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PURCHASE THE DVD: Devil's Nightmare (1971)

A 1971 Italian horror picture originally titled La Plus Longue Nuit du Diable (The Longest Night of the Devil), the movie has several small claims to fame that keep it from sinking completely into obscurity. First off, it makes a play on the each of the victims representing one of the “seven deadly sins” a good twenty-plus years prior to the movie Seven. Second, it features a rather spicy lesbian coupling between actresses Shirley Corrigan and Ivana Novak. Third, the screenplay is rather good for an exploitation picture, Fourth, and finally, it features one of the best performances by an actress in a horror picture, this being the succubus role wonderfully cast to the alternately ravishing and frightening Erika Blanc. It may be said that her racy, creative costumes also make this one worth checking out.

The plot finds seven tired travelers stopping off for an evening at a Gothic manor owned by a Baron with a chilling past recounted earlier in the movie. During dinner, the Baron introduces a beautiful woman (Blanc) who turns out to be a succubus - a demon in feminine form that preys sexually on the living. Before long, as each of the travelers commit one of the seven deadly sins, they are done-away-with by the devil’s minion in a variety of creative ways. Alas, there’s one final, surprising twist at the end that also makes this movie quite memorable.

There are a number of versions of this movie out there, many of middling to low quality. For those looking for the best viewing experience, seek out the Redemption Video version. While it’s a painfully bad dub, the movie’s quality is fairly crisp, even if the colors are saturated.

• Format: Color, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Studio: Image Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: October 21, 1998
• Run Time: 93 minutes
• Also Known As: The Devil's Nightmare / Vampire Playgirls /Castle of Death (video title) /Nightmare of Terror (video title) /Notte piu lunga del diavolo, La (Italy) /Nuit des pétrifiés, La /Succubus /Terrificante notte del demonio, La /The Devil Walks at Midnight /The Devil's Longest Night