This is one of those movies that tries hard to have a plot, but kinda veers off in different directions for the sake of horror and imagery. The "Black Cat" title came from the U.S. Producers using their licensing rights...a cat shows up, but nothing to do with the plot! The 'Three Mothers' references are kinda cool (including a small bit of Goblin's main "Suspiria" theme thrown in for good measure), but If anything, this film is closer in spirit to the "Demons" movies by Lamberto Lava..a creepy score, hard rock soundtrack, lots of blood, gore & goo, ugly ghouls & beautiful women, especially the ALWAYS gorgeous Caroline Munro..what more do you need? Just turn your brain off and enjoy it for what it is!
22 Reviews
An obscure, truly bizarre film
capkronos7 January 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Anne (Florence Guerin), a popular horror actress, takes the lead role as Levana (a legendary witch burned at the stake in 13th Century Prague) in her director husband's (Urbano Barberini) newest effort; described as an updating of SUSPIRIA. Levana seemingly returns from the grave as a clawed, maggot-infested, lumpy-faced ghoul who causes death for the cast and crew members and makes Anne have a LOT of disorienting nightmares/delusions. Adding to the fun/confusion are scenes in outer space (?!), a TV set that spews guts and green slime, a helpful little girl "fairy" who shows up on a TV, a neck slashing, an exploding body, sexy Caroline Munro in a bubble bath and in lingerie (sorry fellas, no nudity!), a car going through a house and lots of pointless shots of black cats (the movie has nothing to do with Poe, although the full screen title is EDGAR ALLAN POE'S THE BLACK CAT).
Cozzi's nutty movie is chock full of Italian horror movie references, as he pays due homage to the inventive directorial styles of directors Mario Bava and Dario Argento. Everything is drenched in bright color and the camera-work, music score (borrowing riffs from SUSPIRIA and even the White Lion's cover version of "Radar Love!") and sets are good, along with special attention made for Bava-esquire zoom shots. Though this is not really a very good movie, it's enjoyable absurd and definitely interesting enough.
Cozzi's nutty movie is chock full of Italian horror movie references, as he pays due homage to the inventive directorial styles of directors Mario Bava and Dario Argento. Everything is drenched in bright color and the camera-work, music score (borrowing riffs from SUSPIRIA and even the White Lion's cover version of "Radar Love!") and sets are good, along with special attention made for Bava-esquire zoom shots. Though this is not really a very good movie, it's enjoyable absurd and definitely interesting enough.
Suspira it is Not
CMRKeyboadist11 January 2006
Where can I start with this movie. Okay, this movie has had many titles such as "Demons 6", "The Black Cat", "Armaggedon", and the list goes on. None of the titles for the movie make any sense.
The movie starts out with a director planning to make a film about a witch called "Levana". His basis for the movie is based off of Dario Argento's "Susperia". The director decides that he is going to cast his wife as the lead in the movie. Well, apparently there is a real witch named Levana and she is not to happy with this whole project and decides to make the directors wife a living hell.
The main problems with this movie are continuity and pace. I will admit that this is a very atmosphere flick but the whole movie still falls flat on its face. There are so many moments in this flick where I had to say out loud "What the hell is going on?". For instance, many scenes just tend to wander off in to space. Literally, the camera has shots out in space and on the moon. This has nothing to do with what's going on in the movie and if it does, someone correct me because I haven't figured it out.
The pace of the film would seem to at points move farely well but for the most part the scenes just start to drag and you could care less with what's happening. The beginning of the movie is a prime example. The characters are introduced and the story starts to develop but then things just start to fall to pieces right before your very eyes.
The acting in the movie is rather humorous at moments. A certain scene when the director and his assistant meet the man who wants to produce the movie is rather hysterical. And almost all of the scenes with Lavana in them are laugh out loud funny.
I think the main thing that saves this movie is a decent original score (I'm not talking about the bad hair metal in the background) and a few moments of gore. It seems that the director of the movie (Luigi Cozzi) still loves to have people having their organs blown to pieces. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, watch Contamination.
All in all, could have been a much better film. 4/10 stars
The movie starts out with a director planning to make a film about a witch called "Levana". His basis for the movie is based off of Dario Argento's "Susperia". The director decides that he is going to cast his wife as the lead in the movie. Well, apparently there is a real witch named Levana and she is not to happy with this whole project and decides to make the directors wife a living hell.
The main problems with this movie are continuity and pace. I will admit that this is a very atmosphere flick but the whole movie still falls flat on its face. There are so many moments in this flick where I had to say out loud "What the hell is going on?". For instance, many scenes just tend to wander off in to space. Literally, the camera has shots out in space and on the moon. This has nothing to do with what's going on in the movie and if it does, someone correct me because I haven't figured it out.
The pace of the film would seem to at points move farely well but for the most part the scenes just start to drag and you could care less with what's happening. The beginning of the movie is a prime example. The characters are introduced and the story starts to develop but then things just start to fall to pieces right before your very eyes.
The acting in the movie is rather humorous at moments. A certain scene when the director and his assistant meet the man who wants to produce the movie is rather hysterical. And almost all of the scenes with Lavana in them are laugh out loud funny.
I think the main thing that saves this movie is a decent original score (I'm not talking about the bad hair metal in the background) and a few moments of gore. It seems that the director of the movie (Luigi Cozzi) still loves to have people having their organs blown to pieces. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, watch Contamination.
All in all, could have been a much better film. 4/10 stars
"What does the black cat have to do with Levana the Witch?"
iced_heart730 January 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Watching Luigi Cozzi's "The Black Cat" could potentially be a really confusing experience for anyone unfamiliar with the backstory of its' making. It was originally conceived as a theme-continuation of Italian cult horror-director Dario Argento's films "Suspiria" (1977) and "Inferno" (1980) - each having at the centre of its' story a powerful evil witch as an antagonist. "Suspiria" was about the mother of sighs or Mater Suspiriorum, "Inferno" concerned the mother of darkness (Mater Tenebrarum). Needless to say, there is a third witch to complete the cycle - the mother of tears (Mater Lachrymarum), because according to the original source of the story (upon which Argento's movies are based) - 1845's Suspiria de Profundis" by Thomas de Quincey - there are three ladies of sorrow (witches). So, a third film is needed to focus on the final witch. Dario Argento would eventually complete his trilogy much later - in 2007 - with "Mother of Tears", but in 1989 another Italian director and frequent collaborator and friend of Argento - Luigi Cozzi tried to contribute to Argento's universe with a film about the third mother.
