‘From the burning depths of Hell comes a Devil’s tale!’
Satan’s Storybook is a 1989 American horror anthology film about a serial killer and an alcoholic clown who hangs himself.
Directed by Michael Rider (co-writer of Horrorama) from a screenplay co-written with producer Steven K. Arthur.
The movie stars Ginger Lynn Allen (Slashlorette Party; 31; The Devil’s Rejects; Evil Breed: The Legend of Samhain; Hollywood Boulevard II; Buried Alive 1989), Gary Brandner (author of The Howling novel), Steven K. Arthur, Hal Shafer, Leslie Deutsch and Ray Robert.
Reviews:
“So, you have two solid stories (maybe “story” is a strong word) padded out with fake news footage and other scenes and clown dialogue to hit an appropriate runtime. The movie, on the whole, is a bit of a slog, but removing the clown story and the padding, you still have 40 odd minutes of SOV (that’s “shot-on-video”) gold that might possibly be the artistic pinnacle of the genre” Cinema Gonzo
“The first story is about an uninteresting killer, the second about a clown. The wrap-around not only doesn’t tie things together, it makes no sense. There’s a ninja, for some reason. There’s some bad 80’s hair and makeup, some very cheap masks and a lot of long stretches where nothing happens.” Down Among the “Z” Movies
“The dialogue is ridiculous, stilted, and nonsensical, in other words a ton of fun. The clown segment is so awkward and strange, it earns some solid points just on its own. The banter between the clowns is so odd and unnatural, I love every second of it. As for craziness, I don’t think Satan’s Storybook could be much more insane if it wanted to be, as it is wall to wall wackiness.” Marc Fusion
“While shot on video, the wraparound sequences of Satan’s Storybook look better than many of its ‘80s SOV contemporaries. The use of red lights in the opening works rather well, and the throne room scenes are more inventive than many horror flicks that were shot in somebody’s backyard. That said, once it switches over to the stories, it looks and feels more like your typical SOV crap.” The Video Vacuum
Cast and characters:
Ginger Lynn Allen … Christeeth
Gary Brandner … Charlie
Steven K. Arthur … Zeek Heller
Hal Shafer … Fat Man
Leslie Deutsch … Queen Elonite
Ray Robert … Satan
Jane August … Beverly, the Mom
Ron McCoy … Richard, the Dad
Leesa Roland … Jezebell Jones
Yves De St. Paul … Grandmother
Irwin Waterman … Mac
Francis Paul … Klem
Michael Daevid … The Jester
Jason Logan … The Priest
Dean Rossi … Officer Patterson
Michael Rider … Mickey La Mort
Technical details:
1 hour 25 minutes
At the time of writing, Satan’s Storybook is available to watch on YouTube
