Night of the Damned 4K 1971

An old estate hiding ancient witchcraft; terrible family secrets dating back to the Middle Ages; a powerful and indescribably evil witch who finds a new incarnation in our time... You can recall other attributes of Gothic horror yourself and feel free to add them to this list (don't forget the erotic scene). Filippo Ratti, who directed Night of the Damned, did not shy away from any of the clichés that had become established in Italian horror films in the 1960s. Naturally, his film turned out to be the same—vulgar, standard, and frankly mass-market. On the other hand, you can find a fair number of dramatic hand-wringing and coquettish female screams for video samples here.

However, if you are a fan of this kind of cinema, then everything is fine. Formally, the film meets all the criteria of classic spaghetti horror and can take its place of honor among all kinds of rarities. The story of the ancient curse of the de Saint-Lomber family, revealed by society journalist Jean Dupre in the best traditions of Edgar Allan Poe's heroes, is quite suitable for passing the evening. However, it is highly desirable that there be cold, inclement weather outside the window, bats flying against the glass, and the fire in your fireplace casting bizarre shadows on the cobweb-covered wall. Then, perhaps, the adventures of the aristocratic scribbler and his beautiful wife will seem at least a little bit exciting, and the witch Rita Lerno/Tanodril will seem sinfully sexy. Of course, this still won't save you from a few yawns as you wait for the predictable ending and a couple of ironic smirks at the grotesque acting, but there's nothing you can do about that. Riccardo Freda's Tragic Story at Lady Alexandra's Villa, filmed just a year later, seems a world away from Ratti's opus... Although, to call a spade a spade, Night of the Damned is frankly hackwork, and the year the film was made has absolutely nothing to do with it, nor does its almost egregious old-fashionedness for the 1970s.