In "The Black Cat" the main protagonist is Anne Ravenna (played by Florence Guerin) - an established horror actress, who is married to successful film director Marc Ravenna (Urbano Barberini) and has recently given birth to their child. Her husband is working closely with scriptwriter Dan (Maurizio Fardo) on a horror-film script called "De Profundis", about the aforementioned third witch - also named Levana. In the midst of their efforts to secure a deal with a producer and to decide on who's going to play the central character of Levana - Anne or Dan's own wife and actress Nora (Caroline Munro) - they somehow manage to bring to life the evil entity from their script. Or so it seems. Anne starts having hallucinations and dreams of an evil witch, with a blackened blister-covered face, who fancies vomiting green bile on people's faces, threatening them with promises of agonizing death and occasionally shooting laser beams out of her eyes and/or hands, which cause people's internal organs to explode. A charming creature, for sure. And her voice is so hilariously dubbed, one might think of the sound one might make, if trying to dub the part of baba yaga in a bad homemade cartoon. For some reason Levana is infuriated, that Anne is supposed to portray her in the upcoming film and starts messing with her head, sending her terrifying visions and dreams.
But is Levana even real, or is Anne losing her mind? Two words, people: who cares? This film is so poorly constructed and so many ideas are randomly thrown together and forcibly sewn in no particular order into the body of the "plot", that frankly, it doesn't make a shred of sense.
Apart from the main plot of a centuries old witch resurrected in modern times, there is the subplot of the neglected wife and the cheating husband. There is the subplot of Anne competing for the main role with an opportunistic rival actress. The one about dealing with shady producers to get a movie made. There is the idea of dualism, yin and yang, the good and evil in every human being, presented here in the form of the fairy (the good) and the witch (the evil), who are supposed to be both a part of the main protagonist. Another subplot involves an occult researcher, who is there to supply us with most of the exposition, secure an effective death scene and not much else. In theory, it probably sounds much more interesting and coherent, than it really is.
How about the title? Why is this movie called "The Black Cat" at all? In the words of the main male protagonist himself: "What does the black cat have to do with Levana the Witch?" Sure, we see a black cat with menacing eyes here and there in the film, but what is the connection? Well...none. The truth is, unbeknownst to the director Luigi Cozzi, the distributor of the film had already retitled it to "The Black Cat" as a contractual obligation to deliver an Edgar Allan Poe themed film. After Cozzi was eventually informed, he was also requested to add some footage of black cats to justify the imposed title. So, he did. And he must have filmed the extra scene with the two male leads discussing the significance of the black cat, because that struck me as very odd and questionably shoehorned in the plot. The black cats are explained as "witches in disguise", a quote attributed to Poe from the story of the same name. The opening title of the movie even proclaim: "Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat". And the film ends up having nothing in common with Poe's story.
So, while I can certainly understand why the forcibly inserted cat-related passages in the story didn't make sense, there is plenty of other inexcusably nonsensical stuff in the script. An example: there is an episode of the film in which Anne awakes from a nightmare only to find her baby missing from the crib. Panic-stricken, she immediately informs her husband (and her facial expression to this traumatic event is priceless - in an attempt to portray shock and being on the verge of crying, she rather looks like she is trying to hold from bursting in laughter) and the reaction of the husband is amazing. First, he says, that he intends to contact the police (normal reaction), but he then instead goes out to visit his lover for a sexy time and when asked "What about the (missing) baby?", he calmly declares: "The baby? I'm sure it's fine. She probably hid him some place". What? Who wrote that? This must rank among the top 100 most absurd things said by a character in a motion picture.
Add to the mix some shaky acting (and even more horrendous dubbing), a plodding pace and clichéd choice of main location (about half of the film takes place in the protagonist's house), the overdone to death "it's all a dream" idea, some questionable music soundtrack choices (song fragments by rock bands White Lion & Bang Tango inserted in odd places) and you get quite an unrewarding viewing experience.
There are some positives: Cozzi's visual style is not without its' merits, one of the on-screen deaths (the occult researcher) was well done and it's always nice to have the talented and beautiful Caroline Munro in the cast. And talking about Munro, I saw an online scan of an old early 90's article from a magazine, in which the actress talks about her disappointment with the movie industry and not being paid the full amount stated in her movie contract, at least at the time of the article being published, so this leaves an additional sour taste. I hope, eventually, she did get paid, especially as she might be the main (and possibly only) reason to see this film.
In "The Black Cat" the main protagonist is Anne Ravenna (played by Florence Guerin) - an established horror actress, who is married to successful film director Marc Ravenna (Urbano Barberini) and has recently given birth to their child. Her husband is working closely with scriptwriter Dan (Maurizio Fardo) on a horror-film script called "De Profundis", about the aforementioned third witch - also named Levana. In the midst of their efforts to secure a deal with a producer and to decide on who's going to play the central character of Levana - Anne or Dan's own wife and actress Nora (Caroline Munro) - they somehow manage to bring to life the evil entity from their script. Or so it seems. Anne starts having hallucinations and dreams of an evil witch, with a blackened blister-covered face, who fancies vomiting green bile on people's faces, threatening them with promises of agonizing death and occasionally shooting laser beams out of her eyes and/or hands, which cause people's internal organs to explode. A charming creature, for sure. And her voice is so hilariously dubbed, one might think of the sound one might make, if trying to dub the part of baba yaga in a bad homemade cartoon. For some reason Levana is infuriated, that Anne is supposed to portray her in the upcoming film and starts messing with her head, sending her terrifying visions and dreams.
But is Levana even real, or is Anne losing her mind? Two words, people: who cares? This film is so poorly constructed and so many ideas are randomly thrown together and forcibly sewn in no particular order into the body of the "plot", that frankly, it doesn't make a shred of sense.
Apart from the main plot of a centuries old witch resurrected in modern times, there is the subplot of the neglected wife and the cheating husband. There is the subplot of Anne competing for the main role with an opportunistic rival actress. The one about dealing with shady producers to get a movie made. There is the idea of dualism, yin and yang, the good and evil in every human being, presented here in the form of the fairy (the good) and the witch (the evil), who are supposed to be both a part of the main protagonist. Another subplot involves an occult researcher, who is there to supply us with most of the exposition, secure an effective death scene and not much else. In theory, it probably sounds much more interesting and coherent, than it really is.
How about the title? Why is this movie called "The Black Cat" at all? In the words of the main male protagonist himself: "What does the black cat have to do with Levana the Witch?" Sure, we see a black cat with menacing eyes here and there in the film, but what is the connection? Well...none. The truth is, unbeknownst to the director Luigi Cozzi, the distributor of the film had already retitled it to "The Black Cat" as a contractual obligation to deliver an Edgar Allan Poe themed film. After Cozzi was eventually informed, he was also requested to add some footage of black cats to justify the imposed title. So, he did. And he must have filmed the extra scene with the two male leads discussing the significance of the black cat, because that struck me as very odd and questionably shoehorned in the plot. The black cats are explained as "witches in disguise", a quote attributed to Poe from the story of the same name. The opening title of the movie even proclaim: "Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat". And the film ends up having nothing in common with Poe's story.
