Satan's Baby Doll

"Satan's Baby Doll" is a true cinematic oddity, as it is such an extreme mix of good, and awful. The creators of this film had everything that they needed to make a true classic; access to a lavish castle on a cliff, decorated for royalty, a memorable music score, and a beautiful young actress in the central role. There is even a fairly interesting story here, of an angry mother who possesses the body of her daughter from beyond the grave, to exact revenge on the inhabitants of the castle. Seriously, the sets need to be seen to be appreciated. Italian director Luchino Visconti would have filmed one of his masterpieces in this opulent setting! Unfortunately the people behind the scenes were lacking in some regards. Beautiful images sit awkwardly next to very ugly scenes, of ugly old men biting the heads off of chickens and writhing around on the floor making guttural, vomiting sounds for long stretches of time. Unappealing scenes of actors past their prime, getting naked and having very graphic sex. To make matters worse, the director decided to film actual hardcore scenes for this film. This is the version I saw, and I can attest to the fact that they add nothing to this film. Said scenes include a woman in her late 40's/early 50's giving on-screen oral sex to a rather unattractive man in a wheelchair, and another scene of the same tired old whore performing oral sex on a completely disgusting old man, and there is a short insert of his penis entering her old-lady vagina. The young girl Jaqueline Dupre is of course involved with none of these tasteless scenes, (luckily for her!) Anyway, this awkward mix of artistic art-house beauty and ugly pornography don't really work. and it's a shame because much of the film really is gorgeous to look at, atmospheric and sad. In more capable hands, "Satan's Baby Doll" could have been a true cult classic. what we have instead is a result of a film maker who could not seem to make up his mind, whether he wanted to create art, or garbage. Strangely the end result is artistic garbage. i don't think i have ever seen any film as uneven as this; did it have two directors?

Erotic Italian Gothic horror La bimba di Satana, from director Mario Bianchi, takes place in exactly the kind of imposing, brooding castle one would expect from the genre: sat atop a stormy hill, shrouded in shadows, with endless stone corridors and a dusty old crypt, it is inhabited by a collection of 'unique' individuals all hiding dark secrets. Clichéd though these elements might be, the film's narrative could never be described as predictable...

Aldo Sambrelli plays Antonio Aguilar, the recently widowed owner of the creepy castle whose hot teenage daughter Miria (the gorgeous Jacqueline Dupré) has been acting rather strange since her mother's death. Also living in the castle are sexy nun Sol (Mariangela Giordano), who is employed to take care of Antonio's paraplegic brother Ignazio (she gives very thorough bed bath), and a strange manservant named Isidro who conducts satanic rituals in the crypt.

Antonio spends much of his his time shooting up drugs and pestering Sol for sex; but the nun isn't having any of it, preferring to swan around in just her stockings, tempting poor immobile Ignazio. Meanwhile, Miria's fevered state worsens and eventually, she rises from her bed in a trance to kill...

Unfortunately, despite its unusual plot, copious nudity from its attractive female stars, and plenty of general perversion, including lesbianism, voyeurism, murder, possession and necrophilia, La bimba di Satana is a real bore for most of the time: Bianchi's lousy direction is torturously slow and the structure of the film makes matters more than a little confusing—at least until the film's final minutes, when some of the plot threads are thankfully finally pulled together (although I never did quite understand how the reanimated mouldy mummy fitted into proceedings!).

***EDIT*** The above review was for the softcore cut of the film, but having just seen the uncut version, which contains a couple of explicit sex scenes towards the end, my opinion of Satan's Baby Doll hasn't really changed that much: it's still boring.

I don't quite know what to make of "Satan's Baby Doll", to be honest. As the title suggests, it's another cheap, wicked-minded and umpteenth excuse for Italian producers to come up with sleaze and satanic nonsense – and it is – but on the other hand it's a surprisingly stylish and well-made film. Yes, really! Well, talking in terms of early 80's exploitation standards and in comparison with the other titles on director Mario Bianchi's repertoire, that is. It even has a plot that is slightly above average, competent acting performances (I'm not kidding!) and genuine young beauty that sadly only ever appeared in this one film. Oh Jacqueline Dupré, what an angel you are. The sinister events all take place inside the walls of an ancient family castle atop a hillside. This location is always filmed from underneath in the valley, just to make really sure the viewer knows we're dealing with a very isolated setting here. The lady of the house just died, but she was involved with black magic rites and Satanism, so her malignant spirit attempts to return from the afterlife. She finds the perfect host inside the ravishing body of her young daughter Myra and commands her to kill all the remaining dirt bags in the castle. So what we have here, basically, is an Italian variation on "The Exorcist" (another one), but with a Gothic setting and buckets full of gratuitous nudity. Also living in the castle is a masturbating nun, a Peeping Tom in a wheelchair, a sleazy lawyer, a crazy voodoo-obsessed servant and the sickly jealous and tyrant patriarch. There are quite a lot of senseless dialogs and boring parts you unfortunately have to struggle yourself through, but the death scenes are fairly imaginative and Dupré beauty & sex-appeal brightens up the screen with every appearance she makes. The other female leads are filled in by Mariangela Giordano (yes, THE woman whose nipple gets bitten off by her creep son in "Burial Ground") as the household nun and by adult movie starlet Marina Hedman as the undead but still very horny Maria. This is bizarre early 80's exploitation, to say the least , but it's worth seeing if only for the imaginative choreography, the uncanny set pieces, the ominous musical guidance (courtesy of Nico Catanese) and the naked body of Jacqueline Dupré. Shallow? You bet!

I have wanted to see this movie ever since first seeing the wonderful poster artwork, in the eighties, featuring the red winged devil his bloodied and clawed arms around a naked girl. Well, now I have and almost wish it could have remained an unattained desire, still full of great promise. But, no, despite there being many moments of real style, beautiful, naked ladies, a wonderful setting, complete with great cloister areas, not to mention that super poster artwork, this still manages not to work. There is plenty of luscious flesh but too much soft core self stroking and ponderous, nay plodding periods of far too much incomprehensible dialogue. We care little for anybody and with so little regard paid to keeping even the simplest of story lines on track, the only word for this is inept.

La Bimba di Satana, or Satan's Baby Doll, is a sleazy, softcore shock fest from director Mario Bianchi. With a generous helping of nudity and a side of horror, this Eurotrash treat is an erotic, if talkative, romp.

The story centers on the vengeful soul of Maria, who seeks to possess her daughter and exact revenge on her husband, Antonio. The plot is merely a vehicle for a series of erotic encounters, with the film lingering on scenes of naked women, groping, and undressing. The nuns, for example, wear thigh-high stockings, and the female cast spends more time bare-chested than clothed. One scene, in particular, stands out: a truly gratuitous display involving actress Mariangela Giordano, who finds herself in a compromising position with a statue of the devil, her bare body contorted in ways that would make a gymnast blush. The camera lingers on her exposed form, emphasizing the eroticism of the moment.

While the mood and setting are on point, creating a suitably eerie atmosphere, the film struggles to balance its horror and soft porn elements. It's a bit like a devil's bargain, trying to have its cake and eat it too. The result is a movie that doesn't fully commit to either genre, leaving viewers with a sense of unfinished business.

That being said, La Bimba di Satana has its charms. The cover art is a tantalizing tease, and the Italian title, translating to Satan's Girl, rightly focuses on the female lead. The film also has an enjoyable, if talkative, pace that allows for character development amidst the nudity.

In conclusion, La Bimba di Satana is a curious entry into the world of adult horror. It has its moments of devilish delight but ultimately falls short of being a masterpiece in either genre it attempts.