"Nuda Per Satana" aka. "Nude For Satan" of 1974 is a very confused little piece of Horror-Sleaze that barely makes any sense, and yet it is undeniable that the film is very stylish in its nonsensical way as only the Italians could do it. The film's storyline is doubtlessly messy and making hardly any sense, and yet it is delivered appealingly, with great camera-work, an awesome score and, not least, a very sexy female lead. The plot itself often just seems like a lame excuse to show tons of sleaze and female nudity, but it is an excuse most of my fellow Exploitation fans should willingly accept (at least I did). After a car crash, a man and a woman get somehow (don't ask how or why) stuck in an eerie castle which is infested by a very sinister host and his equally wicked servants. The result is a confusing, atmospheric and very sexed-up orgy of all kinds of sleaze (lesbian scenes, whippings, tons of female nudity,...) and delightful satanic... stuff. Director Luigi Batzella was both active as actor and director in the 70s, "Nude For Satan", which he directed, but in which he did not act is certainly the most widely known film he is associated with. The film's most convincing qualities are the nice atmosphere, the absolutely ravishing leading actress Rita Calderoni and the sublime score by Alberto Baldan Bembo, who did not compose a lot otherwise, his other career highlights being the scores to two "Emanuelle" flicks and the infamous Nazisploitation film "La Ultima Orgia Del III Reich". The acting is not exactly breathtaking, but who is going to watch a film like this one for the performances anyway. The probably best performance comes from Renato Lupi who plays an eerie butler, and James Harris is also quite good as the uncanny owner of the castle. Even though not much of an actress, sexy Rita Calderoni, who has a tendency to take her clothes off at any opportunity, is still the most convincing reason to watch the film (along with fellow exhibitionist Iolanda Mascitti, who plays a servant girl). Stelio Candelli (who was in Mario Bava's "Planet Of The Vampires" as well as Lamberto Bava's "Dèmoni") plays the male lead. I strongly recommend to watch this in Italian. The English dubbing is unspeakably terrible. Obviously, the Italian actors dubbed themselves into English, which is why everybody in the English language version has an Italian accent (admittedly, this has sort of a charm). Overall, "Nude For Satan" is a film that my fellow fans of Italian Horror, Exploitation and Eurosmut could enjoy - or could just as well miss. Honestly, I can not really recommend the film, but I could not advise anyone not to see it either. It has its qualities, but there sure is a vast amount of better stuff to discover in Italian sleaze-cinema.
Review of Nude for Satan