So, while I can certainly understand why the forcibly inserted cat-related passages in the story didn't make sense, there is plenty of other inexcusably nonsensical stuff in the script. An example: there is an episode of the film in which Anne awakes from a nightmare only to find her baby missing from the crib. Panic-stricken, she immediately informs her husband (and her facial expression to this traumatic event is priceless - in an attempt to portray shock and being on the verge of crying, she rather looks like she is trying to hold from bursting in laughter) and the reaction of the husband is amazing. First, he says, that he intends to contact the police (normal reaction), but he then instead goes out to visit his lover for a sexy time and when asked "What about the (missing) baby?", he calmly declares: "The baby? I'm sure it's fine. She probably hid him some place". What? Who wrote that? This must rank among the top 100 most absurd things said by a character in a motion picture.
Add to the mix some shaky acting (and even more horrendous dubbing), a plodding pace and clichéd choice of main location (about half of the film takes place in the protagonist's house), the overdone to death "it's all a dream" idea, some questionable music soundtrack choices (song fragments by rock bands White Lion & Bang Tango inserted in odd places) and you get quite an unrewarding viewing experience.
There are some positives: Cozzi's visual style is not without its' merits, one of the on-screen deaths (the occult researcher) was well done and it's always nice to have the talented and beautiful Caroline Munro in the cast. And talking about Munro, I saw an online scan of an old early 90's article from a magazine, in which the actress talks about her disappointment with the movie industry and not being paid the full amount stated in her movie contract, at least at the time of the article being published, so this leaves an additional sour taste. I hope, eventually, she did get paid, especially as she might be the main (and possibly only) reason to see this film.
One of the worst Italo movies I have ever seen
arkay17 November 2020
I have watched a lot of schlock and I really love 80s horror and the stuff coming out of Italy in the 70s and 80s. However, this film has no redeeming qualities, zilch. Most movies have at least 1 or 2 things going for them, be it the effects, the camera work or the atmosphere, but this movie just feels cheap, cheap, cheap.
Story sucks, the actors suck, the English dub sucks, the effects suck, the atmosphere sucks. Even a guy like Cozzi can do better, what were they thinking?
Story sucks, the actors suck, the English dub sucks, the effects suck, the atmosphere sucks. Even a guy like Cozzi can do better, what were they thinking?
Ugh, such a frustrating and ridiculous mess.
Milo-Jeeder11 October 2020
I am usually very "forgiving" when it comes to horror movies, to the point where I can acknowledge and value the general idea and overlook the narrative flaws. If the film as a whole is fun to watch, it has a well developed atmosphere and it features a decent amount of horror elements, I'm pretty much okay with it ... but the story has to make SOME sense, at least. Well, "The Black Cat" (or any of the many other titles that this movie has) is an example of a flick that is just frustrating to sit through. Director Luigi Cozzi may not entirely be at fault, perhaps the producers forcibly squeezed things into the movie for the sole purpose of shock value... or something. I have read many times that several directors end up unhappy with the final results of their films, because they were asked to add random creatures, murders or over-the-top sequences, even if they only add confusion to the story, just to make the film more marketable. I don't know the reasons behind this mess, but this is just a really confusing and convoluted film that had no business being that way, because it could have been told in a much simpler way. Actually, the first half an hour of the film is decent and it keeps it simple, but "The Black Cat" progressively becomes more and more random, to the point where inexplicable situations just happen constantly, and eventually, you just stop even trying to make any sense out of it (at least, I know I did). I can only assume that several random sequences and shots were probably added at the last minute because it was unused footage from a different film and they didn't want to let it go to waste. It's the only reasonable explanation I can come up with.
As for the photography, the director clearly took inspiration in Dario Argento's "Suspiria" and "Inferno" (both films are referenced here), but the strident color scheme ends up being a little bit over the top. Besides the artificial color palette, the use of CGI, which is very frequent during the second half of the film, cheapens the visuals considerably and it could have been a lot better without it.
A few creative deaths and stylish sequences don't save this film from being a big pile of randomness, so, skip this, unless you just want to have a good laugh. "The Black Cat" is just a frustrating experience and a waste of time.
As for the photography, the director clearly took inspiration in Dario Argento's "Suspiria" and "Inferno" (both films are referenced here), but the strident color scheme ends up being a little bit over the top. Besides the artificial color palette, the use of CGI, which is very frequent during the second half of the film, cheapens the visuals considerably and it could have been a lot better without it.
A few creative deaths and stylish sequences don't save this film from being a big pile of randomness, so, skip this, unless you just want to have a good laugh. "The Black Cat" is just a frustrating experience and a waste of time.
More Cozzi Chaos
Bezenby2 August 2014
I've just finished watching the late eighties Italian horror The Spider Labyrinth, which was a film devoid of cheese. This film, however, is like watching a slice of Gouda. But there's a place for films like this too, and I enjoyed it.
Some sort of sequel to Suspira/Inferno, it features some film makers getting together to make a film about Levanna, the Mother of Tears. Actress and new mother Ana is all set for the part, probably because her husband is the director, which makes script writer Dan's wife very jealous (and she's played by Caroline Munro, for the record).
Things start getting immediately weird when Ana starts having visions of a grape faced lady (you heard me) coming out of a mirror and attacking here. Seems that Levanna is real and wants to come back into our world, which involves Ana and her baby and that. You know the drill.
I though it was funny when Levanna started haunting Ana's fridge and then formed a vision of a fake repairman coming to fix it! That's just cruel. Also Bret Halsey's in this because perhaps Lucio Fulci had momentarily lost his phone number.
Anyway, the director guy and the screenwriter get in contact with some medium, who warns them off, and that's when Levanna goes nuts and starts wasting everybody, causing the medium's guts to explode out of her body, just like in Cozzi's Contamination! By this time there's also a little girl contacting Ana via a television to help her, but Levanna makes this TV explode and then spew up intestines (you heard me there too).
Things then start getting pretty unpredictable and VERY eighties, visually, but Cozzi may not be the best fan of reality, but he can sure pour on the madness and crazy set pieces. Whether or not this is a better sequel that Mother of Tears is up to you. Both are very cheesy and the later film was a lot gorier, but it also had Asia Argento in it and didn't really have the tone of Suspiria or Inferno, whereas this one is more similar in look and feel. That's up to you.
Luigi Cozzi sure had a thing for Caroline Munro, eh? In this film, you get to see her take a bath, wear lingerie, put varnish on her nails, have sex and get leggy while getting into a car. For the record, my favourite Munro moment is the musical number she does in Don't Open Til Christmas.
Some sort of sequel to Suspira/Inferno, it features some film makers getting together to make a film about Levanna, the Mother of Tears. Actress and new mother Ana is all set for the part, probably because her husband is the director, which makes script writer Dan's wife very jealous (and she's played by Caroline Munro, for the record).
