Demon

Well the fact that yet another movie was presented as horror when it had nothing to do with the genre, makes it all so beautiful! Really! I saw Demon and Neon Demon, one after the other, and I've seen less horror than when I run out of toilette paper.

Sure the movie gets you sucked in, you start to feel the dizziness, the walls seem to get closer and the alcohol is starting to play tricks on you. The movie is efficient, for a drama, a nice depiction of some Polish habits, some interesting facts here and there, and then, nothing! Out of the blue, you get the end credits. Abadi abadi abadi aba- That's all Folks!

So you're a horror fan and you curious, so you'd like to throw an eye on Demon. But are you sure? I mean, not for the horror part, I hope. In rest, sure, as I previously stated, this has some different elements to offer. No horror. No scares. No tension. Just a lot of unanswered questions. If you can put up to this, then by all means, go be disappointed.

Cheers!

On the big day for an engaged couple the groom uncovers a grim secret, and the celebrations don't go quite as intended ...

This seemed so intriguing, and I was rubbing my hands as the action kicked off at a lively pace with good humour from the actors. Then we switch to a Polish-Jewish wedding, with great music and dancing and lots of knowing observations. But where's the horror? Instead we get an oblique reflection on the secrets buried in sad soil - it's worth the telling, but doesn't dare to be explicit. I guess the aim was to achieve a haunting atmosphere, but it doesn't really make it - although the fate of the director after the movie was released adds a terrible twist. Is there any such thing as a Jewish horror movie?

Performances are good, but the plot and characterisation are uneven. There's a running joke with characters getting soaked in rain and vodka, and the photography is good. One scene is captured brilliantly, when the couple emerge from the church and get caught in a flurry of snow and umbrellas.

Music is OK, with a joke about Chopin that then fails to switch the music from electronic to piano. Lots of play with several languages and a few puns.

Overall: Spirited but not demonic.

"Demon" (2015 release from Poland; 94 min.) brings the story of Peter, an English guy who is about to marry his Polish fiancée. As the movie opens, we see Peter arriving at a construction site, and in conversation with his future father-in-law, who expresses doubt about the upcoming marriage, given the apparent short courtship between his daughter Zaneta and Peter. But the wedding plans are on. Later that day, Peter arrives at the countryside home of Zaneta's family, which is in dire need for some fixing up. When Peter does some cleaning up in the yard, he comes across the remains of a skeleton, and before we know it, strange things start happening. At this point we're not even 15 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is perhaps billed as a horror movie, but it really isn't. It really is more of a psychological thriller, rooted deeply in Polish family traditions. Much of the movie plays out over the course of the long wedding night (ceremony, followed by the wedding reception, dinner, and post-dinner celebration). I noticed in the movie's credits that it is in fact based on a theater play, and the movie certainly reflects that (and that is not meant as a criticism). Rather than a horror story, you instead get the constant feeling that something creepy is going on. There are a number of worthwhile performances, including Israeli actor Itay Tiran as Peter/Piotr and Andrzej Grabowski as the patriarch of Zaneta's family. Given the nature of the film, I don't want to disclose much more, but I can only tell you that I became transfixed as this played out, and couldn't hardly believe it how quickly this all went by.

The movie premiered at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, yes, over a year ago. (Sadly, the movie's director Marcin Wrona took his own life not long thereafter.) It opened without any pre-release fanfare or advertising at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati this weekend, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Friday evening screening where I saw this at was attended poorly, just a handful of people. Given the lack of marketing, it didn't really surprise me. If you are in the mood for a creepy (in the best possible way) and haunting psychological drama, I'd readily recommend you check this out, be it in the theater, on Amazon Instant Video, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.

The story surrounding the film 'Demon' made in 2015 by Polish director Marcin Wrona is almost as tragic as the story in the film, and builds around it a special aura. The director committed suicide shortly after the premiere, during a festival that promoted this third and final feature film of his, a film that has in its center a wedding that ends tragically. Marcin Wrona himself was freshly married and left behind a young wife (who had also been one of the film's producers). Those who believe in such phenomena may speculate that perhaps some of the evil spirit exemplified by the phenomenon of 'dybbuk' described in the film has spilled over into reality. The rest of us can mourn the disappearance of a film director who was on the path to become one of the most representative for Poland, and beyond the borders of his country. 'Demon' is a very interesting film, which does not leave its viewers indifferent, located somewhere between the Gothic horror genre with elements of Polish and Jewish folklore, and the art film with social and historical commentary. The film is a Polish-Israeli co-production, which is, I think, also first time kind of collaboration.

Pyton (Itay Tiran) comes from London to a remote village in Poland only accessible by ferry (the bridge collapsed some time ago) to marry Zaneta (Agnieszka Zulewska), the daughter of the owner of the stone quarry that seems to be the main industry of the village. The two had only met her via skype, but we can't blame him because Zaneta is a blonde beauty, or her because she probably dreams that sooner or later she will get London. The problem is that for now Pyton dreams of reverse migration, learns Polish, changes his name (and personality?) to Piotr before the wedding, and begins to renovate a dilapidated house to settle in. The bulldozer used for the works uncovers a buried corpse, and from here, an evil force seems to be released and takes possession of Pyton who became Piotr on the day and during his wedding. Did a demon take over him? Are we perhaps dealing with a phenomenon of 'dybbuk' descended from the Jewish folklore and mysticism, in which souls that do not find peace take possession of foreign bodies and refuse to release them until they see their goals achieved? Are the strange events taking place in this Polish Catholic village related to the history of the Jewish community, a whole world that disappeared in the Holocaust with only one survivor alive in the person of an old teacher?

The film oscillates between grotesque, social satire and horror, adding at the end a commentary with historical significance. The light, comic, folkloric tone of the wedding scenes can lead viewers to false path, as the final message is much gloomier, telling about the impossible reconciliation between an amnesic present and a past that does not let itself be buried and returns to haunt the descendants or accomplices of wrongdoers. The cinematic execution is not perfect and the spectators are required to focus so as not to omit details or clues that flip on the screen for only a few seconds. I liked the cinematography and the acting of the Polish team , who managed draw clearly both the lead roles and the smaller ones that make up the social background of the story. Itay Tiran, who plays the lead role, was at the time of making the film in 2015 a mega-star of Israeli theater, the most talented and successful actor and director of his generation. (Since then he has decided to move to Berlin, where he started a new career from scratch). His roles in film are, in my opinion, a bit marked by theatricality and this happens also in 'Demon'. What works perfectly on stage (Tiran played on stage Klaus Mann's Mephisto among others) doesn't work as well on screen, and he lost me exactly in the 'demonic' scenes. For all its imperfections, Marcin Wrona's farewell film is a meritorious cinematic work, an experience not to be missed.

This is surprisingly funny for a scary movie. But don't be fooled by the comedy or the lack of color. It is scary and it will take you on a wild ride. If you are into it, and if you want to see what "legend" exists for Jews. It's the Dybbuk (if I wrote that correctly that is) and it is a very mad and bad entity.

And it happens on one of the happiest day of ones life. Or it should be. But the movie plays with many things, expectations and while in other instances it just doesn't fit, they made it work in this case. It takes a spin on something you have seen a couple of times and makes it feel fresh and inspired. And for that, I love this little independent horror movie, that does not have explicit scenes as a stronghold, but rather strong characters and an interesting story