There was a time when the occult was in the mind’s eye of the public in a real way. The golden era of Satanism and Anton LaVey brought the occult and occult beliefs into the public sphere as lifestyles, and as a result, many documentaries were made in a effort to explain them to people. One such documentary is the 1969 Italian film Angeli bianchi…Angeli Neri, directed by Luigi Scattini and later renamed Witchcraft ’70 for the American release (they probably didn’t want “black” and “angel” in the same sentence). It purported to be a hidden camera view of occult rituals, with the byline “The Shocking Truth About WITCHCRAFT as it Exists Today in Our Cities and Suburbs!” enticing the masses into theaters. Scattini travels around the world giving us a glimpse into the rites and rituals performed in England, Brazil and the US, celebrating Satan, voodoo, black magic, exorcism and pagan rituals. He was inspired to begin the documentary by the occult-related grave desecrations in Highgate Cemetery in London in the late 1960s. He then continued to explore the ideas of magick and parapsychology in countries around the world, culminating in his 6th film, Angeli bianchi…Angeli Neri aka Witchcraft ’70 (the poster for which was the inspiration behind our Death Trip print). Despite it’s scandalous and voyeuristic marketing approach, it is a very interesting and intimate look at occult practices at the time. Check out the full documentary after the jump!
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