La maschera del demonio (1960)

Director:

Mario Bava

Writers:

Nikolai Gogol (short story "The Viy")
Ennio De Concini (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 February 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

STARE INTO THESE EYES... discover deep within them the unspeakable terrifying secret of BLACK SUNDAY... it will paralyze you with fright!

Plot:

A vengeful witch and her fiendish servant return from the grave and begin a bloody campaign to possess...

Plot Keywords:

Witch | Doctor | Hypnotism | Candelabra | Painting

Cast

Barbara Steele	...	Katia Vajda / Princess Asa Vajda
John Richardson	...	Dr. Andre Gorobec
Andrea Checchi	...	Dr. Thomas Kruvajan
Ivo Garrani	...	Prince Vajda
Arturo Dominici	...	Igor Javutich / Javuto
Enrico Olivieri	...	Priince Constantine Vajda
Antonio Pierfederici	...	Priest
Tino Bianchi	...	Ivan
Clara Bindi	...	Inn Keeper
Mario Passante	...	Nikita, the Coachman
Renato Terra	...	Boris
Germana Dominici	...	Sonya, the Innkeeper's Daughter

Also Known As:

Black Sunday (USA)
House of Fright
Mask of the Demon
Revenge of the Vampire (UK)
The Demon's Mask
The Hour When Dracula Comes
The Mask of Satan

Runtime:

87 min | USA:83 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian | English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:MA | Australia:M (TV rating) | UK:15 (1986) | UK:(Banned) (1961) | Italy:VM18 | Italy:T (DVD) | Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Titanus Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Alta Vista Productions

Trivia:

Barbara Steele didn't see the script in advance. She would be given pages daily.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where Princess Asa pauses by her father’s coffin, she is wearing black stockings and shoes under her dress. She then leaves the room to look for the others and is seen running down the hall barefoot and without stockings.

Quotes:

[Andre expresses regret that he and superior, Dr. Kruvajan, will be late and miss the opening address at a medical conference in St. Petersburg]
Dr. Thomas Kruvajan: My son, how long have you been a doctor?
Dr. Andre Gorobec: Three years. I've been with you for two.
Dr. Thomas Kruvajan: When you've been in this business as long as I have, you'll learn to take the speeches at all of these medical conferences with a grain of salt.

Movie Connections:

Featured in In Camera: The Naïve Visual Effects of 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' (2007) (V)

Excellent Gothic chiller.

"La Maschera del Demonio" aka "Black Sunday" is an excellent Gothic chiller with plenty of uncanny atmosphere,a good script and an okay cast.Princess Asa Vajda(lovely Barbara Steele)is executed as a witch.200 years later,she is revived and plots to take over the body of Katia(also Barbara Steele)."Black Sunday" is a perfect combination of Expressionist lighting and set designs and graphic bursts of gore and sensuality.The film is full of striking visuals and is truly one of the most beautiful black and white films I have ever seen.A must-see for fans of Italian horror.10 out of 10.