I first saw THE DEVIL’S MEN in its shorter American version known as LAND OF THE MINOTAUR. This was from a DVD set of drive-in cult classics from American explotation specialists, Crown International. Just as soon as the movie was over I said to myself “This is CITY OF THE DEAD / HORROR HOTEL updated from 1960 to the mid 1970s and transplanted to Greece from New England”. You’ve got hooded cultists following a sinister leader who are involved in blood sacrifice and who are vanquished in the end with the aid of a cross. The robes are in color now, the setting is picture postcard Greece not fog shrouded New England, and the ending is more explosive but its the same basic story.
Most of the reviews give this movie only a passing grade, but I think that’s it better than that especially in this new, limited edition Blu-Ray release which makes it look way better than my American LAND OF THE MINOTAUR release did. The picture and the sound are improved (which enhances the Brian Eno score) and you get both versions of the movie so that you can see what was cut for the American release. There are lots of extras that come with this limited edition including an 8mm version?!, audio commentary, subtitles, and an interview with Peter Cushing from 1973 which takes place at the National Film Theatre. Finally there’s a recent interview with the Greek producer who talks about the making of the film.
Vacationing young tourists in a small picturesque Greek village vanish without a trace but the local authorities don’t seem to be interested in pursuing it. A Roman Catholic priest (Donald Pleasance) doing research in the area believes a Satanic cult with links to Greek mythology (they worship a stone statue of the Minotaur that breathes fire and speaks in thunedring tones) is responsible for the disappearances. The local aristocrat, Baron Corofax (Peter Cushing), is nobleman by day and leader of the cult at night. The cult is made up of local villagers so naturally they refuse to help Pleasance so he calls in a friend from New York (Kostas Karagiorgis) to help him do battle with the forces of darkness.
As mentioned earlier, the similarities between DEVIL’S MEN and CITY OF THE DEAD are numerous. There are not one but two endangered heroines, all the cultists wear robes and chant incantations, the climax of the ritual is a blood sacrifice, and both groups are destroyed by the power of a cross. In CITY they burst into flames while in DEVIL’S MEN, they literally explode. Because of the Greek setting, the cross used here is a bejeweled Orthodox one which is empowered by the light of the full moon. Finally both movies were shortened and retitled for their American release. If you want to have some movie geek fun and can find copies of both films, watch them back to back with CITY being first.
The Capsule Critic 