Don't Deliver Us from Evil (1971) User Reviews

Distubing French Cult-Shocker Truly Delivers

[Witchfinder-General-666 · 8/10 · 9 September 2009]

Regarding that "Mais ne nous delivréz pas du mal" aka. "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" (1971) is a highly controversial exploitation film and cult-favorite, one might expect something somewhat different before seeing this dark gem. My hopes, however, were surpassed, and I seriously don't know why I didn't watch this gem until recently. While its controversial reputation might suggest that Joël Séria's film is a sleazy, gory and explicit slice of Exploitation, this disturbing gem of European shock cinema has a lot more to offer than mere sleaze and violence. "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" is actually a lot lower on explicit violence and sexuality than I had expected - but a masterwork of macabre atmosphere and ingenious, highly disturbing and genuinely shocking plotting.

Teenage girls Anne (Jeanne Goupil) and Lore (Catherine Wagener) are neighbours, best friends, and roommates in a strict Catholic boarding school for girls. The two have also committed themselves to sin and taken a vow to serve Satan. After beginning with playful rituals and black masses the two soon turn to more grave sins and unspeakable cruelty… The manner how these two girls carry out calculated acts of extreme cruelty is very disturbing. However, none of the other characters in the film are likable. Séria denounces the hypocrisy of the bourgeois society and the Catholic church, the men in the film are either hypocrites or potential rapists who are unable to control themselves once a young girl gets slightly flirtatious with them. Leading actresses Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener are near-brilliant in their roles. Both actresses were adults when the film was made, but they look extremely young. Especially Wagener looks like fourteen, which makes the film as a whole, and the sexual scenes in particular, a lot more disturbing. Satanism always is a welcome Horror topic, and it has seldom been presented in a manner as disturbing as it is the case here. This may due to the fact that this film does not rely on typical clichés and that cruel deeds are presented with shocking sobriety, or because it's young girls who commit devilish acts here. The atmosphere is somewhat eerie and yet seems disturbingly real, the beautiful French settings and the film's haunting score increase this impression. Overall, this film is not as graphic as one might expect from what once apparently was the only film ever banned in France. This film delivers a lot more than cheap shock or graphic sleaze, it is genuinely shocking and a great viewing experience as such. Not for the faint-hearted, but a definite must for lovers of European Exploitation/Underground cinema, "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" is a viewing-experience one will certainly not forget. 8.5/10

Don't Deliver Us from Evil (Joel Seria, 1971) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 17 June 2006]

I recently made a binge of DVD purchases, and among these were 6 Mondo Macabro releases I had been eyeing for some time. This is the first one I checked out, and it's a stunner - for several reasons! I had never heard of the film before its DVD announcement - but now I feel that it's been seriously neglected and, hopefully, Mondo Macabro's wonderful "Special Edition" can give this title a new lease of life.

Inspired by the same events which were eventually treated directly in Peter Jackson's HEAVENLY CREATURES (1994), the film is a perverse little item with rampant anti-Catholicism at its fore and which, unsurprisingly, was banned when it emerged; with this in mind, I love the way Mondo Macabro ended their description of it on the back cover: "It's a film that should be viewed only by those with very open minds"! Concerning two teenage girls' rebellion against their repressed upbringing by making a Satanic pact, in which they dedicate their lives to committing evil, it reminded me of other notorious "Chick Flicks" from the same era such as ALUCARDA (1975) and TO BE TWENTY (1978). The film doesn't have much of a plot and is deliberately paced, but it's held firmly together by the deliciously malevolent performances of the two leads (and particularly the untrained Jeanne Goupil, from whose viewpoint the events are related, and who subsequently hitched up with first-time director and former actor Seria!).

It seems to me that the reason the film is so obscure is that, when new, it was ahead of its time but, even now, it would be almost impossible to make (despite the ostensibly graphic nature of French cinema today) - featuring any number of shocking and potentially offensive images, which I won't spoil here for the uninitiated! Still, I have to mention the disturbing double rape inflicted - or, rather, invited - upon Catherine Wagener (though playing under-aged, the actress was actually 19 at the time) and the incredible finale, set inside a crowded school auditorium, which is sparked {sic} by the two girls' recital on stage of a strange poem by Baudelaire. The simple yet haunting music - performed on the organ or as a cantata - is highly effective, and the DVD extras (featuring, among others, separate interviews with Seria and Goupil) complement the film very nicely indeed.

