Yours truly right here is a massive Lucio Fulci fan, so don't expect for a second that I'll be tearing this film to little shreds through harsh criticism, like the vast majority of other reviewers did. Of course, I also realize that "Sodoma's Ghost" isn't the legendary director's finest piece of work, but what I mostly saw was great potential and a handful of really excellent sequences!
The basic premise, for starters, is great. The restless ghosts of Nazi-scum, who died in a French brothel because their perverted & drunken orgy distracted them too much from an approaching air raid, terrorize six vacationing teenagers after they got lost taking a detour. At least it's not another boring Naziploitation flick, and it differs from the familiar 80s concept of dumb teens getting bumped off by your average type of indestructible killer in a mask! There are also a few terrifically suspenseful sequences, notably the ones involving the uncanny Aryan ghost-Nazi Willy. The bedroom scene where Willy seduces the sensual Anne is quite moody, and the Russian Roulette card-game he plays with Mark is genuinely nail-biting (albeit slightly overlong). Also, and in spite of this being a modest TV-production, there's a great bit of typical Fulci gore in the form of a gradually decaying corpse at the bottom of the stairs at the villa.
Granted, the screenplay is hopelessly ramshackle and incoherent. Most of the acting performances are abominable, all the sleazy footage - particularly the extended Nazi orgy at the beginning - is disgustingly unsexy, and too many sequences are pointless and boring. Quite frankly, I can accept all those flaws, but the one thing I found truly unforgivable is the lame ending. Yes, it's a TV-movie and I reckon they have certain rules, but this climax is extremely anti-Fulci. Can't believe I'm saying this, but "Sodoma's Ghost" is probably one of the rare films that could benefit from a remake. A truly unhinged R-rated remake, of course, with a more vile gore and a merciless ending.
The basic premise, for starters, is great. The restless ghosts of Nazi-scum, who died in a French brothel because their perverted & drunken orgy distracted them too much from an approaching air raid, terrorize six vacationing teenagers after they got lost taking a detour. At least it's not another boring Naziploitation flick, and it differs from the familiar 80s concept of dumb teens getting bumped off by your average type of indestructible killer in a mask! There are also a few terrifically suspenseful sequences, notably the ones involving the uncanny Aryan ghost-Nazi Willy. The bedroom scene where Willy seduces the sensual Anne is quite moody, and the Russian Roulette card-game he plays with Mark is genuinely nail-biting (albeit slightly overlong). Also, and in spite of this being a modest TV-production, there's a great bit of typical Fulci gore in the form of a gradually decaying corpse at the bottom of the stairs at the villa.
Granted, the screenplay is hopelessly ramshackle and incoherent. Most of the acting performances are abominable, all the sleazy footage - particularly the extended Nazi orgy at the beginning - is disgustingly unsexy, and too many sequences are pointless and boring. Quite frankly, I can accept all those flaws, but the one thing I found truly unforgivable is the lame ending. Yes, it's a TV-movie and I reckon they have certain rules, but this climax is extremely anti-Fulci. Can't believe I'm saying this, but "Sodoma's Ghost" is probably one of the rare films that could benefit from a remake. A truly unhinged R-rated remake, of course, with a more vile gore and a merciless ending.