Ester Krumbachová: Murdering the Devil (1970)
16 & 17 December 2025
Greek Film Archive, Athens
+ Introduction of the film and the Ester Krumbachová Archive by Nadja Argyropoulou, curator of the 9th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art: everything must change. RIS9, and artist Blaise Kirschner, whose initiative and persistence were pivotal in making the estate of Ester Krumbachová accessible to researchers in 2016.
Ester Krumbachová’s directorial debut was 1970’s biting feminist satire, Murdering the Devil. The Czech scenographer, dramaturge, artist, costume designer and screenwriter offers the audience a similar feast for the senses as the film’s protagonist, played by Jiřina Bohdalová, prepares for her insatiable guest, Mr Bohouš Čert (čert being the Czech word for devil), played by Vladimír Menšík. While Krumbachová could only ever use a few of her many talents when collaborating on films by Věra Chytilová, Karel Kachyňa and Jan Němec, Murdering the Devil is a dense concentrate of everything that fascinated her and at which she excelled. The elaborate props, costumes and sets help to characterise the pair of archetypal characters, adding further layers of meaning to the central battle of the sexes. Weaving together motifs from fairy tales, legends and other folk narratives, the film plays with audience expectations, as well as gender stereotypes. The casting of two stars of the period evidently helped in securing production of the provocative film. Instead of conventional comedy, however, audiences were treated to an ornamentally exuberant experiment which utilises alienating techniques found in avant-garde theatre and multimedia performances such as the magic lantern. Despite this exclusivity, the cinema release of Murdering the Devil in autumn 1970 did not see any major complications. Even so, during the normalisation period, the multi-talented artist’s creative activity was progressively suppressed. The film, which takes the saying “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” to its absurd conclusion, represents the culmination not only of the Czechoslovak New Wave, but also of Ester Krumbachová’s brief directorial career.
Czechoslovakia, 1970, 75 min
DCP & Blu-ray
Greek and English subtitles
Director Ester Krumbachová
Story Ester Krumbachová
Screenplay Ester Krumbachová and Jan Němec
Director of Photography Jiří Macák
Production and Costume Design Ester Krumbachová
Set Designer Boris Moravec
Editor Miroslav Hájek
Music Angelo Michajlov
Song Lyrics of The Abominable Snowman Ester Krumbachová
Cast Jiřina Bohdalová and Vladimír Menšík
Murdering the Devil (1970) is being screened as a collaboration between the Greek Film Archive and the 9th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art, everything must change. RIS9 (October 2025 – July 2026), where Ester Krumbachová’s broader body of work will be further presented.