The evil that young Catholic girls do!

[The_Void · 8/10 · 30 June 2006]

It's quite unbelievable that this film doesn't have a better reputation, as Joël Séria's Don't Deliver Us From Evil is an intricately worked little shocker that is sure to appeal to fans of European cinema. It's clear that the film was made in France, as the plotting, style and atmosphere of the movie is very French indeed, and this benefits the movie as it wallows in the imperfections of its lead characters; two sexy, yet underage convent school girls that decide to forsake God and take sides with The Devil. Both characters clearly have the urge to do evil already in them, but the way that director Joël Séria coaxes them into committing sinful acts is good because the characters are easy to care for; but their acts make them easy to detest; and as we all know - God hates the sin, not the sinner. The themes of straying from the moral acts that we've all been taught since birth shine through well, as the pair at the centre of the story are completely angelic, and on the face of it; look like butter wouldn't melt in their mouths. It can be said that the actual plotting isn't all that shocking; but everything in the film is made more so by the fact that it's stars are so young.

The 'evil' that the young girls do involves reading forbidden material at first, and eventually moves on to teasing men, arson and murdering people's pets. Joël Séria doesn't shy away from featuring nudity in the film; and the pair of scenes that handle attempted rape don't leave much to the imagination. Don't Deliver Us From Evil benefits from a pair of great performances from young French actresses Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener. Both give the film their all and give mature portrayals of their characters. The film is said to be a horror film; but it isn't really the case, as the focus is more on the drama and the corruption of youth than the satanic themes. The director doesn't allow the film to descend into comic book styling's, like some other films handling Satan do; and this benefits the film as it always seems serious and mature. Don't Deliver Us From Evil (great title, by the way!) is not as shocking now as it would have been upon it's release in 1970 - but still the film holds some weight in the shock stakes as many of the ideas that it portrays are still taboo to this day. Overall, this is a fascinating watch and one that should be seen by anyone who has a chance to see it!

Murderous girls

[Camera-Obscura · 13 January 2007]

DON'T DELIVER US FROM EVIL (Joël Séria - France 1971).

Anne and Lore, two young convent girls become friends and decide to spend the summer together somewhere in the French countryside. However, their relationship soon takes on a much more sinister side. Influenced by their reading of forbidden books, they decide to explore the world of perversion and cruelty. They seduce a farmer but he tries to rape one of the girls after which they barely escape. They also torture a pet bird, which I found an especially cruel. The image of the owner mourning besides his dead bird is quite shattering.

Writer-director Joël Séria largely based the film on a real-life murder case, the famous Parker-Hulme murder that took place in New Zealand in 1954. Two teenage school girls, Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme, who had become obsessed with each other and with a magical "Fourth Kingdom" they had created in their minds, decided to murder Pauline's mother so that they could run away together. The case has inspired a number of books and, most famously, Peter Jackson's 1994 film HEAVENLY CREATURES.

The film was banned for blasphemy in France as it tries to flout catholicism in every way imaginable. In one particular scene, a man imposing himself as Jesus is mocked by the girls while carrying the cross and there's much more. In 1971, it was already very rare for a film to be banned on counts of blasphemy. More recently, I don't know of many films to be banned on these grounds either, but regarding the increasing Christian (and Muslim) sensibilities, a return to this kind of censorship seems almost inevitable. Most of the anti-catholic imagery will probably have little effect on most audiences now, but devout catholics will probably be gravely offended.

With its rather tasteful cinematography, relaxed pacing and well-drawn characterizations, it's more of a surreal art film than anything really exploitational. We're talking about a French film here, after all. However, many scenes, especially the rape- or near-rape scenes, will make for distinctly uncomfortable viewing and the disturbing final scene is quite shocking and came as quite a surprise to me. Although it generally comes of as the typical product of a guilt-ridden catholic (much of the film was influenced by director Joël Séria's own memories of his catholic upbringing) and the pacing was a bit slow at times, it's worth watching.

Camera Obscura --- 7/10

shocks amid some tedium

[HEFILM · 6/10 · 7 April 2006]

The pacing of this film is, well fans would say European, I'd say just a bit slow in a way that grinds on you. It's not poorly made or shot but isn't so well made as to overcome its low budget either. Now seeing it after the masterpiece Heavenly Creatures of course it seems less of a film worth seeing. This is a much different take on the material and completeists will probably be Glad they saw it.

