Haxan, released in English as Witchcraft Through the Ages, is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, blending documentary-style lecture material with elaborately staged dramatic reenactments to examine the history of witchcraft accusations and their possible links to hysteria and mental illness. The film was unusually costly for its time and place, and its explicit, often disturbing depictions of torture, demonic ritual and nudity led to censorship in several countries on its original release. Haxan is widely regarded as a landmark of early horror and pseudo-documentary filmmaking and has been highly influential on later horror cinema despite its atypical hybrid form.
Facts
Release YearSourced to the subject's own account CountrySourced to the subject's own accountThe same live Wikipedia article infobox names only Sweden in its own country field (studio Svensk Filmindustri, Sweden-only distributor row); its own lead sentence calls the film Swedish-Danish. Recorded as Sweden and Denmark per the lead, source-internal inconsistency left for a future citation-repair pass rather than silently resolved. Classification
Original LanguageSourced to the subject's own account FAQs
Was Häxan banned or censored when it was released?
It was banned in the United States and heavily censored elsewhere.
Yes. Benjamin Christensen's 1922 Swedish-Danish silent film Häxan was banned in the United States and heavily censored in other countries, according to the Public Domain Review. The same source calls it reportedly the most expensive film of the Swedish silent film era, so the censorship fell on an unusually costly production.
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Source Haxan (Wikipedia)Lead sentence 1tier 3Quote, Lead sentence 1
Häxan (Swedish: [ˈhɛ̂ksan], The Witch; Heksen Danish: [hɛksən], The Witch; English: The Witches; released in the US in 1968 as Witchcraft Through the Ages) is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent horror essay film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Haxan (Wikipedia)Lead sentence 1tier 3Quote, Lead sentence 1
Häxan (Swedish: [ˈhɛ̂ksan], The Witch; Heksen Danish: [hɛksən], The Witch; English: The Witches; released in the US in 1968 as Witchcraft Through the Ages) is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent horror essay film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen.
Sources
1. Haxan (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationlead sentence, Wikipedia REST summary extract
Häxan is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent horror essay film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen.
Haxan, Description, original language
Haxan, released in English as Witchcraft Through the Ages, is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, blending documentary-style lecture material with elaborately staged dramatic reenactments to examine the history of witchcraft accusations and their possible links to hysteria and mental illness.
Created By: Benjamin Christensen, Article lead sentence
Häxan (Swedish: [ˈhɛ̂ksan], The Witch; Heksen Danish: [hɛksən], The Witch; English: The Witches; released in the US in 1968 as Witchcraft Through the Ages) is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent horror essay film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen.
In Group: Swedish and Scandinavian Silent Films, Lead
Häxan (Swedish: [ˈhɛ̂ksan], The Witch; Heksen Danish: [hɛksən], The Witch; English: The Witches; released in the US in 1968 as Witchcraft Through the Ages) is a 1922 Swedish-Danish silent horror essay film written and directed by Benjamin Christensen.
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