The Arcane Sorcerer is the third Pupi Avati film which I have seen. While it may not be my favorite (though it's at least as good as the other two), it is the best made. The film has a disgraced seminary student agreeing to serve as secretary for a defrocked priest. So odious is this former priest's reputation that villagers have been forbidden to look on him or speak to him directly. Appartently, it was an unhealthy interest in forbidden books about conquering death that forced the isolation of this former priest now known as the arcane sorcerer. The catch for the seminary student is that he must never reveal what goes on at the arcane sorcerer's villa. There will be severe consequences in this world and the next should he break his oath.
The film has much to recommend it, good acting, cinematography, and set designs. I especially liked the library, candle lit hallways crammed floor to ceiling with ancient tomes. The plot also holds together better than in some of Avati's other films. The only problem is that pace is extremely slow. Most of the running time serves as build-up. The climax is intense! Then, the film ends. I did like The Arcane Sorcerer more than I did Avati's much loved (by others) The House with the Windows that Laughed.
The film has much to recommend it, good acting, cinematography, and set designs. I especially liked the library, candle lit hallways crammed floor to ceiling with ancient tomes. The plot also holds together better than in some of Avati's other films. The only problem is that pace is extremely slow. Most of the running time serves as build-up. The climax is intense! Then, the film ends. I did like The Arcane Sorcerer more than I did Avati's much loved (by others) The House with the Windows that Laughed.