FILM · 1922 · SWEDEN
Häxan
- Directed by
- Benjamin Christensen
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Studio
- Aljosha Production Company, SF Studios
15 archived facts 2 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
Grave robbing, torture, possessed nuns, and a satanic Sabbath: Benjamin Christensen's legendary film uses a series of dramatic vignettes to explore the scientific hypothesis that the witches of the Middle Ages suffered the same hysteria as turn-of-the-century psychiatric patients. But the film itself is far from serious-- instead it's a witches' brew of the scary, gross, and darkly humorous.
Summary: TMDB
All facts (15)
- #001
Swedish film censors demanded numerous cuts before allowing Häxan to be released. The censored scenes included a close-up of a finger being pulled from a hanged man's hand, the trampling of a cross during the witches' Sabbath scene, the image of a bleeding baby held over a cauldron, a close-up of a woman's face while on the torture rack, close-ups of various torture instruments being used, and a photograph of a demon embracing a naked woman (all of these shots were later restored to the film).
- #002
Although most scenes were shot in interior studios, since Benjamin Christensen believed the actors' performances would be best served by a darker and more ominous atmosphere, much of Häxan was filmed at night, which was nearly unheard of at the time.
- #003
Director Benjamin Christensen initially planned to write the screenplay with the help of historians, but the plan fell through after he discovered that most of the experts he had in mind were opposed to the film's production.
- #004
Because of the emulsion type of the film stock used, the blue in many actors' blue eyes was not captured, giving their eyes a glassy, unnatural look.
- #005
With an estimated budget of 2,000,000 Swedish kronor, Häxan was the most expensive film produced in any Nordic country at the time. That amount would have equaled roughly $525,000 in 1922, which is equivalent to about $9.4 million in 2022.
- #006
In addition to playing the devil, director Benjamin Christensen also briefly appears as Jesus. He also appears as himself in the film's first scene.
- #007
Although Häxan was financed by Swedish backers, the entire film was shot in Benjamin Christensen's old studio in Denmark.
- #008
At the time, Häxan was envisioned as the first film in a trilogy. The subsequent films were never made.
- #009
To achieve a dramatic sky in scenes where the actors are shown outdoors as silhouettes, Benjamin Christensen sent a cameraman to Norway to photograph dramatic, cloudy skies that appear in the finished film.
- #010
When Häxan was re-released in Denmark in 1941, Benjamin Christensen considered removing the modern-day scenes from the film. Inevitably, the film was released with its modern scenes intact.
- #011
Häxan is director Guillermo del Toro's personal favorite.
- #012
The creators of The Blair Witch Project (1999) took the name Haxan Films from Häxan.
- #013
The original copyright holder's failure to renew the film's copyright caused Häxan to enter the public domain, meaning almost anyone could copy and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. As a result, most versions of the film on the market are either heavily (and often poorly) edited and/or of extremely low quality, copied from a second- or third-generation (or later) copy of the film.
- #014
A screenshot from Häxan was used by the Norwegian black metal band Mayhem as the cover of their 2004 studio album Chimera.
- #015
Häxan is included among Letterboxd's Top 250 Horror Films.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
Sources for the entries on this page
- IMDb IMDb kaydı
Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work