The Blood on Satan's Claw (1971), directed by Piers Haggard.
When a plowman unearths a weird, demonic skeleton, all Hell breaks loose. The young people are instantly converted into some sort of satanic conspiracy and strange hairy growths appear on the bodies of villagers. The Devil needs body parts to assume a physical shape.
This is nasty, early body-horror with intimations of The Evil Dead (1981), Hellraiser (1987) and The Witch (2015). We have ceremonial rape and human sacrifice and surgical excision of patches of satan's skin which are saved in a specimen jar so the local Magistrate can sniff it and give it to the dogs for tracking the beast. As one does.
Remarkably good production values: clothes, props, countryside all look authentic, as if we were transported back in time. Not played for laughs at all.
On the down side it is pasted together from three stories and plot cohesion is a problem. We're not even sure who the main characters are, but two tend to focus our attention:
Patrick Wymark as the Judge. He is skeptical at first but knows this stuff is real. He allows the cult to grow until he has a enough evidence and moves decisively to exterminate them. This contrasts with Witchfinder General (1968) and Cry of the Banshee (1970), where witch-hunting is an excuse for sadism.
Linda Hayden as the chief seductress. She does full nudity at age 17. Pubic hair in church: you don't see that every day. The actress specialized in horror films and sexpoitation comedies.
The villagers do the Monty Python "if she floats she's a witch!" routine.
Photographed by Dick Bush.
Available on Blu-ray as an all-region import from Sony in the UK. Prominent grain, noisy nighttime scenes, and no subtitles.
Two commentary tracks:
The director, writer and Linda Hayden who played "Angel". She says she has a daughter about the same age as she was when she appeared fully nude in this film, which is a strange feeling. No way are her kids becoming actors.
A laugh track from Mark Gatiss and friends. They revere this film and have been watching it since they were kids. Being American I sometimes have a hard time following their conversation.