"Un Angelo per Satana" aka. "An Angel For Satan of 1966 is the last of nine Italian Gothic Horror films starring the wonderful Barbara Steele, doubtlessly the greatest female Horror icon in cinema. Barbara Steele, who is capable of combining stunning beauty and unspeakable eeriness like none other (which makes her my favorite actress), starred in none less than three of the all-time greatest Horror masterpieces within a few years, namely Mario Bava's "La Maschera Del Demonio" (aka. "Black Sunday") in 1960, Roger Corman's "Pit And The Pendulum" (aside the great Vincent Price) in 1961 and Antonio Margheriti's "Danza Macabra" (aka. "Castle of Blood") in 1964. While "Un Angelo Per Satana" is not a masterpiece en par with the aforementioned films, or even other brilliant Gothic tales like "Nightmare Castle" ("Gli Amanti De Oltretomba", 1965), this is yet another eerie and great gem starring Steele. As in "La Maschera del Demonio" and "Nightmare Castle", Steele once again has a double-role in this one, and she is once again brilliant switching between pure innocence and pure evil.
The film is set in a 19th century Italian village set next to a lake, from which an old sculpture has been recovered. Invited by the local Count Montebruno (Claudio Gora), sculptor Roberto Merigi (Anthony Steffen) has come in order to restore the artwork, and immediately finds out that the villagers are afraid of a curse which is supposed to be placed upon the sculpture. The Count's beautiful niece Harriet (Barbara Steele) bears an amazing resemblance to the sculpture... "Un Angelo Per Satana" did not have a very high budget, and actually looks a few years older than being made in 1966. This is in no way a fault, however, as the film, which is filmed in beautifully uncanny settings, nonetheless maintains a tense and creepy atmosphere. This is one of only two Horror films director Camilllo Mastrocinque ever made, the other being "La Cripta e L'Incubo" (aka. "Crypt of the Vampire", 1964) starring Horror icon Christopher Lee. Even so, Mastrocinque was obviously perfectly capable of creating genuine creepiness and a Gothic atmosphere. As stated above, Barbara Steele is once again brilliant in her double role here. I am always getting quite monotonous when this favorite actress of mine is the topic, but she simply cannot be praised enough, in my opinion. Anthony Steffen, who is best known for starring in many Spaghetti Westerns as well as Emilio Miraglia's "The Night When Evelyn Came out of her Grave" ("La Notte Che Evelyn Uscì Dalla Tomba", 1971) fits well in the role of the hero, and the cast furthermore includes Mario Brega. Brega, who was part of some of the greatest Italian Westerns, including Leone's Dollar-Trilogy and Sergio Corbucci's "Il Grande Silenzio" (1968), once again plays a grumpy ruffian here. The settings are beautiful and eerie, especially the lake, and the photography is very nicely done. The most convincing reason to see "Un Angelo Per Satana" is, of course, Barbara Steele (more than reason enough for me!), but the film is also great in other aspects. A definite must-see for my fellow fans of Italian Gothic Horror and Barbara Steele, "Un Angelo Per Satana" is a creepy and great gem that comes with my highest recommendations.
