Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Cross of the Devil Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 26, 2024

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Danza Macabra: Volume Three — The Spanish Gothic Collection from Severin.

Since one might assume that one of the staples of Gothic media (film or otherwise), namely dank and spooky castles, were built in the veritable days of yore before the advent of the convenience of modern plumbing and water supplies, perhaps it's a more apt metaphor than usual to say that Severin is "returning to the well" for a third volume of offerings branded as Danza Macabra, after their previous releases of Danza Macabra: Volume One — The Italian Gothic Collection and Danza Macabra: Volume Two — The Italian Gothic Collection. As can probably be pretty easily gleaned from the subheading of this third collection, Severin is changing countries, and is here offering Spanish Gothic productions instead of the two previous volumes' concentration on Italian Gothic films, and with production dates ranging from 1971 to 1975 (with two films from each year). All four films in this collection are advertised as featuring new scans of the original negative for the first time. As with the other Danza Macabra collections, the films may be of variant interest and/or quality, but as usual Severin offers a really handsomely designed package that contains some outstanding supplemental features.

Cross of the Devil may be one of the few films in this set that has a widely recognizable name for English speaking horror fans in particular, namely director John Gilling, who made his name at Hammer with such titles as The Mummy's Shroud and The Shadow of the Cat. There is in fact a rather pronounced "Hammer-esque" feel to Cross of the Devil, even if a late "reveal" may kind of comically tip this more into The Da Vinci Code territory, as one of the more cheekily named supplements listed below may indicate.

Writer Alfred Dawson (Ramiro Oliveros) may or may not be suffering from the effects of what amounts to the 19th century equivalent of vaping, but one way or the other, he seems to be haunted by visions of marauding Knights Templar, which is certainly a rather peculiarly specific kind of nightmare to experience. A veritable "damsel in distress" in those hallucinations (if that's what they even are) is a prominent feature, and when Alfred's sister in Spain requests immediate aid for some unspecified reason, he rushes to join her, only to find out she's been murdered.

Cross of the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Cross of the Devil is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. While not advertised as being a "worldwide Blu-ray debut" as some of the other offerings in this set are, Cross of the Devil's back cover does state that this is "the first ever English friendly home video release", one that was "scanned in 4K from the negative with English subtitles for the first time ever". A lot of this presentation is undeniably soft, though at least some of that perceived gauziness seems to be intentional, perhaps to subliminally reinforce the idea that whatever Michael is manically puffing away on may have affected his perceptions. With that same kind of dewy, refractive quality just accepted as a given, detail levels are typically quite commendable throughout, aided by Gilling's frequent use of close-ups, where things like textures on fabrics can be expressive. Some isolated outdoor and/or brightly lit material can kind of be startlingly sharp all of a sudden (see screenshot 6), something that's probably more noticeable since so much of the presentation is so intentionally filtered looking. The palette is very healthy throughout, though as with some other films in this set, the production design can sometimes favor dowdy browns, leaving real "pop" to interstitial moments. Grain resolves naturally throughout. My score is 4.25.

Cross of the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Cross of the Devil features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track in the original Spanish (though it certainly looks like at least some of the performers have been dubbed). This is another pleasing track that really doesn't offer anything major to complain about, though it's inherently narrow and perhaps just a tad boxy in the midrange. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Cross of the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Kim Newman, author of Anno Dracula, and Barry Forshaw, author of Brit Noir


• Fascinated by Becquer (HD; 11:26) is an interview with screenwriter Juan Jose Porto. Subtitled in English.


• The Real Templar Knights Movie (HD; 8:55) is an appreciation by Angel Sala, Head of Programming at the Sitges Film Festival. Subtitled in English.


• Fantasy and Imagination: The Legacy of Gustavo Adolfo Becquer (HD; 12:53) is a video essay by Xavier Aldana Reyes, author of Spanish Gothic: National Identity, Collaboration and Cultural Adaptation

Cross of the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Cross of the Devil never really manages to develop much narrative momentum, and this may actually let down those who see Gilling's name and who will be expecting something at least somewhat reminiscent of that vaunted Hammer ambience. There are echoes of that ambience here, but like many echoes, they can seem distant and kind of dissipate over time. Nonetheless, technical merits are generally solid and as usual Severin has assembled some outstanding supplements, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.