Dèmoni 2... l'incubo ritorna

Maybe Lamberto Bava's original Demons was like a strike of lightning that couldn't be replicated or maybe this sequel was rushed into production too fast, but something is missing from Demons 2. The makeup effects are still well done even if the gore has been toned down significantly (and curiously so).

The biggest disappointment is that the story is basically the same as the original film, except the cursed movie now plays on TV and the rules of how to get possessed are a little bit different and don't make as much sense. In the original, a character was cut by the demon mask (just like in the movie within the movie) and that's what turned her into a demon and, in turn, allowed the virus to spread. In Demons 2, the demons emerge from the TV at whim with nothing channeling them to emerge from the screen. It all points to poor planning.

Demons 2 always trades a theater location for a high rise apartment complex, which just isn't as moody. Bobby Rhodes returns as a completely different character from his character in the original which further complicates things.

This isn't to say that Demons 2 is necessarily an awful film or anything. It's entertaining and gets the job done, but it feels like there was a lot less thought and passion put into it than the first.

Follow-up to ¨Demons I¨ , an extremely violent and horrifying film that spawned several sequels and imitations , here the Nightmare Returns . While in original picture the scary events occur when selected at random , people on the street are invited to an advance screen of a new horror movie , as a group of people are trapped in a large movie theater in West Berlin and then a prostitute is bitten turning into a lethal demon , here in ¨Demons 2¨, deeds happen in Hamburgo buildings . As a group of tenants and visitors are trapped in a 10-story high-rise apartment building infested with demons who proceed to hunt the dwindling humans down . There appears blood-thirsting demons chasing humans and a little boy demon who was played by an adult dwarf as well as another small demon , a Gremlin-alike . Gruesome picture in enough budget plenty of chills , suspense , screams , lots of gore , blood and guts . This actually is a very terrifying and eerie flick ; dealing with a demonic infection spreads people in a block of apartments . Meanwhile , a juvenile bunch finding a lifeless corpse of a demon and one of the young boys causes the resurrection . Later on , a party girl becomes a drooling , fanged demon . In a killing rage , she tears apart other in the flats that are infected by ravenous , clawed demons who proceed to kill and posse the humans one-by-one, transforming into bloody creatures who attack the remaining humans , thereby multiplying their numbers . When the party members attempt to getaway , they find themselves caught within .

This exciting picture contains thrills , chills , graphic violence , action-filled with fierce fights and loads of gore and guts . The horror and action moments are fast moving and compactly realized . This is an effective and simple movie ; it results to be a passable Italian horror , including functional special effects realized in traditional style , but also some plot elements are plain stupid . The creepy images of wide range from the genuinely horrifying to the bizarre along with scary and amazing frames . The flesh-eating demons appearance deliver the goods , plenty of screams , shocks and tension . The picture displays shocking and well-crafted transformation in charge of expert make-up artist Gianetto De Rossi . The make-up assistants create a truly horrible cannibal demons , zombies-alike . Pretty good special effects , the resurrection of the first demon was done by shooting a melting wax head in reverse and the first demon popping out of the television was done by having an actor wearing a mask press his face against a latex screen . Unknown cast , though there appears a famous little girl : Asia Argento's film debut . Bobby Rhodes, who played Tony the pimp in Demons (1985), returns as a completely different character in this sequel and Lino Salemme also reappears, this time as a security guard . Commercial musical score by Simon Boswell , full of hard rock and catching songs . Acceptable cinematography by GianLorenzo Battaglia and good production design , as the building used for the exteriors and interiors result to be modern constructions from Hamburgo , Germany .

The motion picture was compellingly directed by Lamberto Bava , as he shows nice visual style , though being lower to former installment in which he cites this as his personal favorite of the flicks he has filmed . His father, Mario Bava (1914-1980), was a legendary filmmaker ; he entered the cinema as his father's personal assistant, starting with ¨Planet of horror ¨(1965). Bit by bit he gained experience from his father, who made him the assistant director for most of the rest of his films . He even co-wrote the screenplay for ¨Shock¨ (1977) . Lamberto enjoyed his best commercial success to date with this "Demons" , produced by Dario Argento, co-written by Dardano Sacchetti and filmed in West Berlin, Germany . This international hit smash allowed him to co-write, produce and direct this sequel, Demons II (1986) that was also successful and turned out to be a certain improvement here and there on previous film ; however, being inferior follow-up . He also directed a remake of his father's "Black Sunday" (1960), which was titled "La Maschera del Demonio" or International title "Demons 5: The Devil's Veil¨ . He used the pseudonym of "John Old Jr." , which was a tribute to his father Mario, who often used the pseudonym "John M. Old" . Lamberto has directed films about all kind of genres such as : ¨Blastfighter¨ , ¨A blade in the dark¨ , ¨Shark: red on the ocean¨, and ¨Macabro¨ that achieved critical fame in some quarters ; however , today Bava Jr. only directs television movies : ¨Fantaghiro¨ and sequels , ¨Caribbean pirates¨ , among others . ¨Demons 2¨ , rating : Acceptable and passable atmospheric film-making from genre master Bava's son that achieved great acclaim among gore buffs . A must see for horror fans .

