The Other Hell

Those looking for the typical sex and nudity expected in a nunsploitation film need to look elsewhere. This one is pure horror, with a genital removal starting the blood-fest.

The evil Mother Vincenza (Franca Stoppi) provides the best performance despite the outrageous lines given to her.

Father Valerio (Carlo De Mejo) is called in to investigate several murders that are reportedly the work of Satan. One suspects, along with the good father, that there is a psychopath lose in the convent. The answer may lie in the middle of both explanations.

Exciting pieces with long periods of nothing in between. For serious fans of Italian horror, it will be a treat, but for others, it may not be so good.

Great music throughout.

From its dark opening in a catacomb filled with stacked bones and skulls, to the gruesome autopsy in the lab -complete with bubbling green chemicals!- it's apparent that THE OTHER HELL is one of the more ghoulish of the nun exploitation films.

Indeed, the devil is loose in the convent, causing madness and bloody murder to reign.

Director Bruno Mattei fills his movie with gore and macabre trappings bathed in red and green light. If Bava or Argento had made this sort of movie, it would probably look a lot like this.

Far more serious and grim than most such epics, this movie plays up the horror aspects as much as the exploitative. Dreadful images and set pieces help to conjure up a bleak atmosphere of doom. Yes, nuns do go wild, but in a demonic frenzy, as opposed to the usual lustful abandon.

Religious symbols are used to great effect, adding the perfect backdrop for the satanic assault. Animals are also employed, along with hideous imagery. Watch for the cat, the owl, the bat, and the faceless nun. Never has a nunnery been more terrifying!

To be fair, this movie has its share of clunky moments, but it still works as one of the best examples of its sub-genre.

A wickedly good time...

THE OTHER HELL (1980) *** Franca Stoppi, Carlo De Mejo. In this Bruno Mattei film, a young priest (De Mejo), is sent to a convent to investigate a series of bizarre and brutal murders. The nuns think Satan is to blame; the priest thinks the murders are the work of a psychopath. The truth turns out to be something in between. Stylish direction by Mattei, a stunning performance by Stoppi (who was even more brilliant in Joe D'Amato's Beyond the Darkness), and a pulse-pounding score by Goblin combine to make this a solid offering. Recommended.

A priest is sent to investigate an outbreak of apparent demonic possession at convent.There is certainly something dark and sinister at work there,but is it really Satan or maybe has it something to do with the Mother Superior's gloomy secrets?"The Other Hell" by Bruno Mattei is an atypical Italian nunsploitation flick.There is absolutely no sex or nudity,still there is a little bit of gore.The film offers some rather tasteless moments like genital mutilation or blood-vomiting nuns.The acting is terrible and the dialogue is stupid,but the film is fast-paced and surprisingly entertaining.So if you like Italian horror films give this one a look.My rating:7 out of 10 and that's being very generous.

A priest is sent to a convent to investigate the sheer lunacy of a bunch of nun's gone nuts performing acts of lust and depravity. But the closer he looks into the situation the more supernatural it becomes. Does the devil roam the halls terrorizing the nuns or is it something a bit more sinister.

I'll get Mattei credit; he tries to inject a little something more in your average, ordinary (nunsploitation storyline (if there is such a thing). It's not entirely successful in that regard but never-the-less he manages to pull off this entertaining but a little slow and the bit of a Stephen King twist to the ending helps it out.