Of all the brilliant artists and filmmakers to emerge from the Czech and Slovak film studios in the 1960s Vlácil was arguably the most gifted. With some exceptions, Vlácil’s films are historical tapestries mixing blood, sex, sadism and primitive faith to unforgettable effect.

This, the first proper retrospective evaluation of his work in Scotland comes courtesy of the Czech Centre and Czech National Film Archive and (in Edinburgh) starts off with Tomas Hejtmanek’s excellent documentary Sentiment about Vlácil and his remarkable body of work. Highlights include rarely screened witchcraft accusation drama The Devil’s Trap, his epic medieval masterpiece Marketa Lazarova and bleak home invasion thriller Shadows of a Hot Summer. This is a genuine season of discovery and one of the best retrospectives of the year. Ticket deals available.

Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Sat 4-Sun 3 Oct; GFT, Glasgow, Tue 7-Tue 28 Sep.