Things start getting immediately weird when Ana starts having visions of a grape faced lady (you heard me) coming out of a mirror and attacking here. Seems that Levanna is real and wants to come back into our world, which involves Ana and her baby and that. You know the drill.
I though it was funny when Levanna started haunting Ana's fridge and then formed a vision of a fake repairman coming to fix it! That's just cruel. Also Bret Halsey's in this because perhaps Lucio Fulci had momentarily lost his phone number.
Anyway, the director guy and the screenwriter get in contact with some medium, who warns them off, and that's when Levanna goes nuts and starts wasting everybody, causing the medium's guts to explode out of her body, just like in Cozzi's Contamination! By this time there's also a little girl contacting Ana via a television to help her, but Levanna makes this TV explode and then spew up intestines (you heard me there too).
Things then start getting pretty unpredictable and VERY eighties, visually, but Cozzi may not be the best fan of reality, but he can sure pour on the madness and crazy set pieces. Whether or not this is a better sequel that Mother of Tears is up to you. Both are very cheesy and the later film was a lot gorier, but it also had Asia Argento in it and didn't really have the tone of Suspiria or Inferno, whereas this one is more similar in look and feel. That's up to you.
Luigi Cozzi sure had a thing for Caroline Munro, eh? In this film, you get to see her take a bath, wear lingerie, put varnish on her nails, have sex and get leggy while getting into a car. For the record, my favourite Munro moment is the musical number she does in Don't Open Til Christmas.
Suspiriawful.
BA_Harrison3 May 2021
Despite the title, Luigi Cozzi's The Black Cat has only the most tenuous connection to Edgar Allen Poe's classic tale: there are a few random black cats thrown in for no real reason, and the lead character, actress Anne Ravenna (Florence Guérin), recently starred in a movie based on Poe's novel.
Anne's next role is to be that of witch Levana, inspired by the ancient occult tome Suspiria de Profundis, the same work that provided the basis for Dario Argento's Three Mothers trilogy. As Anne prepares for the part (to be directed by her husband Marc, played by Urbano Barberini), she is menaced by the ugly old hag, who isn't too happy to be the subject of a horror movie.
The bulk of the film consists of random supernatural events, all lit using coloured filters borrowed from Cozzi's pal Argento: Levana emerges from a mirror to spew green slime over Anne's face, makes the Ravenna's fridge malfunction (how evil!), causes intestines to spill from their TV (she really has it in for home appliances), grabs Anne through a wall, conjures up an otherworldly repairman to fix the fridge (no, really), and in the film's goriest moment, sends a woman's guts flying through the air (an effect borrowed from Cozzi's own Alien rip-off Contamination). Meanwhile, Anne's friend Nora - Caroline Munro, still looking good at 40 - is having an affair with Marc, which adds nothing to the plot (not that there is much of a plot anyway).
It's all incredibly dumb and makes no sense whatsoever, with pointless shots of planets and stars, and a foetus only adding to the confusion, while the bizarre use of sudden bursts of rock music at inopportune moments only adds to the silliness (Bang Tango's Someone Like You is used at least four times, Cozzi getting his money's worth).
2.5/10, generously rounded up to 3 for the erupting stomach (an oldie but a goodie). It says a lot that The Black Cat is even worse than Argento's own, seriously sub-par Mother of Tears.
Anne's next role is to be that of witch Levana, inspired by the ancient occult tome Suspiria de Profundis, the same work that provided the basis for Dario Argento's Three Mothers trilogy. As Anne prepares for the part (to be directed by her husband Marc, played by Urbano Barberini), she is menaced by the ugly old hag, who isn't too happy to be the subject of a horror movie.
The bulk of the film consists of random supernatural events, all lit using coloured filters borrowed from Cozzi's pal Argento: Levana emerges from a mirror to spew green slime over Anne's face, makes the Ravenna's fridge malfunction (how evil!), causes intestines to spill from their TV (she really has it in for home appliances), grabs Anne through a wall, conjures up an otherworldly repairman to fix the fridge (no, really), and in the film's goriest moment, sends a woman's guts flying through the air (an effect borrowed from Cozzi's own Alien rip-off Contamination). Meanwhile, Anne's friend Nora - Caroline Munro, still looking good at 40 - is having an affair with Marc, which adds nothing to the plot (not that there is much of a plot anyway).
It's all incredibly dumb and makes no sense whatsoever, with pointless shots of planets and stars, and a foetus only adding to the confusion, while the bizarre use of sudden bursts of rock music at inopportune moments only adds to the silliness (Bang Tango's Someone Like You is used at least four times, Cozzi getting his money's worth).
2.5/10, generously rounded up to 3 for the erupting stomach (an oldie but a goodie). It says a lot that The Black Cat is even worse than Argento's own, seriously sub-par Mother of Tears.
Truly "awe" - full ... Certainly creative!
bradleybean861 February 2013
so we all know that the first two demons movies are pretty much as good as it's going to get. i am not going to lie to you after seeing all (seven?) 'demons' movies, I can truly say that the first two entires are masterpieces and the rest are an eclectic bastard lovechildish creative, bad, and completely crazy entries.
This movie is so awful in a good way. It's also pretty hard to track down (insert obvious reasons.) It's referred too as like 7 different titles, but the one I was watching was English dubbed audio with Japanese hard subtitles. The movie shamelessly poses as 'Suspiria 2' but at the same time also seems to acknowledge what they're doing is pretty awful so they throw in a lot of funny crazy effects to distract you from the plot that includes a grand total of 4-5 people and pacing that fluctuates between wayyyyy to slow and holy crap what just happened and why?
it's not as good as the first two demons movies, but if you like to chuckle at a truly goofy and poorly made movie, this movie is a gold nugget. There's so many unintentionally hilarious moments you can't capture unless you are truly trying to make a serious effort and it just unfolds like a pile of unsorted laundry. Pretty much anything you can think may or may not explode and smoke and leak green worms and intestines WILL AND SHALL. That part's never really explained but a lot of other things are.
Hilarious dated effects guaranteed to open your eyes wider than a syfy movie creature shot. I had a fun time with it :)
"i'm in the mirror. No - i'm in the rifridgerator , Wait - I'm back in the mirror *blarchhhhh*"
This movie is so awful in a good way. It's also pretty hard to track down (insert obvious reasons.) It's referred too as like 7 different titles, but the one I was watching was English dubbed audio with Japanese hard subtitles. The movie shamelessly poses as 'Suspiria 2' but at the same time also seems to acknowledge what they're doing is pretty awful so they throw in a lot of funny crazy effects to distract you from the plot that includes a grand total of 4-5 people and pacing that fluctuates between wayyyyy to slow and holy crap what just happened and why?
it's not as good as the first two demons movies, but if you like to chuckle at a truly goofy and poorly made movie, this movie is a gold nugget. There's so many unintentionally hilarious moments you can't capture unless you are truly trying to make a serious effort and it just unfolds like a pile of unsorted laundry. Pretty much anything you can think may or may not explode and smoke and leak green worms and intestines WILL AND SHALL. That part's never really explained but a lot of other things are.
