A Candle for the Devil - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

Sisters Marta and Veronica ( Aurora Bautista and Esperanza Roy) run a cozy little inn for travelers in a small Spanish village. The problem is, they’re both crazy, in different ways. Marta is a religious zealot and manipulates Veronica into horrible actions, under the belief that they’re acting under God’s will. They’re making the world a better place, you see. So, when they see a guest of theirs sunbathing without a top, they kill her. She was a heathen! A trollop! God would have wanted it this way. And when that woman’s sister, Laura (Judy Geeson), checks into the hotel, looking for her, they play dumb.

Veronica is racked with guilt over the murders that they commit, but Marta is unmoved. She’ll find a way to justify her actions. Like when the two sisters kill another “unclean” woman, a single, unmarried mother, and then come to find that the woman was indeed married, Marta shrugs it off. She just seemed like a sinner, you know? Regular people don’t have that much fun! She probably had some kind of secret they didn’t know about. God is on their side, after all, so they couldn’t make a mistake.

Their horrible, twisted secrets come to a head, and the walls start closing in on them. Laura breaks into the inn at night and finds evidence of their crimes hidden in a vat of wine that they serve travelers and other guests who dine in. So, it seems, one of their guests didn’t have just a nasty case of food poisoning—there was an eyeball in her glass! Can Laura stop the sisters in time, before they claim another victim? Will the townspeople discover the truth behind a recent series of disappearances?

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again and again, until the end of time, but movies like A Candle for the Devil are a vibe. They don’t function on the same wavelength as traditional narrative features. Pesky things like logic and character motivation are irrelevant and need not apply. The success to which we can suspend our disbelief hinges on the strength of that vibe. Eugenio Martin, an expert at creating atmosphere (such as his locomotive-themed Horror Express), crafts a classically macabre story that almost feels like a fairy tale. Somewhere between a giallo, an exploitation film, and a Hitchcockian piece of suspense, it’s a wholly unique experience.

A Candle for the Devil is a treat. God bless labels like Bizarro for giving them a platform to elevate unsung classics. 

Vital Disc Stats: The Ultra HD Blu-ray
A Candle for the Devil checks in, permanently, at the inn in a two-disc release, housed in a standard case thanks to Bizarro and OCN Distribution. The feature cover art depicts an artistic rendering of a candle illuminated by a small flame, amidst a sea of darkness. If you order from Vinegar Syndrome directly, there is a limited edition slipcover still available as of this writing.

It’s wild how great these movies can look, given a proper restoration. A Candle for the Devil was scanned in 4K from its original camera negative and graded in HDR10. The video presentation walks a fine line between giving the film a total makeover and allowing it to honor its gritty roots. What we’re left with is effectively the best of both worlds. Jose F. Aguayo, who has acted as cinematographer for some of the finest filmmakers such as Luis Buñuel, is no slouch. His photography is clean and sharp, with deep contrasts between light and shadow. The colors are deep and saturated, lively and natural. However, the presentation doesn’t shy away from bathing it in organic film grain or allowing the occasional scratch or line to dance through a shot. It’s gorgeous and beautifully realized, warts and all.

On the audio front, viewers have the option between two 2.0 mono mixes, both encoded in lossless DTS-HD MA. You have the option between the Spanish-language version of the film or an English dub. Given European filmmaking techniques at the time, no matter which version you watch, someone’s gonna be dubbed, with everyone speaking their natural tongue (apparently to the annoyance of some actors included in the supplements). Both options are clean and sharp, with excellent dialogue clarity leveled above a jazzy score that sometimes embraces a bossa nova style.

A Candle for the Devil has a nice offering of supplements, including new interviews with castmembers, recalling the production and filming. 

• Courage Under Censorship (HD 18:55) -  A new interview with actress and Eugenio Martín’s partner, Lone Fleming
• The Spain That Wouldn’t Die (HD 15:20) - A new appreciation by Sitges Film Festival director Ángel Sala
• The Rider of Fantaterror (HD 28:07) - A retrospective interview with actor Vic Winner
• A Devil in Spain (HD 18:45) - An interview with actress Judy Geeson
• Alternate English-Language Credits
• Trailers

It's my great pleasure to be able to review movies like A Candle for the Devil and see how extraordinary they can look. I’m forever grateful to labels like  Bizarro and working with OCN Distribution for allowing films like these to be seen by a wider audience. The film itself, a spooky yarn about religious fervor, manipulation, and fear, is a gem. Boasting terrific video, great sound, and a wealth of features, A Candle for the Devil is Highly Recommended.