The Cremator is a horror film of the most horrifying kind. It depicts bourgeois banality swept up in fascistic promises, with the meek and privileged ultimately accommodating authoritarianism’s terrible aims. The film also follows the ‘rise’ of a morally weak and opportunistic sociopath, very much a topic of our time. That the horror is accompanied by satirically comedic moments only increases its darkness.
Regardless, it’s an eminently watchable film, masterfully drawn to the verge of cinematic perfection. Juraj Herz’s pacing and story-telling reveal just enough while subtly revealing a lot, enforcing the gut punch of the last ten minutes. The innovative cinematography evocatively portrays the unreliability of our narrator, dipping in and out of the protagonist’s narcissistic headspace and his timid reality. Jump cuts, fish-eye lenses, and disorienting edits from scene to scene give the viewer a sense of the encroaching madness. The music from Zdeněk Liška is one of the best scary-movie scores at times, made even spookier as it alternates between light-hearted themes and waltzes. And, it must be said, the lead performance by Rudolf Hrušínský is one of the creepiest of all time — name your favorite creepy film villain, and I assure you Kopfrking easily ranks alongside. A masterpiece.
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