Hilarious dated effects guaranteed to open your eyes wider than a syfy movie creature shot. I had a fun time with it :)
"i'm in the mirror. No - i'm in the rifridgerator , Wait - I'm back in the mirror *blarchhhhh*"
Out-cheeses even Argento himself
selfdestructo20 July 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Was this movie ever officially marketed as part of the Three Mothers Trilogy? Luigi Cozzi in the extras denies he ever meant this to be a part of that universe, though the influences are plain as day. Both directly and indirectly. One thing I did like about this story, was the fact that the movie was about filmmakers and actresses writing and producing a sequel to Suspiria (er, at least it starts out that way), with direct references to Argento. That's a meta plot (from 1989), and I'm into that sort of thing. Cozzi also implies Argento had a hand in cutting the film. So, ya got me.
But, in no short order, this thing goes well off the rails.
SPOILER: Seems every wacky sequence in this is a dream. Or is it?! (Insert insanely dumb ending).
Well, the Mother of Tears herself, Lavana, doesn't want this flick being made. Oh boy. Creature effects (specifically our star creature) and special effects are sub-bargain basement. As in, scratch the negative and paint it for lasers shooting out of fingers, and I'm pretty sure someone raided the local supermarket for a case of oatmeal.
Some nice lighting stolen from a certain famous Italian director does not make up for this movies multitude of shortcomings. This story makes no sense (granted, it's mostly told in dream sequences), and the whole film features some rather questionable music cues (courtesy of Bang Tango and White Lion). Frankly, that schtick was more effective in Demons. Italian movie filmed in English, then subsequently badly DUBBED in English, well, that's classic Italian horror. The director's mistress, Nora (played by the ever-gorgeous Caroline Monro) is seen in a number of compromising positions... uh, however, always covered up. Still, that's gotta factor into my score. A couple positive qualities along with some unintentional laughs, I'm giving "The Black Cat" a 5.
Argento had the last laugh on this whole fiasco, officially releasing the 3rd installment of trilogy, Mother of Tears in 2007. Only one of THE most unintentionally hilarious movies I've seen in my life. Offhand, also see: The Vineyard.
But, in no short order, this thing goes well off the rails.
SPOILER: Seems every wacky sequence in this is a dream. Or is it?! (Insert insanely dumb ending).
Well, the Mother of Tears herself, Lavana, doesn't want this flick being made. Oh boy. Creature effects (specifically our star creature) and special effects are sub-bargain basement. As in, scratch the negative and paint it for lasers shooting out of fingers, and I'm pretty sure someone raided the local supermarket for a case of oatmeal.
Some nice lighting stolen from a certain famous Italian director does not make up for this movies multitude of shortcomings. This story makes no sense (granted, it's mostly told in dream sequences), and the whole film features some rather questionable music cues (courtesy of Bang Tango and White Lion). Frankly, that schtick was more effective in Demons. Italian movie filmed in English, then subsequently badly DUBBED in English, well, that's classic Italian horror. The director's mistress, Nora (played by the ever-gorgeous Caroline Monro) is seen in a number of compromising positions... uh, however, always covered up. Still, that's gotta factor into my score. A couple positive qualities along with some unintentional laughs, I'm giving "The Black Cat" a 5.
Argento had the last laugh on this whole fiasco, officially releasing the 3rd installment of trilogy, Mother of Tears in 2007. Only one of THE most unintentionally hilarious movies I've seen in my life. Offhand, also see: The Vineyard.
Interesting take on Suspiria mythos
Jerv23325-119 January 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This film bears the title of Demons 6, with either a title of Armageddon or De Profundis, with the latter being the more apt title. However, the film itself holds no real connections to Demoni 1 or 2 or any of the other in name only sequels. The only real connection to the demons films is that the leading man from Demoni, Urbano Barberini, plays the husband to the leading lady. Instead, this film is a loose sequel to Argento's, at the time unfinished, Three Mothers Trilogy. All of which are loosely based on a section of Thomas de Quincey's Suspiria De Profundis (which even makes an appearance!) entitled "Levana and our ladies of Sorrow".
Luigi Cozzi's script even acknowledges the existence of Argento's film Suspiria and extends on the idea that the three ladies of sorrow are evil witches who rule the world. Specifically focusing on Mater Lachrymarum, The Mother of Tears. The film centers around Anna Raveanna (Florence Guérin) who is an actress who is set to play the witch Levana in a film that her husband Marc (Urbano Barberini) is making. Levana is not pleased with this and declares that Anna will never be her on the screen and begins spreading madness into Anna's world and using those around her to do her bidding - including kidnapping and planning to sacrifice Anna's newborn baby.
There are plenty of similarities between this film and Argento's eventual final film in the trilogy which begs the question of if Luigi had at some point read an early draft of 'The Mother of Tears'. The two share a few common themes, such as a supernatural mentor (Argento's version was her dead mother who was a witch, and in Cozzi's the mentor is a fairy who mentions that fairies and witches are about the same) who eventually guides the leading lady on how to use her own powers to stop Mater Lachrymarum. Even the death of Mater Lachrymarum in both versions are strikingly similar.
While this film is nowhere near as good as Suspiria, it is a decent if not official entry in the 'Three Mother Trilogy'. Yes, it has its silly parts (the refrigerator) but it also has its accomplishments. It also of course helps that they chose a great theme song for the film, which is almost as haunting as the original Suspiria theme and attempt to recreate (although not as well) the colored nightmare atmosphere of the superior Suspiria. And of course, there is plenty of gore!
Luigi Cozzi's script even acknowledges the existence of Argento's film Suspiria and extends on the idea that the three ladies of sorrow are evil witches who rule the world. Specifically focusing on Mater Lachrymarum, The Mother of Tears. The film centers around Anna Raveanna (Florence Guérin) who is an actress who is set to play the witch Levana in a film that her husband Marc (Urbano Barberini) is making. Levana is not pleased with this and declares that Anna will never be her on the screen and begins spreading madness into Anna's world and using those around her to do her bidding - including kidnapping and planning to sacrifice Anna's newborn baby.
There are plenty of similarities between this film and Argento's eventual final film in the trilogy which begs the question of if Luigi had at some point read an early draft of 'The Mother of Tears'. The two share a few common themes, such as a supernatural mentor (Argento's version was her dead mother who was a witch, and in Cozzi's the mentor is a fairy who mentions that fairies and witches are about the same) who eventually guides the leading lady on how to use her own powers to stop Mater Lachrymarum. Even the death of Mater Lachrymarum in both versions are strikingly similar.
