazi De Ochoa (Silvia Munt) , niece of a burnt witch in France , and an elderly woman , Amunia De Basterrechea (Mary Carrillo). However , Fermin is using this horror to tarnish Unai (Patxi Bisquert) but he escapes .
A historic fiction crammed with witchery as well as horror touches and based on actual facts happened late XVII Century , 1595 , in Valley of Araiz , where this film was filmed , there took place an ¨Auto De Fe¨ in which were judged some witches . Olea describes a culture clash , the Catholic Castillian and the primitive Basque . The authoritarian , torturing Inquisitors against witches with medicine knowledge who get together and celebrate naked little orgies as well as firing parties at Saint Joan nights , including popular dances . Entertaining though slow-moving witchery film with abundant sensationalistic scenes and provoking style . The film displays a strong criticism against the Spanish Inquisition that travelled throughout country judging , torturing and condemning suspicious of witchery as well as experts with necromancy arts and arresting and torturing to extract 'confessions'. The movie has engaging scenes full of witchery , horrifying tortures , burning poles and several other things .
The picture compellingly written by Pedro Olea and Gonzalo Goicoechea (Eloy De La Iglesia's ordinary screenwriter) was based upon Julio Cáro Baroja books and Florencio Iruate story , specially his novel : ¨Book about witches¨. Olea gives knowledge on Inquisition and witchery , including about the ¨Fornicarius¨ and the ¨Garden of flowers ¨ by Torquemada that the devil and Sabbath are the same and particularly ¨The Malleus Malleficarum¨ that may be the most blood-soaked book in human history : the witches' hammer , it is instructed the clergy on how to locate , torture and kill all freethinking women , during witch-hunt , history tells , fifty thousand are captured , burned alive at the stake . Nevertheless , the prestigious writer Julio Caro Baroja explained the Spanish Inquisition is less interesting and did not pursue witches as happened in France or Germany . Other film dealing with witchery are : the classy ¨Haxam¨ by Benjamin Christiensen and ¨Dies Irae¨ by Carl Theodor Dreyer . In Spain was shot : ¨Flower of holiness¨ by Adolfo Marsillach and ¨Inquisition¨ by Jacinto Molina . Akelarre's cast is pretty good , such as : José Luis López Vázquez who gives a restrained acting , Mary Carrillo is awesome as old witch who has a lot of medicine wisdom and Patxi Bisquert as a farmer who opposes his rule of tyranny . Support cast is frankly well , such as : Iñaki Miramón , Javier Loyola , Sergio Mendizábal , Félix Rotaeta , Marivi Bilbao , Lola Lemos ; though most are sadly dubbed by professionals .
After six years in which Pedro Olea dedicated in advertising and documentaries as ¨Guernica¨ , ¨River of Bilbao¨ and TV series as ¨Cuentos Y Leyendas¨ , and others about Basque themes ; and later ¨Un Hombre Llamado Flor De Otoño¨ he goes back to shoot , thanks to subsidy of the Basque government . He is one of the most gripping Spanish directors , being an expert Basque director , producer and screenwriter . He began directing ¨Dias Viejo color¨ and followed a personal work titled ¨Bosque del Lobo¨ about an alleged werewolf . He subsequently directed a trilogy about Madrid , produced by Jose Frade , such as : ¨Tormento¨ , ¨Pim , Pam , Pum Fuego¨ and ¨La Corea¨ . His biggest success was ¨A man called Flor De Otoño¨ with Jose Sacristán . After that , he made ¨Bandera Negra¨ about arms smuggling and a military thriller : ¨Moriras en Chafarinas¨ ; later on , he directed ¨Mas Allá Jardin¨ with Concha Velasco . And ¨Fencing master¨ that resulted to be one of the best films . And he also shot another film about witchery : ¨Leyenda Del Cura De Bargota¨ TV (1988) . ¨Akelarre¨ rating : Above average , well worth watching .
