The Devil's Bride [Blu-ray]

The Devil’s Bride Blu-ray is a wildly surreal Lithuanian rock opera and one of the most singular cult musicals of the 1970s. Directed by Arūnas Žebriūnas, this fully sung-through folkloric fantasy fuses psychedelic rock, pagan myth, and religious satire into something that feels equal parts JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, TOMMY, and THE WICKER MAN.

Set in a rural village steeped in folklore, the story follows the devil Pinčiukas (Gediminas Girdvainis), who is cast out of Heaven and crash-lands into the life of farmer Baltaragis (Vasilijus Simčičius). In exchange for securing the hand of Baltaragis’ beloved Marcelė (Vaiva Mainelytė), the devil strikes a Faustian bargain that promises him their unborn daughter — setting off a chain of darkly comic, tragic, and deeply mythic consequences.

Told entirely through song in the tradition of THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG, the film is packed with unforgettable imagery: angels shedding robes for mod-era costumes, devils galloping bareback across fields, ritual objects drawn from Baltic folklore, and dreamlike musical sequences that blur the line between the sacred and the profane. In a striking inversion, Pinčiukas emerges as one of cinema’s most sympathetic devils — condemned to Earth while longing for Heaven.

A beloved cult classic in Lithuania and a major rediscovery for fans of experimental musicals and folk horror, The Devil’s Bride has been beautifully restored by the Lithuanian Film Centre and makes its first-ever U.S. appearance on Blu-ray from Deaf Crocodile.

directed by: arūnas žebriūnas
starring: vaiva mainelytė, vasilijus simčičius, gediminas girdvainis
1974 / 78 min

Language: Lithuanian
Audio: stereo
Discs: 1