The Demon's Rook

In the vast realm of under-the-radar indie horror, artist/filmmaker/toymaker James Sizemore's The Demon's Rook is that special genre gem that would surely please the rabid niche audience it was made for-if only they knew it existed.

A bloody love letter to Italian horror's heyday, Satanic sleaze, and rubber monster mayhem, it's an unrepentant exercise in style-over-substance. Sizemore directs and stars alongside his wife, Ashleigh Jo Sizemore, and they make a wonderful creative duo. The film is colorful, atmospheric, and strikes an oneiric balance between creepiness and camp. Filmed all over the woodsy Georgian countryside, its forests, fields, and country roads compliment the indulgent use of fog machines, gel lighting, and stunning creature makeup. There isn't much of a plot; it's more like a series of events that unfold over the course of one long night and early morning. Years ago a young boy named Roscoe was abducted by Dimwos, a demon overlord who swept him away to a subterranean underworld where he taught the child how to hone the powers of occult magic. Why the demon chose this random white kid from Georgia to be his human apprentice goes unexplained, and frankly, I was cool with that. Now an adult with long dirty-blonde hair and thick beard, the man escapes this hellish underworld through a portal connecting that world to this one, and consequently unleashes a horde of demons, devils, and undead monsters who spill out from a dense cloud of fog and wreak gory-as-hell havoc on the residents of a small town. The majority of the film sees Roscoe and his friend Eva (Ashleigh Jo Sizemore) fleeing for their lives as the ghouls disembowl, rip flesh, and sexually violate their way through the townspeople. It's such a simple idea that's executed with so much visual flair and genre excess that fans of this stuff will find plenty to love. Highlights are a sleazy orgy with a giant horned devil and a circle of beautiful women; a carnage-drenched club scene where zombies crash a crowded dance party; and a mysterious vinyl record that has supernatural powers. Speaking of music, the score is pretty awesome too. The film's greatest flaw is its unhurried pacing, which will alienate many viewers, but if you're a fan of the films The Demon's Rook is celebrating, pacing issues ain't nothin' to cry about.

Clearly an ode to Fulci and other Eurohorror heroes, there's an American 80s horror flick that bares mentioning in terms of comparison. I was revisiting DEMON WIND (1987) recently and couldn't help but wonder if Sizemore was inspired by it. Quite a few stylistic similarities like the Bava-esque lighting, eerie dreamlike atmosphere, and the excessive onslaught of demons and zombies.

If any of this stuff sounds appealing to you, I can't recommend this movie enough. So track it down and spread the word cuz it deserves more attention. As of early 2019, it's only available on DVD, and includes Sizemore's 2014 short GOAT WITCH, a lurid, sleazy, and visually appealing occult ritual that makes a perfect companion piece to the main feature. It also includes a making of featurette that details the painstaking process of creating the monster makeup/practical FX, all lovingly created by Sizemore, his wife, and a small team of friends.

Stumbling upon the 2013 movie "The Demon's Rook" by random luck here in 2024, of course I opted to sit down and watch it. First of all, I had never heard about the movie. Secondly, it seemed to be a horror movie, and thus of course I had to check it out.

Writers James Sizemore and Akom Tidwell put together a sort of mediocre script and storyline. Yeah, this wasn't exactly Award-winning writing, but it made for an adequate enough viewing experience for a single viewing, I suppose. The movie was a bit all over the place, as if the writers were arguing between themselves whether to write a zombie movie or demon movie.

I wasn't familiar with a single actor or actress on the cast list, and that is something I actually do enjoy when I sit down to watch a movie; with it being all unfamiliar faces and new talents to experience for the first time.

The special effects and make-up in the movie was surprisingly good. In fact, it was so good that it actually helped to keep the movie afloat, despite of its mediocre script and storyline. I was genuinely surprised by the special effects in the movie. And there was enough gore and mayhem to keep an old gorehoud like myself happy.

My rating of director James Sizemore's 2013 movie "The Demon's Rook" lands on a five out of ten stars. I wanted to give the movie a six star rating, but the monotonous narrative and semi-dull storyline kept the movie back. It was definitely the gore and special effects that kept the movie interesting.

Bloody, gory, hilarious, sexy, campy, repetitive. These words are all you need to know about this movie. If Evil Dead (or Ash vs. Evil Dead) had a weird Wiccan cousin, this would be it. In the true art of low budget B-movies this delivers in every way. It's not just some other half-assed low budget movie as I was beginning to think were all that were left for our future. The Devil's Rook was made by a group of thoughtful and passionate young people who obviously had a lot of fun doing what they were doing. And while they did well, the actual storyline of the movie drags on, this would be a good party movie because it's mostly eye candy so you can talk through it without missing anything. Also, it has plenty of good nudity!

So the writer/director is also the star of the movie. Plus he's obviously having a lot of friends/relatives in it too. Not professionals that is. Now you can take that as a criticism or run with it and admire the passion and the love for the art the man has. That is up to you. And I don't really want to know if the comedy was intended or not. It feels like it wasn't in a way, but it's so bad sometimes that they must have done it on purpose.

Whatever the case, technically this would rate much lower. But was it a hoot watching at the Frightfest in London? The answer is yes. Not because it is good and I have to stress that out once more, but because it is weird and it is bad. You'll know pretty fast, if you can stomach the no budget appeal of the movie or not. Looks like quite a few people here are digging ... we got a hole, see? Just don't fall for it ... (no pun intended).

Ten-year-old Roscoe draws a demon named Dimwos that comes alive in his backyard and summons him to the netherworld. After years of dark arts training, Roscoe (James Sizemore) emerges from the ground a grown man. Unfortunately, a group of evil demons is now after him. I picked this indie horror film up a few years back after someone on my feed recommended it; the big draw being that it used all practical special effects. The Demon's Rook is probably one of the most impressive and surreal indie horror flicks I've seen in ages. A lot of the praise can be laid at the feet of leading man Sizemore, who might just be rural Georgia's answer to Peter Jackson as he seems to do everything on this film from acting to music to special effects. He designed and made the demons himself and they are great. There is also tons of gore thrown around and he loves to get crazy with the lighting. As with most indie flicks, the acting is spotty at points. There are also some pacing issues (it is way too long at 1 hour and 44 minutes) and too many "zombies attack random folks" bits. But all of that can be forgiven given the ambitious nature of the project and Sizemore's ability to make something really out there. One of my favorite indie horror views in a long time and I can't wait to see what he does next.