 A film in three minutes. Forgive me, father, for I have sinned. I have borne witness to a film, one filled with carnal pleasures, lustful intrigues, violence, torture and heresy. I beseech you to purge its blasphemous images from my mind, for the dark director behind this wicked act may be trying to corrupt my soul, forcing me to worship his infernal creation, also known as The Devils. Ken Russell's 1971 artistically deranged historical masterpiece. That took the film world by storm and is considered to this day to be one of the most controversial releases in the history of cinema. Inspired by real-life events that occurred in 1634 in Ludin, France, the story follows Catholic priest Abin Grandier, played by Oliver Reed, and Mother Superior Jean de Ange of the town's local nunnery, played by Vanessa Redgrave. Upon learning of the controversial priest's sexual exploits of local women, Sister Ange's fascination over Grandier turns into a vendetta when he refuses to become the spiritual director of the convent, causing her usaline nuns to decry Grandier a witch who has used black magic to seduce them, creating convenient political havoc in the town that's the men of King Louis XIII exploit condemning the priest as a heretic. When discussing The Devils, it's impossible not to mention the notorious legacy the film has enjoyed decades after its release, facing censorship from film boards, outright bans from local councils in the UK, as well as the nation of Finland until 2001, and having entire scenes removed by Warner Brothers, it's fair to say that Russell's adaptation of Aldous Huxley's 1952 book The Devils of Ludin has undergone a kind of resurrection since its inception. Being vilified by Christian and non-believer audiences at the time for its lurid, violent, pornographic depiction of real-life events, but since release has enjoyed a much-deserved absolution thanks to Russell's bombastic, flamboyant direction combined with the ingenious production design helmed by Derek Jarman, and the visually-resplendent cinematography by David Watkin. Both Reed and Redgrave are intoxicating to watch on screen, completely fearless in going for broke for the camera as their respective characters' worlds fall apart around them thanks to the actions of Dudley Sutton's Baron de Lombardiement, whose performance for me sums up perfectly the unflinching brutality, corruption and chaos of Russell's world, a world of conspiracy and hypocrisy, of beauty and hideousness, of cruelty for cruelty's sake, of man's inhumanity to man, of stunning visuals, terrifying characters and daring design, that upon viewing will almost certainly force you to give the devil, and can Russell his due? God bless.