Witchfinder General (1968)

Country of Origin: UK / USA
Year of Production: 1968
Running Times: 86m
Length:
Format: 35mm
Colour Format: colour
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Sound: mono

DIRECTION

Directed by: Michael Reeves

PRODUCTION
Copyright: © Tigon British MCMLVIII [1968]
Production Company: A Tigon British, American International production
Executive Producer: Tony Tenser
Produced by: Louis M. Heyward, Philip Waddilove, Arnold Miller
Production Manager: Ricky Coward

SCRIPT
Screenplay by: Tom Baker and Michael Reeves
Additional Scenes by: Louis M. Heyward
From the Novel by: Ronald Bassett

DIRECTION
Assistant Directors: Ian Goddard, Iain Lawrence
Continuity: Lorna Selwyn

PHOTOGRAPHY
Photographed by: John Coquillon
Camera Operators: Brian Elvin, Gerry Anstice
Camera Assistants: Tony Breeze, Chris Reynolds
Grip: Freddie Williams
Gaffer: Laurie Shane
Stills: Jack Dooley

EDITOR
Film Editor: Howard Lanning
Assistant Editor: Marion Curren

MUSIC
Music Composed and Conducted by: Paul Ferris
US Version Music: Kendall Schmidt

SOUND
Sound Mixer: Hugh Strain
Sound Recordist: Paul Le Mare
Dubbing Editor: Dennis Lanning

COSTUMES AND MAKE-UP
Make-Up: Dore Hamilton
Hairdresser: Henry Montsash
Wardrobe: Jill Thomson

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: Roger Dicken

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Art Director: Jim Morahan
Asst. Art Director: Peter Shields
Set Dresser: Jimmy James
Props: Sid Davies, Fred Harrison
Construction Manager: Dennis Cantell

OTHER CREW
Production Secretary: Pat O'Donnell
Publicity: Jack Daw

LOCATIONS
Location Manager: Euan Pearson

CASTING
Casting Director: Freddie Vale

CAST

starring
Vincent Price (Matthew Hopkins)
Ian Ogilvy (Richard Marshall)

co-starring
Robert Russell (John Stearne)
Nicky Henson (Swallow)

and introducing
Hilary Dwyer (Sara)

with
Tony Selby (Salter)
Michael Beint (Captain Gordon)
Bernard Kay (fisherman)
Beaufoy Milton (priest)
John Treneman (Harcourt)
Bill Maxwell (Gifford)
Peter Thomas (farrier)
Maggie Kimberly (Elizabeth)
Dennis Thorne (villager)
Ann Tirard (old woman)
Gillian Aldham
Hira Talfrey (hanged woman)
Jack Lynn (Brandeston innkeeper)
Michael Segal (villagers)
David Webb (jailer)
Sally Douglas (girl at inn)
Edward Palmer (shepherd)
Lee Peters (Sergeant)
Peter Haigh (Lavenham magistrate)
Godfrey James (Webb)
Margaret Nolan (girl at inn)
Philip Waddilove
Toby Lennon (old man)
Morris Jar (real name: Paul Ferris) (Paul)
David Lyell (footsoldier)
Alf Joint (sentry)
Martin Terry (Hoxne innkeeper)
Derek Ware
John Kidd
Susi Field

and
Rupert Davies as John Lowes

Guest Stars
Patrick Wymark as [Oliver] Cromwell
Wilfrid Brambell as Master Loach

Donna Reading (girl at inn)

PLOT SUMMARY

While England labours under the civil war between the Royalists and Parliamentarians, the sadistic Matthew Hopkins roams the villages of Anglia is search of supposed witches. He and his sidekick, the equally twisted John Stearne, torture accused young women for both financial and sexual gain. But when Hopkins turns his attentions to an innocent parish priest and his niece, he comes to the attentions of the girl's fiancé, soldier Richard Marshall, who swears revenge of the self-styled Witchfinder General...

UK
Theatrical Distributor: Tigon
Video Distributor: Redemption; Parkfield (1990)
DVD Distributor: Metrodome (MTD5051)

USA
Theatrical Distributor: AIP
Video Distributor: Home Box Office; Orion; Sinister Cinema
Laserdisc Distributor: Image Entertainment (ID 7659 HB - on double with The Tomb of Ligeia)

Australia
Rating: R

Finland
Rating: banned in 1972

Sweden
Rating: 15

UK
Rating: X; 18
All prints released before 1996 suffered the cuts originally imposed by the British censors. Redemption Video managed to restore the missing footage from various European laserdisc sources and the subsequent Metrodome DVD included footage originally only seen in the stronger European cut of the film.

USA
Rating: unrated

1968
April
30: UK - trade show at the Corner Preview Theatre, London

May
19: UK - theatrical release

1970
October
12: Sweden - theatrical release

1984
March
5: UK - television broadcast (on ITV)

1991
January
30: USA - laserdisc release (Image Entertainment (ID 7659 HB - on double with The Tomb of Ligeia))

1992
July
27: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

1994
June
Day Unknown: UK - television broadcast (on UK Gold)

1995
June
Day Unknown: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

November
Day Unknown: UK - television broadcast (on Bravo)

2002
November
30: UK - television broadcast (on BBC1)

2004
December
21: UK - television broadcast (on BBC1)

Leave the children at home... If you are squeamish stay home with them!

He'll hang, burn and mutilate you. He's the... witchfinder general

Den blodiga snaran - Swedish title
The Conqueror Worm - US title
Il grande inquisitore - Italian title
Der Hexenjäger - German title
Noidantappajat - Finnish title
Robak zwyciezca - Polish title
Witchfinder-General - UK video title

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Vincent Price: The Sinister Image (1988)

SEE ALSO
Akelarre (1984)
Cry of the Banshee (1970)
Shadows: The Witch's Bottle (1975)
Il trono di fuoco (1970)

PERIODICALS

Cinefantastique vol.22 no.1 (August 1991) pp.32-38, 43-45; 39-42 (USA)
illustrated article (Michael Reeves - Horror's James Dean by Bill Kelley); illustrated article (Witchfinder General by Bill Kelley)

The Dark Side no.55 pp.45-47 (UK)
review

Daily Cinema no.9516 (3 May 1968) p.9 (UK)
review (by C.W.)

Empire no.11 (May 1990) p.88 (UK)
illustrated review (Gruesome by Kim Newman)

Empire no.160 (October 2002) p.92 (UK)
illustrated review (by Kim Newman - uncredited)

Hollywood Reporter vol.198 no.38 (8 December 1967) p.8 (USA)
credits

Monthly Film Bulletin 1968 p.100 (UK)
credits, synopsis, review

Sight and Sound vol.6 no.2 (February 1996) p.62 (UK)
illustrated article (The Adjuster by Richard Falcon)

Sight and Sound vol.11 no.12 (December 2001) p.66 (UK)
DVD review

Starburst no.209 (January 1996) p.48 (UK)
illustrated review (by Lawrence McIlhoney)

BOOKS

Aurum Film Encyclopedia: Horror (2nd edition) p.202
credits, review

Reference Guide to Fantastic Films I p.73
credits

OTHER SOURCES

screen
credits

KEYWORDS

book into film, military, english civil war, witch hunts, inquisition, hanging, torture, sadism, revenge, axe murders

Last Updated: 22 April, 2010