The grisly story of Countess Báthory has been recounted by historians, authors, poets, playwrights, musicians, painters and filmmakers. Her reputation as the most gruesome murderess in the history of humankind is even documented in the Guinness Book of Records. She tortured her victims – invariably young virgins – before killing them, and is said to bathed in their blood before stripping with her teeth the flesh from their bones. But how much of the legend is really true? Four centuries of inquiry have offered no conclusive evidence.
The story told in this film is that of a defenceless widow. Because her property and wealth surpassed that of the king himself, she fell victim to a plot hatched in the highest of circles.
35mm | Farbe / colour
Juraj Jakubisko
F.A. Brabec, Ján Ďuriš
Ben Brazier, Robert Brazier
Juraj Jakubisko, Karel Vacek
Jan Jirásek, Simon Boswell, Petr Hapka, Andrej Turok, Martin Maok Tesák
Anna Friel, Karel Roden, Hans Metheson, Deana Horváthová, Vincent Regan, Franco Nero, Anthony Byrne, Bolek Polívka, Tim Precce, Jiří Mádl, Lucie Vondráčková
Jukubisko Film Slovakia, Film & Music Entertainment
Jakubisko Film
Palác Lucerna
Vodičkova 36
116 02 Praha 1
Czech Republic
Tel: +420.296.236 353
Fax: +420.296.236 383
info@jakubiskofilm.com
www.jakubiskofilm.com
Juraj Jakubisko - born 1938 in Kojšov. Taught photography in Bratislava, and worked for television in Košice. Studied at the Prague FAMU from 1960 to 1965. During the “normalisation” phase in the CSSR, his early work was branded as “counter-revolutionary”.
ČEKAJÍ NA GODOTA (1966)
KRISTOVE ROKY (1967)
ZBEHOVIA A PÚTNICI (1968)
VTÁČKOVIA, SIROTY A BLÁZNI (1969, Cottbus 2008)
POSTAV DOM, ZASAD’ STROM (1979)
NEVERA PO SLOVENSKY (1980)
TISÍCROČNÁ VČELA (1983)
PERINBABA (1985)
PEHAVÝ MAX A STRAŠIDLÁ (1987)
SEDÍM NA KONÁRY A JE MI DOBRE (1989)
DOVIDENIA V PEKLE, PRIATELIA (1990)
LEPŠIE BYT’ BOHATÝ A ZDRAVÝ AKO CHUDOBNÝ A CHORÝ (1992, Cottbus 1994)
NEJASNÁ ZPRÁVA O KONCI SVĚTA (1997)
POST COITUM (2004)