Review of The Blood on Satan's Claw

The inciting incident for this story is that a man is plowing a field when he finds the remains of some strange creature. This somehow unleashes an evil that infects the local community. However, the story confused me when it went down some side plots for characters that didn't seem connected. For example, a man brings his fiancé as a guest to his aunt's house the night before their wedding. Alone in her room, she encounters something and goes insane. She is taken away and we never see her again. I guess the implication is that somehow the evil presence got to her. It doesn't seem in line with the rest of the story, because most of the characters who join the evil cult get converted by going into the wilderness where the rest hide. Also, the evil seems to be targeting children, but at one point we see people of all ages in the group. Other than a few misleading subplots, the story seems to be pretty straightforward--more people disappear into the woods to worship the devil until the community leaders decide to track them down. It turns out to be a pretty easy task. The townsfolk go to the hiding place and impale the devil on a sword. Problem solved. What the movie has going for it is its look; the costumes and settings convincingly recreate a 17th century English town. The performances are fine, although the soundtrack is a little distracting. It was somewhat atmospheric, mostly thanks to the scenes in the woods, and has a few moderately disturbing moments. I think I would have liked it better if there had been a few more visceral moments, instead of so much talking.