There is some convincing animal cruelty in the film that is perhaps a bit too real and there certainly are elements that would draw the "raincoat" crowd to the film.

The script is a bit of a one note affair, supporting characters tend to pop up in a confusing way. Suddenly the girls are at a satanic ceremony, how did they find this local satanist, why does he go along with them? I don't know and neither will you.

But the film doesn't really stop to be exploitation, nor are the girls "hot" enough for it to work on that level. These are girls who aren't really beautiful yet, they've lost the innocent beauty of children and it's really unclear if they will become plane or even ugly adults or what? I suppose that's a virtue. The posters for the film certainly make it seem like an exploitation movie and it's not.

But be prepared for a sort of slow march to a memorable ending. Be prepared to be patient or use your fast forward button if you want to watch it.

The Mean and Sick Teenage Friends

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 18 February 2023]

In a Catholic Boarding School in France, the teenagers Anne (Jeanne Goupil) and Lore (Catherine Wagener) are best friends and they have promised to serve Satan. They spend their summer vacation together and they dedicated to play cruel pranks to servants and neighbors. Soon they escalate their games culminating with the death of a driver that run out of gas on the road. When they return to school, they are aware that there is a police investigation.

In 1971, "Don't Deliver Us from Evil" was an insulting French cult movie. However, in 2023, it is a cruel movie, where the protagonist Jeanne Goupil kills two birds, which is inadmissible in the present days. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Mas Não Livrai-nos do Mal" ("But Don't Deliver Us from Evil")

Satan Likes 'em Wayward ... and Jailbait!

[Coventry · 9/10 · 21 April 2007]

I was part of an extremely fortunate bunch of people who got to see this rare gem of euro-cult cinema on the big screen; moreover inside an authentic old-fashioned grindhouse type of theater where the walls threaten to fall down at any given moment and the equipment has surely seen better days already. I can assure you these rather primitive viewing conditions add a large portion of raw atmosphere to an already gritty and unsettling film. But nevertheless "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" suffers a little from its own controversial reputation, as it has got a lot more to offer than just graphic shocks and gratuitous nudity. The film poster proudly announces, in letters that are far bigger than the title itself, that this is the only French film to be banned in France. It's a nice promotion stunt, but it only forces potential viewers to anticipate a non-stop sleazy and exploitative smut flick, whereas Joël Séria's film is primarily a beautifully dark and almost poetic depiction of how adolescents of high social descent deal with boredom and sexual curiosity. The script may be loosely inspired by the real-life Parker-Hulme murder case (the same case Peter Jackson used for his "Heavenly Creatures") but I strongly believe Séria also used the opportunity to criticize the hypocrisy of the Catholic Church as well as the unfair French social classification system. During the long & boring nights at the boarding school, 14-year-old Anne becomes interested in salacious literature and she quickly convinces her friend Lore to join her into exploring the exact opposite of all the Catholic mumbo-jumbo that is forced upon them by the nuns and their deeply religious parents. It all starts with naughty, yet harmless games and the discovery of their own bodies & sexuality, but the situation escalates into something genuinely malice. When summer vacation begins, and the girls spend two months away from authority, they perform a ritual to become accepted as disciples of Satan and cross the line for good. Their innocent games are gradually replaced with the the dangerous seduction of mentally unstable men, vicious rites of animal cruelty, arson and eventually murder.

Séria's criticism towards the Catholic Church and the authorities' obnoxiousness is mainly illustrated through the lack of response by the adults! The film exclusively revolves on the acts of the two girls and never at one point suggests that the grown-ups in their surrounding are even aware of the evil they commit. Anne and Lore actually even bring themselves down in the (downright staggering and jaw-dropping) finale because they THINK they'll get caught. The performances of Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener are simply amazing and also very courageous. It's almost unbelievable to accept they 19-20 years old during filming as they honestly look like inexperienced girls who barely hit puberty. Their age and especially the nude sequences they're in often make "Don't Deliver Us From Evil" a terribly difficult film to watch. It feels incredibly wrong to watch at these girls as they're parading in their panties and provocatively seduce men, but it more or less remains a tasteful film at all times. The impact of the message Séria brings probably was a lot more shocking in the prudish France of the early 1970's – which is undoubtedly why the Church insisted on censorship – but it's still intense enough to upset audiences even today, and particularly the end-sequence will haunt your thoughts for several days afterwards. It's a beautiful film, with enchanting cinematography by Marcel Combes and an excellent 'La La La' theme song that regularly gets repeated during the most essential sequences.

