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Title: Book gives the devil his due --
Review: "The Satanic Screen" is an exhaustively researched, yet non-didactic examination on depictions of the Hoofed One in Cinema. Schreck is a purported Satanist, so he finds a great deal of material on his icon lacking. According to the author, Satan/Lucifer is a bringer of light and knowledge, so therefore he finds much of the Satanic cinema lacking. He applauds the depiction of devil worshipers in "Rosemary's Baby" (who condone rape, mayhem and murder) but decries the reactionary tone of "The Exorcist." The book remains fascinating. I didn't realize that Terrence Fisher's creaky "The Devil Rides Out" (1966) to be so authoritative or that Lugosi and Karloff's "The Black Cat (1934) was based on an incident involving The Great Fraud Aleister Crowley. The book flows very well, beautifully written, and although many can't share the author's worldview it makes for fascinating reading.
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