By Dylon Jones and Josh Moss
Forty-seven years ago, on Sept. 26, 1972, Asylum of Satan premiered at the Vogue Theater in St. Matthews. The movie, shot by the late Louisville filmmaker William Girdler at a Glenview estate, riled up Courier-Journal critic William Mootz. In his review, Mootz wrote: “It was the kind of film that made your average homemade movies about kiddie birthday parties look like high art.” Oh, and also: “wretched movie,” “abortive attempt,” “trash,” “isn’t likely to replace bourbon, horses or” — remember, this was the ’70s — “beautiful women as one of Louisville’s principal tourist attractions.” (Another reminder that Asylum of Satan came out almost a half-century ago: “Blind Girl,” “Cripple” and “Mute” appear as character names during the credits.)
The guess-you-could-call-it-a-plot: A woman arrives at “Pleasant Hill Hospital” (spoiler: IT’S ACTUALLY THE ASYLUM OF SATAN) and her fiancé attempts to rescue her. Highpoints include sinister air vents, sinister pipe organs, sinister goatees, sinister French accents, sinister close-ups of candles, sinister cross-dressing. And the calmest reaction in the history of motion pictures to a severed head being delivered on a police detective’s desk.
You can watch Asylum of Satan on YouTube [4]. Or just read this nine-scene recap below.
This originally appeared in the September 2019 issue of Louisville Magazine under the headline “Funning With the Devil.” To subscribe to Louisville Magazine, click here. [5] To find us on newsstands, click here. [6]
Cover photo: Asylum of Satan // IMDB [7]