One of a kind!

[rmtaylor90 · 10/10 · 19 July 2015]

Banned in France for Blasphemy back when it was made in'71 "Don't Deliver us from Evil" was a very controversial film at the time mostly because of it's unconventional plot based on two innocent looking teenage catholic school girls who devote themselves to Satan and go on very mischievous (for lack of a better term) adventures and at times sexually arousing (teasing) much older adult men which in effect works against them and we witness some very shocking scenes of sexual assault which left me wondering while watching whether this film is actually legal due to the fact the girls are playing 14 and 15 year old girls. Thankfully I learned when reading about the film afterwords that the girls are actually 19 and 20 years old in real life. The ending is truly brilliant and has to be seen to be believed! It will stay with you for quite some time. One of the things that make this such an effective film is the fact that the acting is very well done by everyone specifically the two girls playing Anne (Jeanne Goupil) and Lore (Catherine Wagner) anyone else and the results would have been much less effective IMO. Although, as notorious as this film maybe I can't say other than a few scenes I mentioned above this would be a really shocking watch to anyone who's into European exploitation films of the 70's or anyone like me who's grown up in a time of modern day horror films when pretty much everything has been done. Still, if you were to show this to the uninitiated or the religious type in theaters today you might have more than a few people walk out completely offended. Legendary DVD label Mondo Macabro released this obscure gem quite awhile ago on DVD and did a fantastic job making this film look amazing as only MM can do with very informational extra features as well. Very beautifully shot and would go great as a second feature to Valerie and Her Week of Wonders. One of my favorite movies of all time! 10/10

Animal Cruelty.

[mmnmtl · 1/10 · 7 February 2016]

Torturing and killing little birds for a stupid worthless piece of crap and showing it like it's normal is not my cup of tea, i can't stand for it sorry. I actually thought i was going to like this movie, i liked the theme in the score at the beginning i thought bad acting could be naive but it was all until the animal torture started, those scenes really made everything go down, acting is really bad, everything happening in the movie is irrelevant, oh did i mention there is animal cruelty prepare to watch birds choking to death, screaming kittens plus sexual abuse. I'm not easily offended but animal cruelty is not one of them. I don't recommend this movie to anyone because at the end i felt so empty, mistreated and actually pretty much like those abused animals squeezed and thrown away. I think high rating is because of the people who are too blinded by the two teenage naked girls doing meaningless stupid things so called ''satanic''. If killing animals, burning straws, seducing men, making others sad, wandering around with bikes, trying to drown each other in lakes are satanic then everyone in this world worships Satan. I really hate when i waste my time for these kind of movies.

Dark, beautiful, erotic masterpiece

[fertilecelluloid · 9/10 · 7 April 2006]

Dark, beautiful, erotic. Three words that barely sum up the true nature of this extraordinary tale of two young girls (Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener) whose attraction to "evil" becomes a smoldering obsession. Director Joel Seria has crafted a deliberately paced exploitation masterpiece that is the thematic and sensual equal of such cinematically potent fare as "Maladolescenza" (reviewed), "To Be Twenty" (reviewed) and "Heavenly Creatures". Eager to experience as much "life" as possible, the two protagonists wreak unholy havoc in a small rural hamlet by setting fire to property, killing animals, engaging in anti-Catholic rituals, and using their naive carnal charms to seduce a string of men who all meet unfortunate fates. The seduction scenes, in particular, are very erotic, and it's unlikely they would be attempted today in this highly reactionary, less sexually permissive era. The photography, by Marcel Combes, is stunning, and reminded me of the night sequences in Richard Blackburn's "Lemora, A Child Tale of the Supernatural"; also, the hypnotic musical score, by Claude Germain and Dominique Ney, turns everything to poetry. One of the best films ever made about the attraction of the dark, it is a brilliant achievement both for its dream-like atmosphere and thematic courage of its convictions. The final scene, which possesses both an inevitable element of tragedy and considerable shock value, is wonderful.

