Re-creation of a heathen rite: blood is spilled for the ancient Gods. Just as with Georges Franju’s Le Sang des bêtes (1949), there’s nothing obvious in this film that refers to the Holocaust – and yet it’s difficult to not think about it when looking at the date of production: the first year after WWII. Werner describes the work in its opening titles as en filmvision – thus, Midvinterblot is above all a play of light and shadows, strange shapes, sharp lines, moments of violent brightness and glimpses into a shadowy abyss. Here, cinema is a mysterious and mystical experience, a glimpse into dimensions apart, whether future or past we can’t always say for sure.

Olaf Möller and Jon Wengström