L'antre de l'horreur

I have to start off by saying that I'm a little biased in favor of this movie, being that director William Girdler was a native of Louisville and that the film was shot here. The movie is fairly run-of-the mill 70's drive-in fare, with stretches of talky dialogue, leading actresses who can't act and a monster/creature that doesn't QUITE live up (or should that be "down"?) to it's billing. Strangely enough, the film's odd sense of pacing does lend itself to some semi-creepy scenes (like the "flashback" in the dining room) and in parts, is vaguely reminiscent of the original "Carnival of Souls". And I have to conclude by saying what a treat it was to see the late, great, local horror-film host Charlie Kissinger, playing Doctor Spectre AND his head nurse "Martine". (yes, you read it, right, he was in DRAG...)

FilmWolf

Get this title into your mind right now: ASYLUM OF SATAN. Why? Because the 70s was known for tons of low budget movies about the worst of both worlds: crowded asylums and Satanic possession. Before watching the movie trailer, I saw the full-length feature. What you get is absolute nonsense. This, being made a couple of years before THE EXORCIST, helped bring in numerous offerings about the Devil. Here, it's same old, same old. Cheap special effects are the excuse for a rotten-apple horror chiller, with rubber snakes and toy bugs taking toll on two innocent lives. Now, I've just seen the trailer, and I would have been better off giving a donation of twenty dollars to film preservation. An interesting note: the warning label on United's copy of the film is mistakenly misleading. Movies such as ASYLUM OF SATAN are junk food for your head. Just add a television set.

Asylum of Satan (1972)

** (out of 4)

Lucina (Carla Borelli) wakes up one morning in a mysterious hospital that she doesn't recognize. She asks to see her doctor but she is informed that he's the one who sent her to this hospital for a special treatment. Dr. Spector (Charles Kissinger) promises that the treatment will be quick but what she doesn't realize is that he's actually in a pack with Satan himself and sending him new women.

ASYLUM OF Satan comes from Louisville director William Girdler who of course would go onto make some pretty good movies including some blaxploitation titles as well as GRIZZLY before his tragic death in a helicopter crash at the age of thirty. This film here certainly isn't anything special or good but I think it contains proof that the director had a talent and you can watch it and see why he would go on to make better pictures.

With that said, one has to wonder what the point was of making a PG- rated exploitation picture. Obviously Satanic themes were quite popular during the early 70s but there's really not too much done with it here. If you're looking for nudity, gore or violence then you're going to be disappointed because there isn't any. There's really nothing too shocking and for an exploitation film the shock value is at zero.

The film does have some good stuff and that includes the atmosphere, which is actually quite thick. I thought Girdler perfectly captures the mood and setting of this isolated hospital and I'd argue that the look of the seance was quite good. The Satan costume itself looks pretty silly but it's a fun outfit. I also thought Borelli gave a pretty good performance and certainly a lot better than you typically see in these types of films.

ASYLUM OF Satan has a good, catchy title and I'm sure the poster lured people into drive-ins back in the day. The film certainly needed a punch of something because even at just 77-minutes it drags in spots. Still, it's an interesting picture that fans of Girdler should enjoy.

So William Girdler's screen debut was running a little slow through 1972 but it's not all that bad! Charles Kissinger is a great actor in which he later appeared in almost of all of Girdler's other films. Nick Jolley superfly hero of the 70's appears also wondering why he was'nt in anything else. ASYLUM OF SATAN is a good film about a girl taken hostage to the Asylum were doctor's zombies and critters run wild! Kissinger plays Satan himself. Give ASYLUM OF SATAN a shot if you are a big fan of Girdler's films. Yes the film is very violent with way too much sex, but hey it's still worth watching.

Scrubby but watchable occult nonsense, ASYLUM OF SATAN finds an attractive young woman being subdued within a strange private hospital. Waking from sleep in fear and confusion, she is told by staff that she has been placed under the special care of a certain doctor, along with a handful of other patients with various personal afflictions which said doctor insists he can treat. There's one problem, however...his sure-cure is the same for all maldies, and the most common side-effect is rigor-mortis. One-by-one the patients disappear, leaving our young heroin to search for a means of escape. The mystery culminates in a Black Magic ritual which conjurs Satan himself...and he is one scrawny, bedraggled looking Lord of Darkness, I must say.

While this is unquestionably a B minus production, it does manage to entertain, and it more-less succeeds in keeping itself steeped in a creepy, otherworldly atmosphere. As 70s drive-in fodder goes, ASYLUM OF SATAN might be a bug's nose above the yardstick...neith fish nor fowl.

4.5/10