While this film is nowhere near as good as Suspiria, it is a decent if not official entry in the 'Three Mother Trilogy'. Yes, it has its silly parts (the refrigerator) but it also has its accomplishments. It also of course helps that they chose a great theme song for the film, which is almost as haunting as the original Suspiria theme and attempt to recreate (although not as well) the colored nightmare atmosphere of the superior Suspiria. And of course, there is plenty of gore!
Little known sequel to Suspiria?
The_Void7 May 2009
Luigi Cozzi's The Black Cat is a weird film! And it's not just the film itself, the release and marketing are a little strange too. The film was released as Demons 6 (apparently a fifth sequel to Lamberto Bava's 1985 original) and also as a second sequel to Dario Argento's masterpiece; thus making it Suspiria 3. The film actually does mention Suspiria and Dario Argento by name; but if it's any relation to the 1977 classic; then it can really only be considered a spin off because the film doesn't follow on from either Suspiria or the legitimate sequel Inferno. In style, the film much more closely resembles Lamberto Bava's film; although the 'Demons 6' title was clearly just to help the film sell. Anyway, the plot focuses on a horror movie production; and the film is to be based on a book called Suspiria de Profumis, which Dario Argento's film was also based on (apparently, there's enough material for 100 movies!). The film is to focus on a witch named Levana; but for some reason, the production causes the witch to come alive; and the lead actress is the only one who can stand in her way.
It has to be said, this film is a real mess. Things 'just happen' time and time again and I was left constantly scratching my head. How do you make a film about a witch going around killing people confusing? Well, I guess you'd have to ask Luigi Cozzi. The influence of Lamberto Bava's Demons is clear and obvious throughout; the gore is very similar to that featured in the earlier film and Cozzi has jam packed this film with cheesy eighties hair metal. Actually the atmosphere of the film is one of it's only saving graces; the director utilises a good colour scheme and the feel of The Black Cat is gritty and foreboding at times. The acting is typically weak; but while trying to work out what the hell is going on, most people probably wont notice. The witch featured is surely one of the most ridiculous things in the film. I have no idea how this production ever got to use Argento's name and call itself a sequel to Suspiria; but the fact that it did is surely blasphemy. Overall, this film is entertaining in an odd sort of way; but it's not a good film by any stretch of the imagination.
It has to be said, this film is a real mess. Things 'just happen' time and time again and I was left constantly scratching my head. How do you make a film about a witch going around killing people confusing? Well, I guess you'd have to ask Luigi Cozzi. The influence of Lamberto Bava's Demons is clear and obvious throughout; the gore is very similar to that featured in the earlier film and Cozzi has jam packed this film with cheesy eighties hair metal. Actually the atmosphere of the film is one of it's only saving graces; the director utilises a good colour scheme and the feel of The Black Cat is gritty and foreboding at times. The acting is typically weak; but while trying to work out what the hell is going on, most people probably wont notice. The witch featured is surely one of the most ridiculous things in the film. I have no idea how this production ever got to use Argento's name and call itself a sequel to Suspiria; but the fact that it did is surely blasphemy. Overall, this film is entertaining in an odd sort of way; but it's not a good film by any stretch of the imagination.
Bad No Matter What You Call It
Michael_Elliott26 February 2011
Demons 6 (1989)
* (out of 4)
Here's yet another example of the Italian horror genre and their crazy titles. Lamberto Bava made DEMONS and DEMONS 2 but when DEMONS 3 had its title changed to THE CHURCH the producers then took Bava's THE ORGE and made it DEMONS III. Then, for no reason, Michael Soavi's THE SECT was released as DEMONS 4 while Mr. Bava made THE DEVIL'S VEIL, which was pretty much a remake of his father's BLACK Sunday, only it was released under the fake title of DEMONS 5. Then, that same year, director Luigi Cozzi made a film called THE BLACK CAT, which then was released as DEMONS 6. Oh yeah, Cozzi also intended this to be the third chapter of Dario Argento's at the time incomplete "Three Mothers" series, which had SUSPIRIA and INFERNO. I'm certain most fans aren't going to consider this to have anything to do with the Argento movies and I think it's fair to say that in reality there are only two movies in the DEMONS series. The rest were simply named to cash in on something.
The film has an actress (Florence Guerin) and her director husband (Urbano Barberini) getting ready to make a movie based on the witch in SUSPIRIA. They plan on making the movie but the actress/wife begins to be haunted by the witch who doesn't want a movie based on her. Soon bodies are starting to pile up as the actress slowly loses her mind and crosses over into the world of possession. No matter if you call this DEMONS 6 or THE BLACK CAT, there's no denying that this is one major disaster that doesn't work on any level let alone fit in with the Argento films or even the earlier DEMONS flicks. There are several scenes where the Argento movie is mentioned so director Cozzi certainly wanted to at least link his films to SUSPIRIA but let's get real here. This is just a major hack fest that doesn't have a single thing going for it. For starters the screenplay is a downright joke as it never really makes too much sense. We start off with the actress making a version of Poe's The Black Cat and then we jump back and forth to other events. Most of her visions have the witch showing up in a mirror and one sequence has the mean witch puking up green slime and blood. There are a couple gory deaths scenes but they too look incredibly silly including one where a woman's heart begins beating so fast that it explodes out of her chest. Another throat slashing doesn't impress either. The performances are hard to judge thanks in large part to the horrid dubbing but Euro favorites Caroline Munro and Brett Halsey appear as another actress and producer.
* (out of 4)
Here's yet another example of the Italian horror genre and their crazy titles. Lamberto Bava made DEMONS and DEMONS 2 but when DEMONS 3 had its title changed to THE CHURCH the producers then took Bava's THE ORGE and made it DEMONS III. Then, for no reason, Michael Soavi's THE SECT was released as DEMONS 4 while Mr. Bava made THE DEVIL'S VEIL, which was pretty much a remake of his father's BLACK Sunday, only it was released under the fake title of DEMONS 5. Then, that same year, director Luigi Cozzi made a film called THE BLACK CAT, which then was released as DEMONS 6. Oh yeah, Cozzi also intended this to be the third chapter of Dario Argento's at the time incomplete "Three Mothers" series, which had SUSPIRIA and INFERNO. I'm certain most fans aren't going to consider this to have anything to do with the Argento movies and I think it's fair to say that in reality there are only two movies in the DEMONS series. The rest were simply named to cash in on something.
