Demons

For an 80s gore-fest, you couldn't want anything more. This is another one of those "kitchen sink" movies that's in the same vein as "From Dusk Till Dawn". Put the same scenario in a movie house, back in the 80s, substitute the vampires with demons, and you pretty much get the picture. You can definitely see the influence here. With that said, if you liked "From Dusk.." and don't mind dubbing, then you should be right at home with "Demons".

There isn't a whole lot there in the way of plot. Some random folks are invited to a screening in an old movie theater. As the movie that they are viewing gets more and more violent, real life starts to imitate art and pretty soon, they discover that they are locked inside and what we're watching becomes a survival flick. That's pretty much it.

As far as gore, there is PLENTY of the red stuff with enough eye-gouging, throat ripping, and blood spurting to satisfy even the most ravenous gore hound. To say much more would give away a lot of the surprises, but it's well worth a rental. Check it out.

I like to think about older movies I'd love to see on the big screen. I'm lucky enough to live near a place that tends to do at least one classic movie screening a week. It's something they started to do more when COVID-19 was affecting new movie releases, and I think they've just kept with it because people understandably flock to them. I've been fortunate enough to see a bunch of Kubrick and Miyazaki movies on the big screen, as well as other films like The Wild Bunch and The Godfather. I'm still holding out hope they'll screen some Sergio Leone or Akira Kurosawa one day, because both seem like no-brainers.

Anyway... I tend to think about how great epic, lengthy, big-budget movies would look on the big screen, but it's less common for me to watch a small-ish movie and feel a little sad I couldn't see it at the movies. But Demons is the rare movie that is fairly simple/low budget that I imagine it would be even better if watched in a cinema. This is because the premise is essentially people inside a cinema needing to survive hordes of demons that attack while they're watching a new horror movie. Cool visuals, ludicrous gore, and cheesy performances ensue, with all proving to make this a fairly fun movie.

It would be more impactful if watched inside a cinema, especially with the early scenes where people don't know whether the screams they're hearing are real or part of the movie they're watching. Divorced from the ideal viewing experience, this is still a very entertaining and no-nonsense Italian horror movie that's frequently silly but also never boring. It's probably not for everyone, but it was a good movie to watch on a Friday night that never proved too challenging or mentally taxing.

If you love gory horror flicks I am not sure why you haven't seen this classic. From Lamberto Bava comes one of his most memorable films and a total must-see for the gore hounds.

Cheryl (Natasha Hovey) is given a ticket to the new theatre called Metropol by some creepy dude (Michele Soavi) with a mask that's a mix between PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and THE TERMINATOR. So, Cheryl takes her friend Kathy (Paolo Cozzo) so they can skip class and watch a movie. Within the theatre there is a mask that through a pimp named Tony (Bobby Rhodes in a role that is downright hilarious) and his two prostitutes Carmen (Fabiola Toldedo)and Rosemary (Geretta Geretta) we see Rosemary get cut by the mask. Uh-oh!!! Soon violent, starving demons take over the theatre by storm.

Amazingly gory and not for the weak stomached. The acting is so bad it is memorable, which is much like the film. Another funny note is one of the people in attendance at the theatre is a blind man named Werner (Alex Serra).

The demons were created by Sergio Stivaletti. The music is awesome with a score by Claudio Simonetti and soundtrack that includes Billy Idol, Motley Crue and Accept to name a few. Written by Dario Argento (who also produced), Bava, Dardano Sacchetti and Franco Ferrini. Must say it is sort of a paper-thin story, but it sets everything up nicely for the great and bloody effects done by Stivaletti.

My status as a film buff seems to exist in two separate states. On the one hand, I will wax lyrical about the subtle genius of Godard, Fassbinder, and Bertolucci. I'll watch pretentious European art-house cinema of the most stereotypical variety without even a hint of irony. I will regard Ingmar Bergman as a literal god-figure to worshiped in all of his glory. On the other hand, I will spend forty-plus dollars on a blu-ray of Dario Argento's Phenomena and gush over the sheer lunacy of B-movies. Demons (or Demoni, in its native Italy) is everything a geek like me could want. Gratuitous gore and violence, questionable dubbing, explosions, and a kick-ass eighties soundtrack. Co-written and produced by Italian horror maestro Dario Argento (Suspiria, Deep Red), Demons came from Argento's desire to create a purely commercial film after tasting such success with 1978's Dawn of the Dead. Thus, Demons is a film with little in the way of a coherent plot or deep characterization. And yet somehow it manages to be wholly appealing at the same time. The plot, which follows the spread of a zombie-like form of demonic possession spreading through a Berlin movie theater, exists solely to facilitate the numerous action and scare sequences. The score by Argento regular Claudio Simonetti (of Goblin fame) manages to be exciting, creepy, and perfectly suited to adrenaline-soaked visuals. This film is entertainment, pure and simple. To anyone looking to get into B-movies or Italian horror (or better yet, both) I highly recommend this film as it's a very accessible entry point into both genres. Just sit back, open a can of Coke, shut your brain off, and prepare to have the time of your life.

Michele Soavi as the man with the half human half metal face!!! Fun times. The plot is filled with holes, like why do some people take so long to turn when others it takes seconds, and what was up with thee usherette being so menacing..she did squat. Over 30 or so people get trapped inside a really creepy theater after they are all given free movie tickets. When a very annoying prostitute puts on a demonic mask on display in the lobby, within fifteen minutes later she has pus bubbles exploding from her face, and is attacking her other prostitute friends. One by one people are transformed, as gory as any italian horror movie can get. The direction is actually really good and Lamberto Bava goes all out on colors and angles (which horror italian director doesn't)and the soundtrack goes well with the eighties look. I also really had fun times with the 4 punks snorting coke outside the theatre, but they really added nothing to the plot and at times just seem to be there to fill time, without a doubt though the gore is the highlight of this flick. Throats getting ripped open, scalps getting teared off, puke and pus splatter continuously,a huge tongue sliding out one of the demons mouth, demons getting hacked with a sword, the most gruesome scene is definitely the blind man getting his empty eye sockets gouged out..HARSH. The characters are so hard to tell apart and we don't evn see some of the patrons faces. I don't remember any characters really except the coolest "pimp" Tony, the sexy usherette, the four punks and the "GEORGE" character (mainly only cause i recognized him from OPERA), but this movie obviously isn't meant for character development.

So all in all I give Demons **1/2 out of **** It's really cool, but only worth watching for cool visuals, soundtrack, and gore.