Transmutation

My review was written in March 1988 after watching the film on Vidmark video cassette.

"Demonwarp" is a moderately successful sci-fi/horror pic that could have used more sci-fi and less routine horror. Film is going out as a direct-to-video entry, presumably to avoid cutting its gory and sexy material to achieve a theatrical R rating.

A group of teens for the umpteenth time in the past decade is camping at a remote cabin in the woods, attacked by a Bigfoot monster (well-executed by makeup specialist John Buechler, but shown too often to be credible). George Kennedy's daughter was carried off by Bigfoot from the same cabin a while back and he shows up to help the teens fight the unknown.

Farfetched plot peg has Bigfoot turning out to be the creation of space aliens who landed nearby many years back. Pic climaxes with the aliens' stooges sacrificing nubile, topless Earth girls (Michelle Bauer and Pamela Gilbert) to their gooey monster boss. A corny multiple-nightmare ending sabotages much of the buildup effect.

Technically well-made, "Demonwarp" is ultimately an excuse to show off naked women (definitely prime voyeur material), gory makeup and some interesting monster garb. More creativity and less exploitation could have qualified for theatrical usage.

This overambitious, overlong, sci-fi/monster mish-mash, tries throwing in everything, including the proverbial "kitchen sink". The results are decidedly mixed. George Kennedy is the only semi-competent actor in the film., The hero is annoying and unlikable. The thankfully sparse dialog is completely inane. Finally, the wheels come off with an ending that makes even less sense than the nonsense that precedes it. However, the women are all attractive, and there are ample "boobs" on display throughout. Overall, this is nothing more than a chased in the woods affair. The bigfoot, who is frequently seen in daylight, and the alien/ zombie makeup, is marginally acceptable. It is interesting to note that the same cave featured in "Demonwarp" was used over 20 years later in another bigfoot related film, "Strange Wilderness". - MERK

I rented this movie at Rogers video, and may I say that it was quite alright even if it was made on a low budget, but it would definetely stood a chance at playing in theatres. A neat horror-science fiction gorefest. There's good supporting roles by Billy Jacoby(whom I remembered being a regular for a while in that bland sitcom "Silver Spoons") and by cult B-movie scream queen Michelle Bauer and boy did she ever scream when she first spotted that alien monster and was topless too running away from it. They both had quite good parts. It's a rare video to find, but if you come across from it, rent it! Worth checking out!

This film, while no film great (or even genre giant), is oddly entertaining. The acting and direction are pure mid-to-late-80's B-movie cheese, but somehow the ridiculously convoluted plot and hysterical performance by George Kennedy make this film a good time waster-especially if you've got a few friends who appreciate this sort of crap.

A group of teens in a cabin in a woods are attacked by a creepy-ass Bigfoot monster, which kills a couple of them. The monster disappears into the night and the next morning they go on a search into the woods to find and destroy it. The name of the forest the carnage takes place in is Demonwood, and it seems many strange events have occurred there over the years, according to some supporting characters. The teens meet up with George Kennedy who's daughter was carried off by the same monster. He's also looking for revenge. A few extras wandering around the woods get slaughtered by the Bigfoot. Some of the murders are gross. Some of the gorier special effects are good. The last 20 minutes comes out of left field and adds another spin on the story, a spin that involves aliens, zombies, and a cultish looking maniac. Not a bad horror movie, it should prove to be a good view by any un-demanding horror fan. The twists at the end are kinda fun, and there are some good grisly moments strewn through out the story. Gratuitous nudity helps keep things interesting and the cast is not all that bad. George Kennedy is fun to watch hamming it up as the vengeance-minded father. Worth a look. Two And A Half Stars.