Viy main backdrop
Viy main poster

6.9/10 • 243

1967-11-271h 16m

DramaFantasyHorror

Spirit of Evil

A young priest is ordered to preside over the wake of a witch in the church of a remote village. This means spending three nights alone with the corpse with only his faith to protect him.

Directors
Konstantin Ershov, Georgi Kropachyov
Editors
Tamara Zubova

Top Billed Cast

View Credits
  1. Leonid Kuravlyov

    Leonid Kuravlyov

    Khoma Brut

  2. Natalya Varley

    Natalya Varley

    Pannochka, the Centurion's Daughter

  3. Aleksey Glazyrin

    Aleksey Glazyrin

    Centurion

  4. Nikolay Kutuzov

    Nikolay Kutuzov

    Witch

  5. Vadim Zakharchenko

    Vadim Zakharchenko

    Freebie

  6. Petro Vesklyarov

    Petro Vesklyarov

    Dorosh

  7. Vladimir Salnikov

    Vladimir Salnikov

    Horobets

  8. Dmitriy Kapka

    Dmitriy Kapka

    Overko

  9. Stepan Shkurat

    Stepan Shkurat

    Явтух

Reviews1

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CinemaSerf Avatar

CinemaSerf

Dec 26, 2022

7/10

I gather this is one of the few "horror" films ever made during the Soviet era and it plays rather well on the superstitions of a rural population who are pretty much scared of their own shadows! "Khoma" (Leonid Kuravlyov) is a young priest who is charged with sitting with the corpse of a young woman. Locked, overnight, inside a small wooden church, he must protect her body from the evil spirits that might emanate from the depths of Hell to corrupt not just her, but him too! The eponymous "Viy" is the mightiest of those demons who is determined to seduce the young man - but can the faith and strength of this man of God prevail? I really quite liked this - it is maybe a bit over-scripted, but the visual effects are fun and there is (deliberate) humour amongst the scenes of mayhem as coffins - and their occupants - whizz around the church scaring the cassock off the innocent and frequently terrified "Khoma". The denouement - well that has to be seen to be enjoyed. Don't let the opening few minutes - a bit fable-esque - put you off, this is easily as entertaining as anything Hammer were chucking out in the late 1960s and there are some quirky supporting characters to keep it lively for a quickly paced eighty minutes.

Media

  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster
  • Viy poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
Russian
Budget
--
Revenue
--
Keywords
witchfolk horror