One Sleazeburger, Hold the Sleaze

[VIOlencEandpAIN · 5/10 · 13 September 2008]

I recently purchased this movie under the English title DON'T DELIVER US FROM EVIL to add to my growing collection of Euro-trash titles, thinking it was of the same ilk as the works of Jesus Franco and the like. While it does have some schlock elements, this movie is evidently based on a true story ("based" being the operative word, I'm sure) about two Catholic schoolgirls who decide, for whatever reason, to dedicate their lives to Satan. Overall, it's not a bad story, but it's an attempt at a tragic tale with very little sympathy being earned for the two protagonists.

The two schoolgirls, Anne (Jeanne Goupil) and Lore (Catherine Wagener), begin this story in a convent, hiding under a bed. They've come across some lesbian erotica apparently owned by one or two nuns. I was sort of expecting there might be some softcore porn as time went on, but to no avail--and worry not, the two actresses playing these roles were actually around the age of twenty when this was filmed. They've dedicated their lives to the dark side of the force, and as the movie progresses, they continue doing some rather awful things to the people around them, including: telling a priest about the lesbian nuns, killing some poor guy's pet birds, and setting fire to several bails of hay on some farm. Probably the worst of it is their tendency to deliberately tempt two different men with their underage bodies, only to almost end up getting raped in the process; both of these scenes are somewhat difficult to watch. It is the two latter events that brings in the sleaze element to this movie, the second of which results in their killing the man in question. After this, things go pretty much downhill for the duo.

The story itself isn't terrible, although it does drag on at times. The general design and the score do bring a certain aesthetic to the movie, but that might not be enough for some viewers. The ending is rather interesting, if not bizarre, as it does contain some laughable elements. Is it worth watching? Well, don't go in expecting something along the lines of gore and heavy nudity, and you might enjoy it. Sounds like Peter Jackson covered the story years later with HEAVENLY CREATURES, and I can only imagine he did a much better job with it. Maybe it's best to check out that version instead.

This is a great movie that you should watch.

[changedname · 8/10 · 23 February 2012]

If you're like me and you like beauties and beautiful shots in movies like this, then you're in for a treat.

I've tended to become slightly wary of these movies, since sometimes they turn out to be kind of boring - for example much of Jess Franco's stuff. I also thought this was really strange that they would have young girls doing this and wondered what the heck it would be like. I was surprised at the level of sexuality the girls displayed at times, but for me it was a better movie for it. I think females would like this movie as well, unlike a lot of horror movies which is a genre this scarcely fits into.

It's also highly original and unique, I guess the reason it wasn't followed up by others was because it would be hard to match it. The images of it will probably stay with you for a while. I really love some of the up-close shots they gave of the girls. I think the girls complement each other really well: one is dark, the other is blonde. One is calling the shots more - as tends to happen in friendships/relationships.

There isn't a heavy plot line to it, just various things the girls go around doing. Sometimes, it can get a little boring, but the powerful musical score helps it through those parts really well. It's a good movie to watch if you have something else on your mind or are a bit tired, as it won't tax you with a mind-bending plot.

Time to deliver the message

[moemoul · 10/10 · 25 June 2000]

I was 15 when I first saw this movie, back in 1973. I was studying GCE Film at a boarding school in Essex, when our tutor screened 'Don't deliver us' for our mock O Level paper. The theme was censorship and immediately it became obvious that the censors were in for a tough time. Notwithstanding the sexual content of the film and the depraved way in which the two girls flout there vulnerability to the innocent village idiot, the film really ran into trouble with it's anti-Catholic theme which is prominent throughout. This aside the film has plenty to say and with the advancement in our tolerance of the shocking and with more acceptance of criticism of the church, I feel it is time to give this film an airing and test it's ability to deliver a message.

Pater Noster

[dbdumonteil · 3 July 2005]

The title is borrowed from a Christian prayer "Pater Noster" (Our Father) ,the last line of which is put into the negative form.That speaks volumes about the anti-Christian atmosphere of the whole movie. Something like Luis Bunuel on electric shock treatment.Two girls ,students in a severe Catholic school,rebel and do very nasty things .Stunning ending when,after reciting a Beaudelaire poem ,the two girlies set fire to themselves.

The movie was theatrically released in 1972,but never never broadcast on TV,so I had never the opportunity to see it again.Its subjects (lesbianism,murders,sacrileges)were too much for the time and I wonder if the movie has worn well.Joel Seria 's other movies were watchable ("Charlie et ses deux nénettes")but none of them was as outrageous as his first one.

