Back in 1960, Italian Horror Filmmaking icon Mario Bava made his directorial debut with Black Sunday. Known in Italy as La maschera del demonio, and a direct English translation into ‘The mask of the demon,’ it would be a source of inspiration to his only child, Lamberto Bava.
Born in 1940, Lamberto had film in his DNA and took an immediate liking to the cinema. By his twenties, he was already serving as an assistant director to his father on films like 1965’s Planet of the Vampires and 1970’s Hatchet for the Honeymoon. Continuing along, Lamberto continued to work with his father on various films through 1977’s Shock before assisting on other films like 1979’s Cannibal Holocaust for Ruggero Deodato.
A rich source of experience and education, Lamberto also worked with Dario Argento on several projects before, at last, in 1980, he would have his own film 1980 called Macabre. A must-see debut with a very eerie atmosphere, Lamberto would continue to grow with other films like 1983’s A Blade in the Dark before making perhaps his biggest impression with 1985’s Demons and 1986’s Demons 2. With that in mind, it is easy to see that Lamberto was drawing on the imagination of his father’s mask of death from Black Sunday, with sharp spikes that are hammered into the face of an alleged witch… who soon vows revenge.
Becoming a cursed mask, Lamberto employed a similar concept in his Demons films, where anyone who puts it on, if scratched by its interior, becomes possessed by demonic forces. Stepping away from this saga to work on other projects, such as 1987’s Delirium, in 1989, Lamberto returned to the source material with his feature The Mask of Satan.
Originally a part of a Spanish Horror series that premiered in 1989 called Sabbath, it featured six different movies by six different directors. A concept similar to Mick Garris’ Masters of Horror that popped up decades later, Lamberto’s The Mask of Satan was episode four in the Sabbath series and loosely followed his father’s original Black Sunday plot but in a modern setting. Adapted well, in Lamberto’s film, you have a group of young skiers who fall into a snowy tomb only to discover a frozen corpse with a metal mask adhered to their face. Meddling with evil, soon the group succumbed to demonic possession as, one by one, their souls were treated to be devoured.
Moving at a steady pace, Lamberto’s The Mask of Satan features a ton of unsettling moments that are on par with his prior Demon films. Including a cast of Giovanni Guidelli (an Italian actor and director with a long list of credits to his name), Debora Caprioglio (known for films such as 1991’s Paprika and 1996’s Hotel Rome), Mary Sellers (known for films such as 1987’s StageFright and 1988’s Ghosthouse), there is also Michele Soavi (the director of 1987’s StageFright, but also the star of films like 1985’s Demons), who makes for a solid grouping of recognizable faces. Setting the stage for a doom-filled vibe, much like Lamberto’s Demons and Demons 2, you feel like there is little hope that anyone survives.
Somewhat of a long-lost film, interestingly enough, Lamberto’s The Mask of Satan has never been released in the North American region. Surprisingly, considering the advent of DVD and Blu-ray formats in the last three decades, now, in 2025, Severin Films is offering The Mask of Satan as a remastered Blu-ray release. Arriving on February 25th, the new Blu-ray presents The Mask of Satan in a 2K transfer from the original camera negative. Presenting the film in either Italian or Spanish with the option of English subtitles, while it is not a 4K upgrade, the 2K treatment is still rather stunning. Clean, crisp, and deep with contrast, viewing The Mask of Satan on this Blu-ray is honestly of theater quality.
Giving you the film with a stunning new cover, there is also an interview with Lamberto Bava, Mary Sellers, and Debora Caprioglio. Also, for those unaware, some consider The Mask of Satan the fifth film in the Demons series – which includes Lamberto’s Demons 3: The Orge from 1989, The Church (directed by Michele Soavi and also released in 1989), and The Sect (also directed by Michele Soavi and put out in 1991) – giving it the alternate title Demons 5: The Devil’s Veil.
However you look at it, the bottom line is that if you happened to miss 1989’s The Mask of Satan, it is a treat for any fan of Lamberto Bava. That is why Cryptic Rock gives this new 2K Blu-ray release from Severin Films 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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