Black Sunday DVD
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 Rating: - An Original Goth Girl: Still Scary After All These Years
The great Italian horror maestro, Mario Bava, certainly had his share of hits and misses (with much of his best work completed during the early part of his career) but his 1960 debut, "Black Sunday" may well be his crowning achievement. An atmospheric masterpiece of stunning imagery and genuine creepiness, "Black Sunday" is an intelligent, well-crafted thriller centered around an aristocratic family and the unintended resurrection of a long-dead (and very evil) ancestor executed for practicing witchcraft. The witch, along with her newly revived henchman, proceed to wreak havoc on the inhabitants of the castle, as they attempt to gain a foothold in this world.

Of course, the film proved to be a huge hit upon its release, and has since developed both a cult following and a genuine amount of respect from the film industry. Unquestionably, the true beneficiary of the film's popularity is British actress, Barbara Steele, who proved that she was more than a scream-queen, parlaying her newfound fame into a successful career playing weirdly erotic, strangely complicated women in distress. In "Black Sunday", she plays both the nobleman's aristocratic daughter, Katia, and the vengeful witch, Asa, and she excels in both roles. As Katia, she exudes a fragile vulnerability that suggests a touch of madness, or maybe a physical frailty, like the consumption that destroyed many characters (both real and imagined) in previous centuries. And as Asa, she's every inch the vampire queen, a bloodsucking witch and eternal goth girl who's feeling a little cranky after having a spiked mask hammered into her face and being tossed into a dusty, insect-ridden crypt for 200 years. Except for the holes left by Asa's spikes, there's very little else to physically distinguish Katia from Asa. The actress conveys the differences through her eyes and the intensity with which she delivers her lines. It's a good performance, maybe even a great performance, and one that I don't think Steele, in spite of becoming a star, was ever given the opportunity to match.

The male castmembers also acquit themselves nicely, although none stands out quite like Steele. John Richardson is the other Brit included in the film, portraying the doctor who unwittingly unleashes the horror; and Italian actors Ivo Garrani, Andrea Checchi, and Arturo Dominici fill out the other roles of nobleman, doctor's assistant/romantic interest, and demon-lover.

For its time, "Black Sunday" was considered quite daring, with its (now) subtle eroticism and the (once-shocking) violence that opens the film. With hundreds of considerably more graphic and gruesome films released since then, it may not have the visceral jolt that it once did, but "Black Sunday" still thrills and entertains with a genuine eeriness and chilling authenticity that is rarely seen onscreen anymore. It is a class act and a milestone for a fondly remembered director whose subsequent work (some of it, admittedly, good) never quite lived up to the bravura and promise of his stellar debut.

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