The film has an actress (Florence Guerin) and her director husband (Urbano Barberini) getting ready to make a movie based on the witch in SUSPIRIA. They plan on making the movie but the actress/wife begins to be haunted by the witch who doesn't want a movie based on her. Soon bodies are starting to pile up as the actress slowly loses her mind and crosses over into the world of possession. No matter if you call this DEMONS 6 or THE BLACK CAT, there's no denying that this is one major disaster that doesn't work on any level let alone fit in with the Argento films or even the earlier DEMONS flicks. There are several scenes where the Argento movie is mentioned so director Cozzi certainly wanted to at least link his films to SUSPIRIA but let's get real here. This is just a major hack fest that doesn't have a single thing going for it. For starters the screenplay is a downright joke as it never really makes too much sense. We start off with the actress making a version of Poe's The Black Cat and then we jump back and forth to other events. Most of her visions have the witch showing up in a mirror and one sequence has the mean witch puking up green slime and blood. There are a couple gory deaths scenes but they too look incredibly silly including one where a woman's heart begins beating so fast that it explodes out of her chest. Another throat slashing doesn't impress either. The performances are hard to judge thanks in large part to the horrid dubbing but Euro favorites Caroline Munro and Brett Halsey appear as another actress and producer.
THE BLACK CAT (Luigi Cozzi, 1989) *1/2
Bunuel197624 October 2013
I hated Lamberto Bava's bafflingly popular DEMONS (1985) and DEMONS 2 (1986); later unrelated Italian horror films were inexplicably passed off as sequels to them – Michele Soavi's THE CHURCH (1989) and THE SECT (1991), Bava's own THE OGRE (1988) and THE DEVIL'S VEIL (1989), and this one by Cozzi (which is also known as DEMONS 6: DE PROFUNDIS, actually the title borne by the copy I watched)! Truth be told, neither does it have anything to do with Edgar Allan Poe – despite fleetingly irrelevant appearances by the titular creature (by the way, the same source also inspired Sergio Martino's YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY {1972}, Lucio Fulci's 1981 namesake and, again Dario Argento's episode in the two-part compendium TWO EVIL EYES {1990})! This 'version' also purports to be an unofficial continuation of Argento's "Three Mothers" saga (complete with cues from the famous SUSPIRIA {1977} soundtrack), years before the third entry got made! Whatever the film strives to be, it is perhaps the effort which definitively put the lid on the "Euro-Cult" style that had flourished for some 40 years! Anyway, the plot revolves around the attempts by a long-dead witch to stop an actress from playing her on-screen in a proposed movie about her exploits (I wonder whether she demanded a casting director credit!). That is it, basically – but the result displays a stupefying ineptness in every department and, as was often the case with this type of film, the script does not make a lick of sense (at the climax, the actress is possessed by the spirit of a dead child in order to combat the witch's evil force – with extraneous cutaways to outer space reportedly lifted from Cozzi's "Hercules" flicks)! The latter 'recruits' a number of people for this purpose – including fellow actress and rival for the part Caroline Munro, temperamental wheelchair-bound producer Brett Halsey, his female secretary, a refrigerator repair-man(!), a young boy, the heroine's baby's nanny and, in the very last shot, the toddler itself!; on the side of good, we get the scriptwriter (Munro's husband), the director (the protagonist's own hubby and Munro's lover!) and a female occult expert (who spectacularly expires from an exploding heart!). As I said, events follow one another without any rhyme or reason – which is not necessarily a bad thing, when it manages to create a dream-like aura (and the only such instance here is a nightmare sequence in which the actress attempts to stab her own child under the witch's influence, is stopped by her husband, whom she then attacks but he, in turn, removes the knife and sticks it in her) yet, as a rule, here it is just a succession of repugnant make-up and cheesy effects.
Don't waste your time when there are so many good films out there
Mikel320 February 2013
'Black Cat' (1989) (aka 'Demons 6: De Profundis') I saw this today on Amazon Prime Videos. It's an Italian made horror film. This description intrigued me "Ann Pritcher is a new mother and actress in her husband's film. A film about a terrible witch, Levana, whom Ann is playing. But when Ann starts researching the part of Levana, she is haunted by visions." I like older Italian made horror films like those starring Barbara Steele. Often they had a haunting Gothic look and off beat stories compared to run of the mill American made movies. I cut all foreign films some slack because maybe the English dubbing isn't always the best and the film might be better in its native language. This film even beyond the laughable dubbed English is a total mess. The effects are laughable and the story is dragged out with nothing of real interest to it. Who ever did this seems obsessed with bright neon like lights for a scary effect. They like to have the bright light, especially green, emitting from windows, refrigerators, drinking glasses, eyes...everything but the black cat's butt. And the gore was also laughable. They also seem to like using green goo...just looks like pea soup. I don't like overly gory films, this didn't bother me because it was so phony looking. It seems anyone using the title 'Black Cat' or the like can pretend it's based on a story by Edar Allen Poe to attract viewers. About the only tie in to this is Mr. Poe's name may have been mentioned someplace in the dialog. Frankly this film, and I use the word "film" loosely, was not worth my time. I give it a 0 rating but the IMDb forces me to make 1 the lowest.
More Demons still?
BandSAboutMovies30 January 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Oh man, where do I even begin in trying to make sense of this movie?
It's not a sequel to Demons, no matter what the title tells you.
It was called Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat in America, when it most assuredly has nothing to do with that film.
And somehow, it was nearly called De Profundis (From The Deep) and is also sometimes referred to as Demons 6: Armageddon, which makes sense because it's filled with scenes of space and planets randomly throughout the movie.
It's also - sit down for this one - an unofficial sequel to Suspiria and Inferno, made back when Argento hadn't yet decided to close off that cycle of movies with Mother of Tears. Yes, the script to this movie was adapted from Daria Nicolodi's (Argento's ex-wife and creator of The Three Mothers trilogy) script for what was going to be an official Argento Three Mothers film that never saw the light of day. And who better than Luigi Cozzi - who in addition to making Starcrash and the Ferrigno Hercules films, runs Argento's store Profondo Rosso store - to direct this?
Are you confused yet? I am and I haven't even started watching the movie yet!
Here - watch the whole thing yourself and see if you can make any sense of it.
This one is all about Marc (Urbano Barberini, who was actually in Demons), a horror film director, is making a movie called Suspiria De Profundis that is a sequel to Suspiria and based on Thomas De Quincey's story Levana and Our Ladies of Sorrow. There's even a sequence where the characters discuss just how good of a director Argento is as they reveal what the Mother of Madness looks like, dripping with worms and gore.
Marc casts his actress wife, Anne (Florence Guerin, Too Beautiful to Die) in the lead, along with Nora (Caroline Munro, who I should not have to tell you anything about other than the fact that her being in this movie makes me overjoyed). Things seem to go pretty well for all involved until Levana, who it turns out is a real person, objects to how she's portrayed in the movie and goes wild, blowing up food in refrigerators and people's chests.
