Despite rehashing an uncomfortable amount of the first movie, Demons 2 still manages to the up the ante in a lot of places and is, in my opinion, a pretty good sequel, especially when it comes to horror.
Instead of a stylish, enclosed movie theatre, this movie's demonic fodder find themselves trapped in their apartment block. Demons 2 does a good job at utilising it's setting, not only does the building have it's own gym, but there's also scenes taking place in the parking garage, on the roof and even in the elevator shaft. Not to mention the individual apartments you get a glimpse of, most of which are decorated very well for the film.
The practical effects have improved in places, but other parts feel very much the same. There's still plenty of gore and violence and this time not even children or pets are safe. Manages to feel slightly grander in scale compared to the original, but it lacks the originality and consistent style. A favourite scene this time around was the child demon, who was genuinely creepy until a second-rate Star Wars creature burst out of his chest.
A few of Demons 1's cast returns here, but playing different roles. The pimp's back, this time as a gym coach that ends up feeling more like a drill sergeant as the film goes on. Ripper, the coke-sniffing punk from the original also returns, this time as the building's security officer. There's more characters this time round for sure, including a kid who's home alone; a pregnant couple about to have their child and yet another quadruplet of punks.
The movie still looks really good and the cinematography makes for some really great shots, most notably Sally running at the camera and the demons running down the stairwell. The lighting is a breath of fresh air because you can actually see everything your supposed to. There's two scenes I noticed where the camera was really janky and staggered which made me feel like I'd just stood up too fast, but fortunately they don't last long.
I said in my review of Demons that I liked how the movie doesn't stray from it's simplicity and I feel the same way about this. It does enough things differently from the first movie to feel exciting again, but it doesn't really overtake it in terms of enjoyability for me. Although, one thing I definitely enjoyed a lot more this time round was the soundtrack, which features acts like the Smiths and the Cult to name a couple. A lot of fun and would make a really good double bill next to it's predecessor, there's also a really cool reference to A Nightmare on Elm Street later on in the film which was a nice touch.
Instead of a stylish, enclosed movie theatre, this movie's demonic fodder find themselves trapped in their apartment block. Demons 2 does a good job at utilising it's setting, not only does the building have it's own gym, but there's also scenes taking place in the parking garage, on the roof and even in the elevator shaft. Not to mention the individual apartments you get a glimpse of, most of which are decorated very well for the film.
The practical effects have improved in places, but other parts feel very much the same. There's still plenty of gore and violence and this time not even children or pets are safe. Manages to feel slightly grander in scale compared to the original, but it lacks the originality and consistent style. A favourite scene this time around was the child demon, who was genuinely creepy until a second-rate Star Wars creature burst out of his chest.
A few of Demons 1's cast returns here, but playing different roles. The pimp's back, this time as a gym coach that ends up feeling more like a drill sergeant as the film goes on. Ripper, the coke-sniffing punk from the original also returns, this time as the building's security officer. There's more characters this time round for sure, including a kid who's home alone; a pregnant couple about to have their child and yet another quadruplet of punks.
The movie still looks really good and the cinematography makes for some really great shots, most notably Sally running at the camera and the demons running down the stairwell. The lighting is a breath of fresh air because you can actually see everything your supposed to. There's two scenes I noticed where the camera was really janky and staggered which made me feel like I'd just stood up too fast, but fortunately they don't last long.
I said in my review of Demons that I liked how the movie doesn't stray from it's simplicity and I feel the same way about this. It does enough things differently from the first movie to feel exciting again, but it doesn't really overtake it in terms of enjoyability for me. Although, one thing I definitely enjoyed a lot more this time round was the soundtrack, which features acts like the Smiths and the Cult to name a couple. A lot of fun and would make a really good double bill next to it's predecessor, there's also a really cool reference to A Nightmare on Elm Street later on in the film which was a nice touch.