Démons

Demons (Demoni) is directed by Lamberto Bava and Bava co-writes the screenplay with Dario Argento, Dardano Sacchetti and Franco Ferrini. It stars Urbano Barberini, Natasha Hovey, Karl Zinny, Paola Cozzo, Fiore Argento and Geretta Giancarlo. Music is by Claudio Simonetti and cinematography by Gianlorenzo Battaglia.

A wonderfully nutty spiced Spaghetti Horror, plot has a group of people trapped in a Berlin movie theatre that suddenly comes under attack by ravenous demons.

It could reasonably be argued that Bava's movie has some cheeky narrative depth underneath the gloop and schlock, this is after all purposely set in a movie theatre and features a film that basically becomes real, sort of. But really it's a pic that's set up for like minded horror buffs to feast upon, to jump head first into its feverish horror comic book glee.

The script is as poor as the dubbing is, with a roll call of cardboard cut out characters and loose end scenarios jettisoned in readiness for the next plasmatic explosive sequence. Yet the care free abandon of the gruesome killings on show, and the rapid pace of it all, ensures it's a fun packed ride.

Even the musical score is schizo as it ranges from typical 1980s synth plods to heavy metal thunder - joyous. 7/10

Lamberto Bava's "Dèmoni" aka. "Demons" of 1985 is a gory, stylish and very entertaining horror flick written by the master, Dario Argento. I'm sure getting acknowledged in Horror cinema wasn't easy for director Lamberto Bava , being the son of Mario Bava, beyond doubt one of the all-time greatest horror geniuses in motion picture history. Expectations must have certainly been high. But although Lamberto Bava does certainly not manage to reach his father's brilliance, "Demons" is definitely worth watching.

Cheryl (Natasha Hovey) is given free tickets for a sneak preview by a mysteriously dressed man at a Berlin subway station. Accompanied by a friend, she goes to see the movie at the eerie-looking 'Metropol' cinema. Before the film starts, a woman scratches herself on a creepy silver mask in the waiting hall. The film, which turns out to be a Horror flick tells the story of a prediction by Nostradamus, connected with a demonic mask.

The plot is not that original, but the film is made in a very stylish manner, with a good cinematography, and great color play in the tradition of Mario Bava and Dario Argento. The gore is intense, lots of slicing, stabbing cutting and biting. The cast may not be phenomenal, but Natasha Hovey delivers a good leading performance and there are a bunch of funny characters, such as a black pimp named Tony (played by Bobby Rhodes) and the two hookers he is accompanied by, as well as a strange blind guy and his wife and a very strange usherette. The main part of the score was composed by Claudio Simonetti of the great Progressive Rock band Goblin, whose ingenious soundtracks have also complimented many of Dario Argento's movies.

Being a huge fan of Dario Argento, I must say that "Dèmoni" does definitely not live up to most of the movies Argento directed himself. Nevertheless, it is an extremely entertaining Horror flick that doesn't scant with blood and gore, and especially the gory sequences are very stylishly made. If you expect the quality of Argento's or Mario Bava's masterpieces, you will probably be disappointed. Just expect a very stylish, gory and extremely entertaining Horror flick, and your expectations will easily be fulfilled. Recommended. 7/10

Gruesome picture in acceptable budget plenty of chills , suspense , screams , lots of gore , blood and guts . This actually is a very terrifying and frightening film ; dealing with a demonic infection spreads people in modern cinema . Selected at random , people on the street are invited to an advance screen of a new horror movie . There a prostitute is bitten and becomes a drooling , fanged demon . In a killing rage , she tears apart other in the movie theater . As a group of people are trapped in a large movie theater in West Berlin that is 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 members of the cinema 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 an acceptable 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 Sergio Stivaletti . The make-up assistants create a truly horrible cannibal demons , zombies-alike . A poster for ¨4 flies on grey velvet¨ is visible in the lobby of the theatre: it's the title of writer/producer Dario Argento's third film ; there also appears other posters such as : ¨Nosferatu¨ , ¨Metropolis¨ and ¨Non Nukes¨ . Commercial musical score , full of hard rock and catching songs performed by known singers as Billy Idol and Rick Springfield . Good production design , as the building used for the exteriors of the Metropol theater still stands in Berlin ; it's a club called Goya that's been host to several horror conventions thanks to its appearance in this film.

The motion picture was compellingly directed by Lamberto Bava , he cites this as his personal favorite of the flicks he has filmed and in which he shows nice visual style . 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 a sequel, Demons II (1986) that was also successful and turned out to be an improvement on previous film . 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 . 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 .

For an 80s gore-fest, you couldn't want anything more. This is another one of those "kitchen sink" movies that's in the same vein as "From Dusk Till Dawn". Put the same scenario in a movie house, back in the 80s, substitute the vampires with demons, and you pretty much get the picture. You can definitely see the influence here. With that said, if you liked "From Dusk.." and don't mind dubbing, then you should be right at home with "Demons".

There isn't a whole lot there in the way of plot. Some random folks are invited to a screening in an old movie theater. As the movie that they are viewing gets more and more violent, real life starts to imitate art and pretty soon, they discover that they are locked inside and what we're watching becomes a survival flick. That's pretty much it.

As far as gore, there is PLENTY of the red stuff with enough eye-gouging, throat ripping, and blood spurting to satisfy even the most ravenous gore hound. To say much more would give away a lot of the surprises, but it's well worth a rental. Check it out.

Watching "Demons" I came to the conclusion that, no matter how many of the "Scream" films they make, nothing compares to this horror flick!. I'm not saying it's the greatest horror flick of all time. But it certanly entertains, and scares the hell out of you. Even after several viewings. The setting for the film is just right.The music terrific too! honestly I've seen this flick like 1000 times. And it still freaks me out. I've not seen parts 3 or 4 yet but from the reviews I've heard, they sound pretty interesting, so I'm certanly going to track them both down. For those of you who think that the 90's versions of horror films are the only saving grace to this genre, do yourself a favour catch a few of the 80's horror flicks like "Demons" they are what horror movies should be!