Too Tame

[Tweetienator · 5/10 · 6 September 2022]

I got two main troubles with Don't Deliver Us From the Evil - neither the level on the horror-o-meter nor on the sleaze-o-meter are strong ones. Attacking the Catholic church and its belief and institutions and promoting some young girls sexual and cruel fantasies must have been something shocking in the early 70s to the common folk that was not part of the Flower Power movement, but watched with today's by countless horror flicks steeled eyes I just can say: too tame, too slow, and takes itself rather too serious for its own good. And last but not least, compared with such still good looking and entertaining movies like The Exorcist, The Hills Have Eyes, Clockwork Orange, Carrie, Suspiria, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Dawn of the Dead, Don't Deliver Us From Evil is a rather mediocre and forgetable movie and maybe more interesting for the connoisseur of French drama cinema, which is not my specialty. In short: not enough horror, not enough suspense, not enough Satan, not enough cheese.

Satanic horror drama not for the easily offended.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 9/10 · 1 September 2008]

"Don't Deliver Us From Evil" tells the simple story of two teenage convent girls who dedicate ourselves to Satan.Gorgeous raven-haired Anne and her best friend Lore are fascinated by evil.After renouncing Jesus Christ they start to seduce men,kill the groundskeeper's bird and perform various acts of blasphemy.The film is pretty controversial as the both actresses look very young.It's disturbing to watch a child-like girl getting her clothes torn off.There's a lot of sacrilegious imagery and it seems that the director clearly hates Catholic Church,but the violence is kept to minimum.The sleaze is quite plentiful,though.The film is inspired by the original 'Heavenly Creatures' Pauline Parker and Juliet Hammond, the two girls whose close friendship resulted in murder.It studies the themes of female friendship and teenagers alienation and questions faith and rules.I applaud it for that.9 out of 10.

Catholic School Girls In Trouble

[jfgibson73 · 5/10 · 1 June 2010]

This is a French drama about two girls who go to high school at a private convent, but secretly pledge to worship Satan. They get together at night and on the weekends to do things like kill the neighbor's pets and plan a secret ceremony.

The story is set in what looks like a rustic French countryside, and one of the girls like in an old château. However, the pace of the film seems to match the leisurely setting--it drags constantly, showing us things like people walking across a room for 20 seconds without anything happening.

The girls look really young, which should add to the shock of seeing them do some of the "sinful" things, and it probably did when the movie first came out. Today, however, films like Kids and Thirteen have shown preteens doing messed up things to the point where it doesn't seem to stand out as much. The girls in this movie reminded me more of the girls from Ghost World, actually. The movie gets pretty nasty in a couple places--I think the blonde girl gets assaulted three separate times. Even the ending is a bit blase at this point, having been done in more graphic detail several times over in movies with more capable effects. 5 out of 10.

A French Gothic, dated 1970...

[punishmentpark · 9/10 · 30 April 2015]

Two young girls become heavily inspired by the death & doom rhetorics of their local priest (and some private lecture) as they witness the false values at their Catholic girl school. They decide they belong to Satan and they will do his bidding in the upcoming summer vacation... Things get way out of hand, but it takes a while before they are actually in such big trouble that they themselves actually see no other way out than a theatrical suicide.

'Mais ne nous...' is a bold and naughty film, though Jeanne Goupil and Catherine Wagener were respectively 21 and 19 years old at the time. Their acting may not always be flawless, but it comes across as spontaneous and sincere. Following these two teenage girls liberating themselves from social and religious chains, one will more than once feel uneasy at their unflinching manners, but still this a unique and creative little tale that ought to be seen by every emo, goth or other alternative human spirit out there today.

9 out of 10.

Shocking and disturbing

[lazarillo · 22 December 2005]

This obscure French film, still unavailable in English, is a more fictionalized and much more exploitative version of the same real-life murder later covered in Peter Jackson's "Heavenly Creatures". The two girls in this movie, however, are decidedly less sympathetic than the heroines of the later movie and they commit not only murder, but every form of religious sacrilege, as well as some unforgivable cruelty to some birds belonging to a poor, retarded handyman. It is thus pretty hard to feel much sympathy toward them (even if I could understand most of what they were saying).

