The Unnaturals

The Unnaturals (Contronatura, Schreie in der Nacht) is a gothic horror film directed and written by Antonio Margheriti. It is loosely based on Dino Buzzati's short story "Eppure bussano alla porta" from the collection The Seven Messengers. The film is an Italian and West German co-production between Super International Pictures S.l.P, Edo Cinematografica, and CCC Filmkunst GmbH.

Plot
On a stormy night, set in the early 20th century, a group of members of London's high society are traveling home from a social event and their car gets stuck in the mud in the countryside. They seek refuge in a remote country house. There they are received by the mysterious Uriat and his taciturn mother. Uriat explains to the guests that his mother has the powers of a medium and can communicate with the dead. Some of the guests are amused and are persuaded to take part in a seance. But when the old woman begins to tell those present details from their own past, the mood quickly changes. It turns out that everyone present carries a dark secret with them and the group is entangled in a web of mutual deception, affairs (including lesbian affairs) and acts of violence. The hosts are also part of this network, as it finally turns out. As former servants, they were once charged with a double homicide for which those present are responsible, and seek their own justice.

Cast

 * Joachim Fuchsberger : Ben Taylor
 * Marianne Koch : Vivian Taylor
 * Helga Anders : Elizabeth
 * Claudio Camaso : Alfred
 * Luciano Pigozzi : Uriat
 * Dominique Boschero : Margareth

Production
Margheriti stated the shooting title of the film was Trance. The Unnaturals was aimed at a German market and stars Joachim Fuchsberger and Marianne Koch who were very popular actors with German audiences. Margheriti added other Italian actors of his choice including Luciano Pigozzi, a close friend of his.

The film was shot at Tirrenia Studios which was owned by Carlo Ponti. Margheriti used sets left over from several other films ranging from costume dramas to Westerns. For the seance scene in the film, cinematographer Riccardo Pallottini was hung upside down from the ceiling with the camera in his hand and slowly let him descend from the ceiling. He would then bend over backwards to raise the camera to the actors' faces.

Release
The Unnaturals was shown in West Germany on 30 May 1969. It was later released in Italy on 12September 1969, where it grossed 287 million Italian lire.

Reception
In his book Italian Horror Film Directors, Louis Paul dismissed the film as an " uneven but still interesting tale of revenge".