The Demon (1979): another review

[Trevor]

This thing aka Midnight Caller, was South Africa's first film in the slasher genre, made after a visit by director Percival Rubens to the cinema to see the far superior Halloween and he determined that he would make a movie as good as John Carpenter's, one that would be a success and that would be remembered. Oh well, he succeeded in the latter as people still talk about this movie – as it was sold all over the world – but for all the wrong reasons.
Shoddy production values, music that, like the composer, runs out before the credits do, terrible art, set, make up and clothing direction – including the lead actress wearing the saggiest panties you have ever seen in anyone's top drawer, including mine. The effects makeup are very low budget, as in below bargain basement and knockoff Chinese make up, using ketchup as blood and chocolate sauce as ummm.... never mind what that is used for exactly. The location is definitely Johannesburg, 1979, although at one point, two of the main characters have an intense chat at the sea.
The accents veer wildly from American, to Afrikaans, to an unwieldy mix of Engrish and Mongolian, with some Vulcan and Klingon tossed in for good measure.
The only plus to the film is the cinematography of my friend and mentor Vincent Cox ASC – who would later go on to lens another much talked about film, Space Mutiny – and his sure touch makes the film a little more bearable, in this case as the film is truly bad, the bearable part is sort of like having splinters removed from your testicles by having other splinters push the old ones out through said testicles. The film is a mess, not only script wise but acting wise as well, as in "you would be wise not to act in this film".
However, I have to acknowledge the fact that the film was sold and seen worldwide and has rarely been out of print since it arrived on home video in the early 1980s. It would be nice if someone could buy the rights to restore, digitize and release to DVD and BluRay the uncut 35mm print the National Film Archives has in its' holdings...................

[zombie no.one]

Well I'm sold...

Looks like a very dark film. Literally. Just watched the trailer and most of it was in darkness, including the title card where the N was so dark it looked like "THE DEMO"

[Trevor]

Well I'm sold...

Looks like a very dark film. Literally. Just watched the trailer and most of it was in darkness, including the title card where the N was so dark it looked like "THE DEMO"

My career mentor Vincent Cox ASC - who also did Space Mutiny  - also photographed this and the dark actually helps the film as you never know just what the hell is going to come out of the darkness next.

The whole movie is on Youtube.

[zombie no.one]

hmm, jumpscares on a budget... one torch required.

might give it a watch you never know

[Trevor]

hmm, jumpscares on a budget... one torch required.

might give it a watch you never know

One torch? As much as I loved Vincent, I think he lit that movie with a burning match 

[claws]

This was released to VHS in America by Thorn EMI in 1983. Cover art was predating Freddy Krueger / A Nightmare on Elm Street.



If there is one reason to watch The Demon, it would be for Cameron Mitchell's amazing bad acting. Every scene without Cameron is pure torture.

If you are a sucker for suffering, double the pain and watch The Demon followed by Fiend (1980)



They are both similar, except Fiend has better f/x.

I don't think The Demon will ever find a way to Blu-ray because of music rights. I doubt the producers of The Demon had money to actually license Funkytown by Lipps Inc. and the Sugarhill Gang's Rapper's Delight. They barely had money to make the film  

[Trevor]

This was released to VHS in America by Thorn EMI in 1983. Cover art was predating Freddy Krueger / A Nightmare on Elm Street.



If there is one reason to watch The Demon, it would be for Cameron Mitchell's amazing bad acting. Every scene without Cameron is pure torture.

If you are a sucker for suffering, double the pain and watch The Demon followed by Fiend (1980)



They are both similar, except Fiend has better f/x.

I don't think The Demon will ever find a way to Blu-ray because of music rights. I doubt the producers of The Demon had money to actually license Funkytown by Lipps Inc. and the Sugarhill Gang's Rapper's Delight. They barely had money to make the film  

Agreed: Percival had been left almost penniless after the failure of Mr Kingstreet's War and the film had a zero budget: some of the actresses wore his wife's clothes. 

I would like to see a BluRay version of the uncut print in the archives: a company in Cape Town tried to buy the rights to do this in 2014 but no go.

[claws]

I would like to see a BluRay version of the uncut print in the archives: a company in Cape Town tried to buy the rights to do this in 2014 but no go.

You should contact Vinegar Syndrome. They are specialized in releasing hard to find and obscure horror on Blu-ray and 4k. They also release titles in never-seen-before uncut or director's cut versions. I think The Demon would be right up their alley.

[Trevor]

I would like to see a BluRay version of the uncut print in the archives: a company in Cape Town tried to buy the rights to do this in 2014 but no go.

You should contact Vinegar Syndrome. They are specialized in releasing hard to find and obscure horror on Blu-ray and 4k. They also release titles in never-seen-before uncut or director's cut versions. I think The Demon would be right up their alley.

I am going to do that right now: might be a job for me in there somewhere. 

[LilCerberus]

Seen this a couple of times when I was younger, & can't remember anything about it, except for that scene when the heroine rips down the shower curtain to make an improvised poncho.....

That had to have inspired an identical scene from First Blood (1982)

[AlbertMond]

This was released to VHS in America by Thorn EMI in 1983. Cover art was predating Freddy Krueger / A Nightmare on Elm Street.



If there is one reason to watch The Demon, it would be for Cameron Mitchell's amazing bad acting. Every scene without Cameron is pure torture.

If you are a sucker for suffering, double the pain and watch The Demon followed by Fiend (1980)



They are both similar, except Fiend has better f/x.

I don't think The Demon will ever find a way to Blu-ray because of music rights. I doubt the producers of The Demon had money to actually license Funkytown by Lipps Inc. and the Sugarhill Gang's Rapper's Delight. They barely had money to make the film  

A horror movie about fingerpicking? Sign me up!

[claws]

I noticed The Demon is streaming on the German free-with-ads platform plex tv, with German audio. I'm super curious about the quality of the transfer they use, but I have a gut feeling they are probably streaming the German VHS rip.