The two girls are also decidedly younger than their juicy counterparts in "Heavenly Creatures" and the scenes of them prancing around in their underwear or one of the nymphets deliberately enticing a much older man and nearly being raped TWICE make for some decidedly uncomfortable viewing. To the movie's credit these scenes are obviously intended to shock and disturb much more than titillate (and anyone who finds themselves being turned on by them probably has a lot bigger problems than this movie). The ending is very memorable and truly shocking. I would kind of like to watch this movie with English or Spanish subtitles, but I'm not really sure I could sit through it again.

Truly original satanic film.

[FacemeltingFilms · 10/10 · 1 May 2011]

Sometimes a movie comes by and smacks you in face so hard you're view of film and your reasons for loving film change completely. Don't Deliver Us From Evil made me feel how I felt when I first watched Clockwork Orange or The Shinning. So much power and beauty delivered in the most perfect way it stops your heart.

DDUFE is not beautiful in the traditional way Kubric films or Wes Anderson films are beautiful. It is not a beauty based on a sill photo but based on the moving picture. The vision of bodies moving through space. Really what movies should be about. This is extremely hard to achieve in my opinion as I have only seen a few movies that truly accomplish it. To me DDUFE is the ultimate perfection of this. Warning though this is truly "only a movie for the open minded!" Two best friends in catholic school, Lore and Anne, have dedicated their lives to Satan. They spend the summer reading dirty books, killing small animals, seducing the gardener and setting fires. They marry under the name of Satan and steal church artifacts for Satanic rituals. This escalates further and further to an ending that will leave your jaw on the floor.

It's a very simple concept that is executed with an artists hand and a beautiful classical score that will make you want to kill kittens.

This movie is dedicated to the depraved. It promotes violence, sex, and Satan in an extremely compelling way. It is the ultimate peer pressure for little girls to behave badly. The movie itself is so dark and morbid and beautiful it feels as if it was sent from hell.

To truly enjoy this movie you must love depravity. To truly enjoy this movie you must cherish violence and savor death. To love this movie you have to be ready to witness the ultimate love between two girls and Satan.

This was something else...

[paul_haakonsen · 5/10 · 6 January 2024]

When I sat down to watch the 1971 movie "Mais Ne Nous Délivrez Pas Du Mal" (aka "Don't Deliver Us From Evil") here in 2024, I had never heard about it. I happened to stumble upon it by random chance, and with it having an English title as it did, of course I was somewhat intrigued, and had to watch it.

Writer and director Joël Séria definitely put together something that would have been shocking back in 1971, no doubt about that. And actually watching the movie in 2024 was still a bit cringeworthy at times, given the contents of the storyline at certain points throughout the narrative.

Needless to say that I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in "Mais Ne Nous Délivrez Pas Du Mal", given my extremely limited exposure to the French cinema, much less the 1970s French cinema. However, I will say that the acting performances in the movie were good, and leading actresses Jeanne Goupil (playing Anne) and Catherine Wagener (playing Lore) definitely carried the movie quite nicely with their performances.

Visually then writer and director Joël Séria delivered something that was oddly memorable, yet somewhat disturbing at the same time. If that was a good or bad thing, now that is of course entitely up to the individual viewing the movie.

While I did manage to sit through all 102 minutes that the movie ran for, this is hardly a movie that I will ever return to watch a second time.

My rating of Joël Séria's 1971 movie "Mais Ne Nous Délivrez Pas Du Mal" lands on a five out of ten stars.

Troubling, but effective in what it does.

[Hey_Sweden · 8/10 · 18 May 2014]

This jaw dropping drama from France and director Joel Seria is sleazy and exploitative enough to understand all too well why it would get banned for blasphemy. The girls in the leads were older than what they were playing, but that doesn't make some of their scenes any less uncomfortable. His basic story of innocence allowing itself to be corrupted has a great deal of impact, especially since that innocence never completely goes away; these two girls remain pretty naive about the things that they do, and ultimately panic when they think that all will be discovered. This is all shot in a pretty straightforward way, and it's acted in an awfully convincing manner.

Anne (brunette Jeanne Goupil) and Lore (blonde Catherine Wagener) are two girls, barely into their teens, who meet in a Catholic school and become intrigued with reading material that has been deemed forbidden. They get it into their heads to renounce God and devote themselves to Satan. Determined that their friendship survive no matter what, they start indulging in all sorts of bad behaviour, teasing and tormenting various older men. They cross a line when their attempts to seduce a motorist (Bernard Dheran) end badly.

