To enjoy this film, one must throw aside any preconceptions you may have about it. Ignore the fact that Argento produced it (except for one claustrophobic tracking shot around a brick wall, there is no evidence of Argento's presence), and ignore the fact that the director is the son of Mario Bava, the son of a man who helmed some of the best, most stylish movies of the Italian Gothic era. DEMONS is an all-out visceral assault on the senses, packed with frenetic action, all manner of slop and gore, and not an ounce of realism anywhere.
Thank god for the Italians and their willingness to push the boundaries of convention and good taste. These guys dwell on the violence, enjoying every bit, using every opportunity to disgust and offend the viewer. Throughout the film we're treated to eyeballs being torn out, necks ripped asunder, stabbings, decapitations, and for the piece de resistance, a character getting his head impaled on a spike. What more could you possibly want? How about some amusing dubbing, bad acting and hilarious dialogue? Check. The fun factor is lifted about a hundred times by the presence of Bobby Rhodes' pimp, a heroic leader who spouts some of the most hilarious lines you'll ever have heard - all the more amusing as he was dubbed by some loud-mouthed American. Action man Rhodes is the real star of the two DEMONS films, although he only has a supporting role in them. Acting amid a cast of nondescript youngsters in DEMONS, he plays Tony, a pimp who has come to the cinema with his two prostitutes. When people start turning into demons, Rhodes immediately takes control of the survivors.
Personally, I love films set in just one location, and this one doesn't fail to create a claustrophobic feel, as well as a spooky atmosphere. It's also frequently scary, partly due to some effective slow-motion scenes of demons walking towards the camera, backlit, with shining blank eyes (so good they used it for the video cover). The low budget is fairly obvious, but gives the film a gritty, dirty feel adding to the horror. If you're expecting this film to make sense, then don't bother watching it. Minor characters frequently disappear and no more is heard of them, some sub-plots are added in just to further the plot.
The most obvious one of these is the arrival of a group of drug-snorting cokeheads in their car, their presence merely allowing a demon to escape into the streets and make way for the "shock ending". One of these guys is a dead ringer for Sylvestor Stallone, and this pointless plot makes little sense or reason. A good example of this film's contrivances appears when a helicopter crashes through the roof towards the finale, merely allowing for an escape route for our heroes. What gets me is that a lot of people criticise this for not being realistic, but is the whole premise of people turning into drooling monsters realistic? I think not.
The fast pacing means that there's plenty of opportunity for some quick, sticky shocks. This gore isn't disturbing - it's highly unrealistic - but merely adds to the fun. Goo flies everywhere at every opportunity as the cinema goers get slaughtered. The pounding score adds to the manic feel. Good use is made of the film-within-a-film factor, as events are played out in parallel in front of the big screen (a good example is when a knife rips through a tent in the film-within-the-film, while at the same time a possessed victim rips through the screen material with her fingernails!). The makeup is actually very good, really disgusting and disturbing because of this. The demons overact wildly, but it works for me here, and comes nowhere near as embarrassing as the over the top actress in DEMONS 2. A highlight of the film comes when a wonderfully-scary looking demon climbs out of some poor soul's back (!) and runs off into the shadows. Would this have looked as good with CGI? I don't think so. It's animatronics and prosthetics all the way, and they've never looked so good.
DEMONS isn't an intelligent film, but then again it doesn't claim to be so. The visceral excess sets it way above many other American dumb gorefests of the '80s, and it has a unique quality which makes it very worthwhile. It's not a brilliant film, but a greatly enjoyable one nonetheless. The sequel followed a year later but lacked both the imagination and the impact of this one, seeing as it was just a rerun set in a tower block instead of a cinema.
