Ajouter une intrigue dans votre langueA couple inherits a castle from her late uncle's will. Despite pressure to sell, she hesitates. Unexplained occurrences target her as strange events unfold at the castle.A couple inherits a castle from her late uncle's will. Despite pressure to sell, she hesitates. Unexplained occurrences target her as strange events unfold at the castle.A couple inherits a castle from her late uncle's will. Despite pressure to sell, she hesitates. Unexplained occurrences target her as strange events unfold at the castle.
- Elizabeth Ball Janon
- (as Erna Schurer)
- Claudine
- (as Aurora Batista)
- Miss Carol
- (as Lucie Bomez)
- Blanche
- (as Beverley Fuller)
Avis en vedette
Elizabeth has just been bequeathed one of these huge castles by her late uncle and is heading there with her hipster boyfriend to check out what's going down. The lady in charge there, Claudine, seems to think that Elizabeth's uncle wanted to sell the house, which is all new to Elizabeth. Worse still, Claudine puts the willies up Elizabeth by telling her of the ghost of a past relative, also called Elizabeth, and that the ghost of her lover stills walks the walls of the castle. Oh, and by the way Elizabeth, have you noticed that new torture dungeon downstairs? Claudine got it from Ikea.
Throw in a mysterious lover for Claudine and a ton of dodgy characters up to something (a guy in a bar, a hippy lady who draws pictures in the countryside, a friendly neighbour who stops Elizabeth walking into quicksand (?)), a black gloved killer who doesn't really kill many people at all, some erotic dreams and an insane person kept in a locked room and you're really ticking a lot of boxes here. You're also taking a lot of time throwing all these details in and although the film looks great, it's kind of good but not great too.
The vengeful dog bit was great though! The film needed more eccentric bits like that. No giallo fan is going to hate this film, but then any casual viewers will probably end up wondering what the fuss is all about. If you're going to show you're granny this, as people often do with gialli ("Hey gran - let's watch Iguana with the Tongue of Fire!") DO NOT get this film mixed up with Satan's Baby Doll. That's one you'll want to watch on your own. With some Kleenex.
The Doll of Satan is a surprisingly strong and atmospheric Italian film from the late 1960s that is, in all honesty, semi-Giallo, semi-horror.
I strongly recommend this movie based on the aesthetics alone, which are very well done. It is one of the easier mysteries to solve in my experience (Giallos often "cheat" just like Agatha Christie mystery novels, with many twists and red herrings to confuse the audience - however, that's part of the fun). But the overall presentation and execution of the story are excellent for an earlier Giallo from a minor director.
La bambola di Satana is kind of a hidden gem, and available in Italiano on streaming.
Although promoted as a horror, an anonymous, black-gloved killer also hints at the giallo wave to come. The location (actually two real castles near Rome) and sets are fantastically atmospheric, and the supernatural happenings and visions are pretty effective. Some of the dialogue is a bit clumsy, although that may be down to the English subtitles. And the fight choreography is weirdly inconsistent, with one character who's 'ordinary bloke' one minute, suddenly able to fight like a cross between Douglas Fairbanks and Jason Bourne (I was expecting some reveal to explain this, but no). But the cast are pretty good, one death towards the end involving a dog and an implement of ancient warfare is pretty damn awesome, and saying Emma Costantino and Lucie Bomez are easy on the eye is a criminal understatement.
This would make a fun double-bill with The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave. Some topless nudity. 7/10.
"The Doll of Satan" (1969) is Italian Gothic horror and could fit in the giallo category. It was helmed by a one-shot director, but the star said it was the assistant director who did the work on set, describing the director as an "idiot who couldn't do anything." As the story progresses, a few James Bond-isms manifest, which are eye-rolling, but at least they stir up amusing interest. The two main female stars are arguably the main highlight, along with the authentic castle setting. There's some tasteful nudity involving blonde Erna, which some versions block out (like the one I viewed).
I was disappointed by the overwrought story though. Despite the entertaining bits and entertaining histrionics, it failed to absorb me. For superior Italian/Spanish horror from that general time period, see "The Devil's Nightmare," "Murder Mansion," "The Vampires Night Orgy" and "Count Dracula's Great Love," all of which were released between 1971-73. As with "Murder Mansion," parallels can be drawn to Scooby-Doo. This production even features a dog in the cast, but it actually came out a few months before Scooby-Doo debuted.
Despite the title and some of the advertising stills, it isn't an occult-oriented movie, like "Devils of Darkness," "The Witches" (aka "The Devil's Own") or "The Crimson Cult." Also, it has never been dubbed into English, so English-speakers who don't know Italian will have to settle for subtitles.
It runs 1 hour, 30 minutes, and was shot at Castle Borghese in Pomezia, which is a dozen miles southwest of Rome; as well as Pratica di Mare and in Abruzzo.
GRADE: C.
Le saviez-vous
- AnecdotesWhile at the catacombs the eyes of the "corpse" move.
- GaffesWhile at the catacombs the eyes of the "corpse" move.
- Citations
Elizabeth Ball Janon: [of Jeanette] I remember her very well. She was very devoted to my uncle. She was quite close to him.
Carol: This is why, after the accident, your uncle wanted to keep her in the castle, like a member of the family, even though she was hopelessly insane.
Meilleurs choix
- How long is The Doll of Satan?Propulsé par Alexa
Détails
- Date de sortie
- Pays d’origine
- Langue
- Aussi connu sous le nom de
- The Doll of Satan
- Lieux de tournage
- Palazzo Ruspoli, Piazza Umberto, Nemi, Rome, Lazio, Italie(castle seen in long shots)
- sociétés de production
- Consultez plus de crédits d'entreprise sur IMDbPro
- Durée1 heure 30 minutes
- Rapport de forme
- 1.85 : 1