Satanik: Limited Slipcover Edition – Terror Vision (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy/Spain, 1968
Director: Piero Vivarelli
Writers: Eduardo Manzanos, Piero Vivarelli
Cast: Magda Konopka, Julio Peña, Umberto Raho, Luigi Montini, Armando Calvo, Mimma Ippoliti, Isarco Ravaioli, Nerio Bernardi, Pino Polidori, Antonio Pica, Piero Vivarelli, Gaetano Quartararo, Mirella Pamphili, Gustavo Simeone, Giancarlo Prete

Release Date: May 21st, 2024
Approximate Running Time: 84 Minutes 46 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $27.99

"Satanik is a Spanish-Italian co-production that tells a story about Dr. Marnie Bannister, a scientist horrifically scarred from her past. In a lab in Madrid where she works, a colleague has successfully created a substance able to regenerate cells. However, the animals he experiments on become aggressive and dangerous. Dr. Bannister wants to be the guinea pig in the trial, but they refuse her. Therefore, she kills for the substance, takes it, and transforms into a beautiful young woman… and also a vicious killer who will go to great lengths to keep her secret." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "a new 2k transfer of the original 35mm camera negative."

Here is additional information about this transfer, "Satanik was scanned and painstakingly restored in 2K from a mixture of vaulted elements. The material that was used was badly damage (fitting, right?) and took months to restore and to get right. We used prints in order to match the color timing correctly since Satanik has been misrepresented through a couple releases in other countries and bootlegs here in the US. You’ll notice that her hair isn’t purple and the colors are not very heavy like they have been in other releases." 

Satanik comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45.4 GB

Feature: 24.4 GB

The information provided about this transfer gives you a clear idea of what to expect. For the most part, the source looks excellent; colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic look.

Audio: 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian), 3.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. Though limited range-wise, the Italian language track is in better shape than the English language track. It sounds clean, clear, and balanced. The English language track has some background noise and sibilance issues; this track is also limited range-wise. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian-language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 37 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an episode of Commander USA’s Groovie Movies that featured Satanik (92 minutes 1 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an option to listen to Satanik’s complete original soundtrack (51 minutes 41 seconds - 20 tracks), a video essay by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas titled Layer by Layer (11 minutes 45 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by Eugenio Ercolani titled Black Fumetti (11 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Patrizia Rosso, wife of Piero Vivarelli titled Piero’s Eros (36 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with director Piero Vivarelli titled Viva Vivarelli (29 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth, and Nathaniel Thompson, and a slipcover (limited to the first pressing). 

Summary:

Directed by Piero Vivarelli, whose other notable films are Avenger X, The Snake God, and The Black Decameron.

An old scientist yearning for beauty and youth kills her colleague; his serum will give her the things she desires.

Author Max Bunker and artist Magnus (Roberto Raviola) created the Fumetti Satanik. Though there have been several film adaptations of Fumetti, Danger: Diabolik is the defining example of a Fumetti film. Other notable Fumetti films are Baba Yaga, Kriminal, The Mark of Kriminal, and Avenger X.

Though film adaptations are known for taking liberties with the original source material, the only element that this adaptation of Satanik uses is the protagonist's transformation from an ugly woman to an active woman. Also, in the original Fumetti, the protagonist is not an old woman; she is a young, disfigured woman.

Though the initial setup does a great job setting things up, There are too many lulls along the way that bring any momentum to a halt. When one thinks of fumetti films, a criminal mastermind springs to mind. Satanik’s protagonist is motivated solely by the need to preserve her beauty after consuming the serum. That said, the premise has many similarities to Robert Louis Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; the serum in Satanik has a negative side effect.

It is easy to see why Magda Konopka was cast in the role of the protagonist. And though her striking beauty accentuates her character's transformation from an ugly duckling to a swan, unfortunately, the same cannot be said of moments where her character looks like an old woman. Her character's makeup in these moments is poorly done. That said, the performances are best described as serviceable.

From a production standpoint, despite having the resources needed to pull off this film, the result is a film that never fully realizes its potential. And nowhere is Satanik let down more than Piero Vivarelli, whose direction lacks the style that one has come to expect from Fumetti films. There are an abundance of nightclub scenes, many of which feature flamenco dancers. These nightclub scenes have a Jess Franco vibe, especially the scene where the protagonist does a strip tease wearing a mask, all dressed in black. Ultimately, Satanik is a predictable film that lacks the inventiveness and playfulness that Danger: Diabolik had in spades.

Satanik gets an excellent release from Terror Vision that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras, recommended.

 Written by Michael Den Boer