The Demon

DEMON, THE (1979)

1/2 (out of four)

A small town is terrorized by a monster who appears to be killing people so that he can suck their blood out. Poor Cameron Mitchell plays some sort of psychic but there isn't a single thing in this movie that makes sense. I've read a couple reviews on the film and even they don't make any sense out of this "horror" movie, which forgot the horror, the scares and the gore. Off topic but poor Mitchell would spend the rest of the decade appearing in this low budget films. Others of interest is FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND, MEMORIAL DAY MASSACRE and JACK-O.

The Demon is a South African Halloween clone about a motiveless serial killer who suffocates his victims with clear plastic bags. To be honest, it's a pretty shoddy effort in many ways but it's definitely not without merits either. In some respects one of this movie's chief problems is also inadvertently one of its strengths. The issue in question is how confusingly structured it all is. Characters are linked together only via the killer, and he is, to put it mildly, very vaguely defined himself. So the film has a very disjointed feel to it. While I can't see this as having been intentional, it does have a strange dream-like effect where we have this weird pale-faced amorphous figure appearing at various times with no fathomable reason. The Demon himself is a decent villain, as he has a good air of mystery about him, partly due to the fact that he is given absolutely no history or motivation. He is masked like Michael Myers in a white faceless mask although this mask does seem to appear and disappear between shots which must surely qualify as a pretty monumental goof. His killing method is bloodless but unusual enough for some credit. Although quite honestly even if there were buckets of the red stuff you would be doing well to even notice seeing as the lighting in this production is terrible. Too many scenes are played in almost total darkness, so you only have an impression of what's going on. Fortunately, we are able to make out the finale which is a lengthy scene involving the Demon chasing a topless girl around a house – it's clichéd but this sort of stuff never really gets old. The only name actor is Cameron Mitchell who plays a psychic colonel who is helping track down the killer. But he only ultimately has a bit part in the film and exits the picture in a very memorably sudden and unexpected way.

Despite it's shortcomings I did quite enjoy this one. It may have been poorly put together but it did have some tense scenes, and some interesting moments. It's worth a look if you enjoy trashy horror flicks.

Without getting into personalities, it's another film about a psychotic killer. These people are pretty much machines in these movies. The thing you need to do is pick vulnerable women, get to know them and their lives, and then thrown this guy in. He kills some, some he doesn't. There is also some superfluous nudity and titillation for the adolescents. But the film is just pretty dull. The copy I had was so full of dropouts and forced pauses that it just wears on. The real detractor is the darkness. Was the original print so dark. There are times when 20 seconds pass and we can't really see anything happening. There are things happening, but you get the point. This is so much like so many threat films that it offers little new to the viewer.

(**1/2 out of *****) Very strange and disjointed film (though, I'll admit, I think I dozed once or twice during crucial scenes) about a sub-human serial killer who uses razor-tipped gloves and plastic bags to kill people. The soundtrack is very loud and erratic and people are always screaming, which makes sleeping straight through this often-dull movie pretty difficult. It ends rather abruptly and offers little to no explanation for the killer's identity or motivation. We never even get to see what his face looks like under his mask. But, even with these setbacks, the direction shows some flair and there are a few frightening demon-attack scenes, especially at the end. Cameron Mitchell plays a psychic detective on the case of a missing girl abducted by the demon, and Jennifer Holmes plays the pretty blonde schoolteacher who gets chased through her house in just her panties in the suspenseful climax (I was wide awake for that part.)

HIGHLIGHT: The pretty blonde schoolteacher gets chased through her house in just her panties (what else?)

Neither have I until I saw The Demon. The Demon is an interesting picture and a poor picture. It has a script which just does not not make much sense. We have a story about some guy that goes around brutally killing young women and others and as a much smaller story - a psychic that is red-hot on his tail. Redhot? Cameron Mitchell plays the psychic and his presence is sorely needed for the film's credibility, yet he is barely in the picture. And yet, even though his character and dialog were quite ridiculous - especially what happens to him and the one-liner that follows - I thought he was the best thing in the picture. The demon is never explained at all in terms of why he is killing, why he is a "demon" if indeed he/it really is, or what any motivation is. He just likes killing with brutal coldness. Fortunately, the movie, filmed in England and with largely a British cast, is competently conceived in several ways. The acting rises above poor and is decent. The director - Percival Rubens who also wrote this nonsense - has some talent in creating some suspenseful scenes and a sense of tension. The scenes with the girl being chased in the house were fairly effective, despite the needless nudity. After awhile we got the point. But the script is just so awful and threadbare as to limit the film to anything other than garbled, ludicrous nonsense. At the very least, the film is watchable and will/should have you arching your eye brows trying to figure out what in the heck is going on. And listen closely to Mitchell's dialog - he and it are a real hoot!