The uninitiated may well come to believe that, based on the films' reputation, that sleaze is all it has to offer, but it's also a tragic and upsetting story of adolescent curiosity. Certainly it's disturbing to watch as these kids commit arson, engage in acts of animal cruelty, and flaunt their bodies in front of men. The music by Claude Germain & Dominique Ney is haunting, there is a very literate quality to some of the dialogue, and the film does have a beautiful look courtesy of the cinematographer, Marcel Combes. It's also clear that Seria is critical of the Catholic church and is commenting on the idle rich as well.

Once you see that disturbing finale, it will be pretty hard to forget it.

This may play to a fairly limited audience but they're sure to find it worth viewing.

Eight out of 10.

Not an easy film to recommend.

[sunznc · 26 December 2014]

I don't know if I can actually add anymore to what has already been said. The film is raw and amateurish at times. It certainly is no polished piece of work. The editing is abrupt at times which to me says the editor didn't have a lot to work with.

This is not a cerebral piece of work that will linger with you for days or weeks after you've seen it. Certainly won't change your life much. However, there were moments when I felt really uneasy about what was happening on the screen. It's understandable when you are watching a scary thriller or horror flick that you might not want to watch. This isn't a scary movie. It's just disturbing. When it comes to harming animals or babies most people won't want to watch. It's a bit troubling that someone on the set didn't draw the line at some point but this was 1971.

Does the film make a point? The girls here don't have much love in their lives. All they know are rules and the adult world is ugly indeed. They create their own fantasy world but when that turns ugly there is only one way out.

Hard to recommend but there are some moments of curiosity.

very unusual

[christopher-underwood · 8/10 · 23 March 2023]

I really liked this and it is very unusual and the two girls splendid. It is a shame that Jeanne Goupil only did a few films in France and some TV but really nothing wonderful or even the prettier girl Catherine Wagener did nothing really at all. The director, Joel Seria, this was his first film and never really did much else although he made something called Mumu (2010) which looks interesting but only it seems has opened in France. Don't Deliver Us From Evil, I seem to remember it opened in a small sex cinema in Soho in London in the 70s when I saw it. Watching now it looks wonderful and really strange with the woods at night and poetic. I also loved the scenes in the lake especially the ones with the girls and their odd pal and the attempts at satanic action almost naked. The story of the naughty girls gets more and more scary when of course we remember Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994) which was fine but never quite as nasty or sexy as this one.

Candid and artsy depiction of adolescent wickedness

[drownsoda90 · 9/10 · 12 February 2023]

"Don't Deliver Us from Evil" follows two adolescent schoolgirls in France who, despite their conservative Catholic families and education, indulge in their mutual fascination with evil deeds, culminating in a series of disturbing and tragic events.

Notoriously banned in its native France, "Don't Deliver Us from Evil" is a surprisingly frank and atmospheric depiction of young minds who are inexplicably drawn to wickedness. While the screenplay positions the two lead characters, Anne and Lore, against their conservative surroundings, the girls' acts of depravity and commitment to Satan are rendered in such a way that it seems less about teen rebellion than it does an abstruse interest in "badness" for badness' sake.

There is little exposition or explanation as to what drives the characters' alignment with evil, and, because of that, the film possesses a grim and nihilistic edge that is hard to shake--there is also no tangible supernatural or demonic angle at work here (which one might expect based on the title alone). Instead, the film plays like (and predates) an existential rendition of something like Juan Lopez-Moctezuma's "Alucarda," sans the supernatural dimension. In "Don't Deliver Us from Evil," the protagonists are simply drawn to wickedness like moths to a flame, with no tangible cause.

Visually speaking, the film is gorgeously shot and the countryside locals give it an otherworldly and atmospheric flair, and the performances are uniformly effective. The content itself is at times disturbing, and director Joël Séria's depiction of the events is candid and possesses a realism that renders them even more unsettling.

While the film does not make for a particularly easy viewing, it is an engaging and artsy work that manages to creep under the skin by degrees. As an existential "look into the void" of childhood evil, it stands as one of the most slickly-executed examples; well-made and unforgettable, for better or worse. 9/10.