Satanic Sundays! Six B-movie Cult Classics Of Damnation

Since today is a holiday and pagan holy day I am going to keep this Satanic Sundays light by keeping with the cult classic b-movie theme. Since I have been obsessed with re-watching my mass collection of old movies I have picked six flicks that are light on horror and gore but big on theme and melodrama. These films are true tales of souls that are damned either by others or their own desires. The devil is truly in the details in these films of nightmarish realities.

1. Bloody Pit Of Horror (1965)


The Bloody Pit Of Horror is a true classic film from Euro genre film maker Massimo Pupillo and stars Mickey Hargitay, Walter Brandi, Luisa Baratto, Rita Klein and Alfredo Rizzo. The story follows a book publisher and his crew sneak in to take photos of a castle thinking the place is empty. The castle is owned by former actor Travis Anderson who lives with his two bodyguards. Travis recognizes one of the girls as his former girlfriend, Edith. He relents and lets them stay the night. The evil spirit of a former resident known as 'the Crimson Executioner' is then released by accident. The spirit possesses Travis, who begins punishing his guests for their (unspecified) physical and spiritual imperfections. These poor souls are damned to death and torment due to history’s evil deeds.

2. Devil’s Partner (1961)


Directed by Charles R. Rondeau Devil’s Partner stars Edgar Buchanan, Jean Allison, Richard Crane, Spencer Carlisle and Ed Nelson. Pete Jensen, an old man, lives in a shack in the town of Furnace Flats. He slaughters a goat and daubs its blood within a pentagon drawn on the floor of his shack. A young man, Nick Richards, comes to town, claiming that the old tramp was his uncle. Everyone notices that even though it's incredibly hot, the young man doesn't so much as have a drop of sweat on him. One by one the residents of the small town fall prey to the will and evil of the devil whom is revealed to be a half man half beast creature moved to the will of passion. These souls are damned by the devil himself the true icon of all man’s damnation.

3. Condemned To Live (1935)


Condemned To Live is a cult classic melodrama from the golden age of cinema “Bstory”. The movie stars Ralph Morgan, Maxine Doyle and Russell Gleason. The tale follows Prof. Kristen and the town folk who adore him. Unfortunately though Kristen has a serious issue to contend with that sees the town folk lying dead one by one. They believe it is a dreaded giant vampire bat that has cursed the community. It turns out the killer is far more recognizable to them than the demon of legend. Prof. Kristen believes because his mother was bitten by a vampire bat while pregnant with him that he himself is cursed by vampirism. These poor souls are just damned by their own fated damnation.


4. Blood Tide (1982)


Blood Tide is a film about ancient deities' being awakened by modern man’s own lack of understanding for the ways of old searching for more profitable means of understanding life. The story follows a group of friends seeking knowledge and sanctuary on a small Greek Isle where an old one lies in wait to be awoken. A demi-god much like Dagon dwells under the island community and these robbers of antiquity release the beast  as one among the group realizes her own destiny and bond with the creature. Soon the shores are stained with blood and monsters roam the earth once more in this classic tale of terror by Director Richard Jefferies. It stars James Earl Jones, José Ferrer, Lila Kedrova, Mary Louise Weller, Martin Kove, Lydia Cornell and Deborah Shelton. Once more souls become damned by their own misfortune and lack of understanding or respect for the ancient beliefs.

5. The She Beast (1966)


I have mentioned The She Beast in my Satanic Sundays posts before but it is one of my favorite Barbara Steele films. In this nightmare the curse and damnation that befalls the souls is from sorcery and evil doings. The small village that once killed an evil witch are once more revisited by the demoness when a couple on honey moon have a car accident which results in the evil witch’s resurrection. Directed by Michael Reeves the film also stars Ian Ogilvy, John Karlsen, Mel Welles and Joe Flash Riley. The souls in this film are once more damned by the evil’s of history.

6. The Devil’s Messenger (1961)


The Devil’s Messenger is a classic anthology of terror. Directed by Herbert L. Strock the film stars Lon Chaney Jr., Karen Kadler, Michael Hinn, John Crawford, Ralph Brown and Inga Botorp. In this feature version of the 1959 Swedish TV series 13 Demon Street, a 50,000-year-old woman is found frozen in an ice field, and a man's death is foretold in dreams. With the help of his seductive subject, Satanya (Karen Kadler), Satan (Lon Chaney Jr.) attempts to recruit new people to join him in hell. Satanya targets a scientist who discovers a woman frozen in ice, a sex-obsessed photographer and the man who drove her to commit suicide. Combining 3 episodes of the 1959 Swedish television series "13 Demon Street" (which was never broadcast in the USA), this horror film also follows Satan's plan to blow up the planet with a nuclear bomb. The devil himself seems responsible for these souls damnation.