The Cremator (Spalovaè mrtvol) A film by Juraj Herz Czech Republic / 1968 1972 Sitges Film Festival / Best Actor - Rudolf Hrusínský Juraj Herz’s filmThe Cremator has been described in many ways - as surrealist-inspired horror, as expressionist fantasy and as a dark and disturbing tale of terror. Combining horror with humour, this brilliant black comedy, set in Prague during the Nazi occupation, tells the story of Karl Kopfrkingl an increasingly deranged cremator for whom the period offers great possibilities for acting out his psychotic impulses as contribution towards the’salvation of the world’. Based on the novel of the same name by Ladislav Fuks the film centers around a truly chilling lead performance by Rudolf Hrusinsky as the demonic, death obsessed Karl Kopfrkingl. He is the owner of a crematorium in the early stages of the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia who finds in the situation an opportunity to fulfill his business ambitions, justify his anti-semitism and exert his obsession for control. His discovery that his wife has 'impure' blood sends him a psychopathic spiral that leads to the murder of her and their son.