Lamberto Bava's "Demons" is easily one of the most popular Italian horror films ever made along with Dario Argento's gialli and Lucio Fulci's zombie bloodbaths.In "Demons 2" the action moves from a cinema to a high-rise block of flats;a documentary in which a team of archaeologists explore the ruins of the city besieged by demons in the first film is showing on TV.As the team are attacked by a resurrected demon,the creature forces its way out of a TV set and into the real world,infecting the unlucky residents of the building and transforming them into bloodthirsty demons."Demoni 2" is not as gory as "Demoni".It plays more like a campy comedy as it features some truly hilarious moments.The special effects are surprisingly tacky and amateurish(demon dog and demon baby look especially horrible),the script is silly,but the film is fast-paced and mildly entertaining.The score by Simon Boswell is sleep-inducing compared to the one Claudio Simonetti gave us in the first.At least we get some lovely songs by Dead Can Dance,The Smiths and The Cult.If you are a fan of "Demons" you can give this one a look,just don't expect anything as great as the original.7 out of 10.

Certain films I love while having no explanation as to why...."DEMONS 2" is one of these films. Simply the exact same film as its predeccessor, only set in a high tech apartment building, it lacks a lot of the stuff that makes the first film great. There's no heavy metal on the soundtrack, very little blood, it's not nearly as scary or action-packed as the original, but it certainly makes me laugh. The early stuff with the group investigating the ruins of the city is pretty creepy but this all gives way to some hilarious dialogue, and a classic bout between demons and fitness buffs in the building's parking garage makes me smile every time. Though not nearly as bad as many people say it is, I guess "Demons 2" is enjoyable for mostly the wrong reasons.

Director Lamberto Bava and producer Dario Argento quickly responded to the international success of DEMONS (1985) with this sequel. Abandoning the downbeat open ending of the original film, this follow-up merely repeats the scenario rather than continuing it. Sadly, the end result is a film that one would expect from sequel/money hungry producers rather than the original film's creators.

The biggest flaw with DEMONS 2 is the complete lack of logic. I know it sounds crazy to say that about a film featuring slime spewing demons, but hear me out here. A television program featuring young kids searching for demons (not the same film featured in the first one) is merely on and then a demon jumps out of the TV. While you can see the filmmakers trying to replay the original design with a different medium, they ultimately fail. The original, despite its loony scenario, at least presented a more reasonable explanation. The demon plague is spread by a movie theater customer being scratched by a mysterious mask and not by some demon merely popping out of the screen. Not only that, but this sequel never thoroughly addresses what happened in the original film. The voice over on the television show hints that demons appeared in the world for a few days but no one in the film addresses it. It is as if the events from the first film never happened.

The script also alters the demon mythos to cut plot corners. For example, the demons now apparently spurt acidic blood (shades of ALIEN) that burns through the floors and conveniently kills the power in the apartment complex. If this lazy script writing weren't enough, the entire situation is taken from David Cronenberg's superior SHIVERS (aka THEY CAME FROM WITHIN).

The filmmakers also make the huge mistake of teetering towards the laughable by including a demon child and demon dog, which wins the award for least convincing transformation of the 1980s. It is truly embarrassing. These inclusions, coupled with a phony pint sized demon straight out of a GREMLIN rip off, really push the film into the bounds of ridiculousness. Sergio Stivaletti reprises his role as F/X coordinator and provides the requisite demons transformation highlights such as teeth falling out and talons popping out under fingernails. The film also features the world phoniest barbell.

A few familiar faces pop up from the first film. Pasqualino Salemme, who was one of the punks in the first film, pops up briefly as a security guard. And Bobby Rhodes, memorable as Tony the Pimp in the original, appears here as gym instructor Hank, a different but equally managerial character. As with the first film, he gets all of the film's best lines. Also of note is Coralina Cataldi Tassoni as the bratty birthday girl turned lead demon Sally. She maintains a steady energy, despite being covered by layers of make up and slime. And in a bit of trivia, the film also marks the theatrical debut of Argento's daughter Asia. No doubt this exposure to horror at an early age prepared her for working with Vin Diesel.