Directed by: Domenico Paolella
Stars: Anne Heywood, Luc Merenda, Ornella Muti, Martine Brochard, Muriel Catalá
Language: English
Country: Italy | Imdb Info
Also known as: Le monache di Sant’Arcangelo, Innocents from Hell, The Nuns of Saint Archangel, Sisters of Satan
Description: Set in the Kingdom of Naples in 1577, The Nun and the Devil unfolds during a time when the Roman Inquisition dominated society with fear, suspicion, and brutal authority. The convent of Sant’Arcangelo becomes the center of a storm brewing beneath its silent stone walls—where political ambition, jealousy, and spiritual hypocrisy collide behind the appearance of religious devotion.
At the heart of the conflict is Sister Giulia di Mondragone, a powerful and influential figure within the convent who seeks to secure the soon-to-be-vacant position of abbess. Her ambitions draw her into a dangerous alliance with Don Carlos, a charming Spanish nobleman whose influence reaches far beyond the convent gates. Their relationship fuels rumors and resentment, especially from Sister Carmela, who has her own designs on the coveted title. As alliances shift, rival factions begin to form, creating an atmosphere of growing tension and distrust.
Complicating matters further is Sister Isabella, Giulia’s young niece, forced into monastic life against her will. Her presence stirs both sympathy and scandal, particularly as her attachment to a young man from her past threatens to surface. Personal desire, political maneuvering, and hidden rivalries intertwine, setting the stage for betrayal and manipulation within the cloistered community.
With the elderly abbess Sister Lavinia nearing her final days, the battle for succession escalates dramatically. Poisonings, secret schemes, anonymous accusations, and forbidden alliances plunge the convent into chaos. The situation soon spills beyond its walls, drawing the attention of the Inquisition. The arrival of Vicar Carafa brings the full weight of ecclesiastical authority as the convent faces a ruthless investigation—one marked by coercion, torture, and confessions extracted under terrifying pressure.
Visually rich and steeped in baroque atmosphere, The Nun and the Devil blends historical intrigue, religious power struggles, and psychological drama, standing as one of the bleakest and most compelling entries in the nunsploitation genre.
If you follow the “nunsploitation” genre at all, religiously you know these films generally fall into three categories.
First, are the films that are more or less serious and are meant to criticize the more or less real historical crimes of the Catholic Church.
These include both the earliest films like “The Nun of St. Monza”, but also some of the more violent and lurid 70’s films like “Flavia the Heretic” (a personal favorite of mine).
Then there are the straight-out lesbian-nun sex romps like Walerian Borozyx “Behind Convent Walls” or Joe D’Amato’s “Images from a Convent”.
Finally, there are the post-“Exorcist”, mostly Hispanic films that veer into the supernatural and full-tilt delerium like Franco’s “Love Letters of a Portugese Nun” or the Mexican neo-surrealist masterpiece “Alucarda“.
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