Levana - the Mother of Tears - may be the lead villain, but there's also an evil film producer in a wheelchair named Leonard Levin (Brett Halsey, Demonia, The Devil's Honey) who hints at wanting to take Marc's soul. And Nora has designs on Marc, so there's that. Also - a refrigerator that sprays food everywhere and Michele Soavi in a cameo as a director.
This movie is also packed with mid-80's hair metal, featuring Bang Tango and White Lion all over the soundtrack.
Charitably, this movie is a mess, but I completely loved every single minute of it. There's enough bile and blood and breasts and beasts to satisfy just about any horror movie lover. I'm in for Demons 7 if these guys want to make it.
It's not a sequel to Demons, no matter what the title tells you.
It was called Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat in America, when it most assuredly has nothing to do with that film.
And somehow, it was nearly called De Profundis (From The Deep) and is also sometimes referred to as Demons 6: Armageddon, which makes sense because it's filled with scenes of space and planets randomly throughout the movie.
It's also - sit down for this one - an unofficial sequel to Suspiria and Inferno, made back when Argento hadn't yet decided to close off that cycle of movies with Mother of Tears. Yes, the script to this movie was adapted from Daria Nicolodi's (Argento's ex-wife and creator of The Three Mothers trilogy) script for what was going to be an official Argento Three Mothers film that never saw the light of day. And who better than Luigi Cozzi - who in addition to making Starcrash and the Ferrigno Hercules films, runs Argento's store Profondo Rosso store - to direct this?
Are you confused yet? I am and I haven't even started watching the movie yet!
Here - watch the whole thing yourself and see if you can make any sense of it.
This one is all about Marc (Urbano Barberini, who was actually in Demons), a horror film director, is making a movie called Suspiria De Profundis that is a sequel to Suspiria and based on Thomas De Quincey's story Levana and Our Ladies of Sorrow. There's even a sequence where the characters discuss just how good of a director Argento is as they reveal what the Mother of Madness looks like, dripping with worms and gore.
Marc casts his actress wife, Anne (Florence Guerin, Too Beautiful to Die) in the lead, along with Nora (Caroline Munro, who I should not have to tell you anything about other than the fact that her being in this movie makes me overjoyed). Things seem to go pretty well for all involved until Levana, who it turns out is a real person, objects to how she's portrayed in the movie and goes wild, blowing up food in refrigerators and people's chests.
Levana - the Mother of Tears - may be the lead villain, but there's also an evil film producer in a wheelchair named Leonard Levin (Brett Halsey, Demonia, The Devil's Honey) who hints at wanting to take Marc's soul. And Nora has designs on Marc, so there's that. Also - a refrigerator that sprays food everywhere and Michele Soavi in a cameo as a director.
This movie is also packed with mid-80's hair metal, featuring Bang Tango and White Lion all over the soundtrack.
Charitably, this movie is a mess, but I completely loved every single minute of it. There's enough bile and blood and breasts and beasts to satisfy just about any horror movie lover. I'm in for Demons 7 if these guys want to make it.
Italian trash
trashgang8 March 2010
Again, one of those movies that never had a proper release. You will only find it on Japanese VHS, NTSC format. Okay, bootlegs are available but be sure to have this full uncut, or not. I guess that if you watch it uncut nothing happens because in the full uncut nothing really happens. to be clear, a lot happens but it's a mess, storyline goes from here to everywhere and back again. Is it bloody, no, in fact most killings are off screen. Is it creepy, not really, the demon is laughable, those hands are childish, the green vomit is green...there is no suspense, no gore, no nudity but why do people hunt for this flick. Because of two names, Brett Halsey, for his part in The Godfather 3 and of course for his role in another OOP To Catch A Killer, a must have but VHS goes in the 100$ luckily I have got mine from a retailer for 2 euro's. Anyway, the other hunted actress is Caroline Munro, best know for Maniac, Starcrash, The Last Horror Film and Slaughter High. She's well known for her body which she shows off in every flick except this one. But still up to today, freaks are hunting autographed stuff or OOP flicks from her. But here we see the downfall of the James Bond girl (The Spy Who Loved Me). If you have some spear time then this is one to watch.
Suspiria De Profundis.
HumanoidOfFlesh25 February 2002
"The Black Cat" is regarded as a third part of Dario Argento's Three Mothers trilogy(two first parts are "Suspiria" and "Inferno").Of course it's not as good as those masterpieces,but it's quite atmospheric and enjoyable.The gore effects are well-done,the script is okay,but the acting is pretty bad.Overall I liked this one so check it out for yourself.Cult actress Caroline Munro("Maniac","Kronos")and Urbano Barberini("Opera")are among the cast.
Florence guerin..demons 6 black cat
gorytus-2067215 April 2021
Apr 2021
Finally this recently got a proper dvd release and even a blu ray release.
Demons 6 black cat...mainly just known as The Black Cat, is an Italian horror, not a giallo and features the lovely Florence Guerin and also Caroline Munro.
As with a lot of these 80s horrors i do like them but they are not for everyone and fall short of the giallos.
7.5 out of 10.
Finally this recently got a proper dvd release and even a blu ray release.
Demons 6 black cat...mainly just known as The Black Cat, is an Italian horror, not a giallo and features the lovely Florence Guerin and also Caroline Munro.
As with a lot of these 80s horrors i do like them but they are not for everyone and fall short of the giallos.
7.5 out of 10.
High Quality Sequel to Argentos Three Mothers Trilogy
inteljoe22 July 2007
Argento initially wanted to make a Three Mothers Trilogy, movies about 3 powerful witches that cause evil and chaos in the world. His first two movies, Suspiria and Inferno, are absolute masterpieces with wonderful acting and atmosphere. Very bizarre films. He never completed this trilogy. In came Luigi Cozzi, who completed the trilogy with Demons 6 aka the Black Cat. Though not as good as the first two, this movie is definitely a masterpiece that is worthy of praise. Nice midnight like atmosphere and good gore, good acting, a spooky movie. What more can you want? Too bad it is not available in the US, but there is one company that sells it on DVD, uncut, direct from a Japanese transfer source, with English audio and forced Japanese subs.
Hexentanz
Tweetienator28 March 2023
Il Gatto Nero aka The Black Cat does not belong to the best horror movies Italian style, but still - the atmosphere is dark and creepy, the visuals top notch for a B-movie of the early 80s, on top we get some hand-made gore (not that CGI-nonsense of modern days). The story is maybe a little too confusing and misses some momentum here and there, but anyway, The Black Cat is classic horror Italian style and beats most of today's Hollywood "horror" movies easy, and it got that shot of nightmare-like state that makes it rather special. Recommended if works of Mario Bava, Lucio Fulci, Umberto Lenzi and Dario Argento are regulars on your menu.
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