Night of the Demons 2010 Remake DVD Movie Review
Night of the Demons 2010 Remake DVD Movie Review
Night of the Demons remake, directed by Adam Gierasch and starring Shannon Elizabeth, Monica Keena, Edward Furlong, Diora Baird, John F. Beach and Bobbi Sue Luther.
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October 31 is the night the demons come out from their hiding place in the basement at the old Broussard Mansion to wreak their evil essence upon unsuspecting partiers. The supernatural specters have been trying to become flesh and blood for quite some time — ever since the invention of the first movie camera, as luck would have it. As Night of the Demons opens, we see distressed "found footage" of the suicide of a flapper who'd rather die than be possessed by Satan's minions. The cursed structure is subsequently abandoned, and the demons lay in wait for fresh blood.
Flash-forward to hip, happening, in-color now and meet a slew of new potential victims: Angela (Shannon Elizabeth) is throwing — yes — a hell of a party, and everyone is invited. Actually, make that everyone who is young, gorgeous, drunk, and well-endowed. Said party guests include Maddie (Monica Keena), Suzanne (Bobbi Sue Luther), Lily (Diora Baird), Diana (Tiffany Shepis), Jason (John F. Beach) and Dex (Michael Copon). Here's a major non-spoiler: Not all of them will survive the night.
Most horror fans remember the oh-so-80s, super sexed-up original directed by the fiendishly talented Kevin Tenney (though I must say… Witchboard is still my favorite of his). In case you don't recall, the set up is basically the same and so, in fact, are some of the best one-liners (with the exception, sadly, of "Eat a bowl of f*ck — I'm here to party!" — however, that tongue-tingler is explored in the Extra Features on the DVD). Basically, it's an hour and a half of good looking, randy and misbehaving young'uns getting systematically killed off by terrifying, tenacious and canny creatures until something gives.
Night of the Demons has its limitations, but it's a laudable companion piece to the original and in some ways better (thanks to advances in lower-budget filmmaking). Tenney is on as producer, while director Adam Gierasch teams up once again with his wife Jace Anderson in the writing department. The script is bawdy, raw, naughty and sometimes nice (but not when f-bomb dropping Edward Furlong is on-camera… you'd think he wandered onto the set from a Rob Zombie movie!). The acting is about what you'd expect, and then raised a notch (Shepis and Luther are especially fun). Angela is properly villainous (and what a sexy lil devil! Even with horns), while Keena plays heroine Maddie with just enough salt to keep her interesting and worth rooting for.
There are definitely times when Night of the Demons seems like the masterbatory fantasy of a 14-year-old boy smeared on film, but in this case that's perfectly appropriate. Male horror fans will admire all the heaving cleavage, full-on demonic sexual acrobatics and buckets 'o blood, while the ladies are likely to love the strong female characters, inspired costuming (it's Halloween!), and superb punk soundtrack (and a kudo must go to scorer Joseph Bishara, for creating a tune out of cats' meows!).
While Night of the Demons 2010 is a lot more polished (pretty cinematography, slick editing), it still retains the heart (and busts) of the original. It's just merriment and mayhem, not to be taken too seriously and enjoyed for what it is. It's a great crowd movie (yes, it's one of those… I doubt many film students will be dissecting this), but the Blu-ray DVD looks awfully nice. I enjoyed the yak track with Gierasch, Anderson, Keena, Beach, and Luther (where was Tenney?). I took some notes as they chatted, but then realized I'd just spoil the jokes and stories, so… if you don't mind a rather clownish and informal commentary, give it a listen (film students need not bother).
There is also a Behind the Bloodshed featurette, which gets pretty much everyone's take on their roles and jobs while on set in Louisiana (this a very sharp, clever bunch… and irreverent as all hell). They talk a lot about the 1988 version (which starred the lovely Linnea Quiggley… who, incidentally, has a bend-and-you'll-miss-it cameo in this one), as well as special effects, music (the soundtrack *is* exceptional), and such. Standard stuff, but briskly cut. There is also a strange Comic Con 2010 Intro with Gierasch and Anderson, talking briefly and separately about the movie while on the crowded Con floor. I don't see why it was included, but it's mildly amusing to see Gierasch call Night of the Demons a "horny punk rock movie" while standing in front of Secret of Moonacre poster.
That's about it… but: Do stay throughout the closing credits!
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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson
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