Night of the Demons

A saucy bloody beginning to one, if not, the best horror film festival in north America, this years screamfest opens by bringing back some classic horror themes and putting them at the forefront. A contemporary take on the 1988 classic, this latest version albeit a remake, is a breath of fresh air from the all so common vampire and zombie pictures we've been forced to endure as of lately. There is nothing new in the concept but the execution is affirmatively clever in many ways. The usual party kids join forces at an old rented house where demons tend to dwell, trick and cause chaos to its rather clueless guests. Once connected to the reality of why they are really there, all hell breaks loose...no pun intended. Actress Shannon Elizabeth struts her stuff for all she's worth for a performance that should satisfy her followers and gain her a new crop of younger teenage male fans. A fresh addition to the cast is John F. Beach who's effectively charming performance forces the viewer to keep a watchful eye on him until his time is up. Maddie, played practically and intelligently by Monica Keenna's from Freddy vs Jason's saves the day with many unexpected turns towards the climactic finale. All in all, this is a pop corn movie for generation "X" ers who'd like to reminisce of horror from the good old days.

Angela to raise some funds organizes a huge party. Attending the party are 3 female friends of hers, a guy who's interested in one of the girls and his buddy, and a drug dealer who used to be the ex of one of the girls. The cops eventually arrive and shut down the party. When our group of kids try to leave, they find the gate locked. In looking for alternate exit they go the basement, where they find a bunch of skeletons. One bites Angela's finger. Now Angela turns into a demon who's after her friends. During spin the bottle she makes out with one of the guys who becomes a demon as well. He ends up having sex with one of the girls and that turns her into a demon. Angela literally chews of the face of another girl who now is a demon. That leaves 2 guys and a girl who have to deal with the 4 demons. One of the guys is played by an unrecognizable Edward Furlong. The girl is played by Monica Keena, who still doesn't show any skin but at least makes out with another girl. Keena should seriously consider suing her cosmetic butcher, who has ruined her face. The kids find shelter in a room that has protective writing scribbled on the walls. The house has some dark demonic history. 7 demons are needed but they only have before sunrise to achieve their goals. It's only a couple of hours more but Angela and her minions have some tricks up their sleeve as well. Night of the Demons is just what you expect and want from a remake of the classic 80s movie. It's sexy, funny, entertaining, gory, fun. Although more nudity wouldn't have hurt. It's good to see the lovely Shannon Elizabeth. The other girls are also attractive and very voluptuous. I'm glad to say that Gierasch has improved his direction over the years and in this movie he does an excellent job. His writing together with Jace Anderson is great, the dialog is natural for kids and the script overall is smart and fun. The special effects though aren't very convincing. Perhaps it's the lighting but there's no doubt that a mask is a mask. Still, a worthy and honorable remake.

Halloween night, 85 years after a terrible tragedy, a party is hosted in the allegedly haunted Broussard Mansion. The party is busted, but a few friends remain, discovering bodies in the basement. Things only get worse from there. The film really knows how to catch your attention, as it starts with an intense, creepy, sepia flashback with silent movie titles. The ADHD style would be annoying had it continued throughout the film, but made a fine way to suck in the audience. There is a rocking soundtrack featuring Type O Negative, and sexy women galore (both the lead actresses and a notable strip club scene). There's a demonic sex scene that is brief but memorable. Let's just say demons like it rough. Writer-director Adam Gierasch made sure not to step on the original, working more in the spirit than doing a direct remake. As he explained to me, the original wasn't as good as people recall, and if they prefer it, they are still able to rent it. (And actually, doing a remake probably brought more attention to the original than it's seen in years.) The film is great by remake standards, probably outdoing the first, in my opinion, while still making references to the original (like the lipstick scene). The film is packed with genre and cult favorites: Tiffany Shepis, Edward Furlong ("Brainscan"), Linnea Quigley (who appeared in the original) and more. Modern horror fans should eat this right up. I felt that this movie was filmed very much in the style of Adam Green's "Hatchet", which I mean in the nicest way possible. Coincidentally, both take place in New Orleans. Green is considered by some to be the current big name in horror, but I think Gierasch could be giving hi ma run for his money... I cannot wait to see his next project.

Paying respect to a film by trying to remake it DOES NOT always pan out. This is the case with the 2009 version of Night of the Demons. Being a smaller than normal budget film and having to mediocre stars in Furlong and Elizabeth as leads did nothing for this movie. In my honest opinion NOT a very good film choice for Shannon Elizabeth. The first film in 1988 scores an almost 7 out of 10 with originality and this barely hits 5. The plot is generic as college age kids party at an abandoned house that has a haunting secret. Typical scenario as police raid and bust party and half dozen young adults get locked inside. They roam the house, find strange markings, skeletons in a secret room and demonic hell results. The dialogue is bland, full of "f***s" and "s***s", the acting is tragically phoned in and there is no scare tact at all. It is a simple supposed to be gore fest that fails at most levels. I would NOT recommend but if in need for a filler for the afternoon you can watch this flat remake of a 1988 cult classic. 4/10

Whooo..... Young women dressed in slutty "kitten" garb...* (nothing smaller than a DD cup) pushed up to their chins; a Fairuza Bulk wannabe playing Vampira hostess... Whatever I HAVE seen the original.. and this "remake" does not rock it. The acting is stool (as in feces), the demon-action so-so, the "graphic" sex scene only okay (I've seen better stuff in amateur *).. before they turn Demon. Not much worth writing about except very poor production and acting. I've seen lower budget B films much better than this waste. And yes...I did end up fast-fwd a LOT