Day 8 - The Carnage of ‘Demons’ | 31 Days of Halloween
For Day 8 of the 31 Days of Halloween, the theme is Possession, and my pick is the gloriously unhinged Italian cult classic Demons (1985).
If you’ve somehow missed this one, the setup is simple: It’s basically about a group of people who are invited to a mysterious movie screening inside a theater, and as the film plays, the events on screen begin to mirror what’s happening in the theater itself as the people in the audience begin to become possessed by demons. As panic and violence spread, the whole theatre descends into complete chaos.
There are a lot of characters in this movie, which means there is no shortage of mayhem and carnage once things kick off.
First Impressions
This was actually my first time watching Demons, and I genuinely had no idea what I was walking into. I knew it had a reputation, but I wasn’t prepared for how hard this movie commits to the madness.
First of all, the soundtrack is absolutely fantastic. It’s one of those scores that immediately locks the movie into its era and pumps along driving enthusiasm and energy into every scene, even when what’s unfolding is truly evil. Every aspect of this movie from the music to the lighting to the colors and the costumes all make the experience just feel like the mid-80s. It’s all a chaotic, neon-soaked nightmare.
If you’re familiar with the tone of a lot of Italian horror and giallo films from this era, you’ll have a vague idea of the vibe going in. With that being said, Demons still manages to crank everything up to 11. Once the demonic outbreak starts, it doesn’t let up in its nonstop carnage. No one is safe, and the movie never really slows down once it gets going.
Bonkers 80’s Energy
The film was directed by Lamberto Bava, with producing and writing credits from Dario Argento, and you can feel both of their fingerprints all over this thing. There’s a sense of style here that’s uniquely its own, and there’s also a clear sense of humor running underneath the carnage.
This movie knows how ridiculous it is, and it leans into it. There are scenes that are so completely out of left field that I couldn’t help but laugh and just go along for the ride for. The finale in particular gets pretty ridiculous, but by that point, I was fully on board with whatever insane idea the movie wanted to throw at me next.
There also seems to be a bit of commentary baked in about group mentality versus individual thinking. People make some truly terrible decisions once panic sets in, and there are moments where the crowd dynamic makes everything worse instead of better. It all seems intentional, and it actually works really well with the themes of infection and contagion the movie is playing with.
Contagious Possession
One of the things I really liked about Demons is how it treats possession as something contagious, almost in the same way zombie movies handle outbreaks. Once it starts, it spreads fast, and the threat isn’t just the demons themselves, but how quickly everything spirals out of control.
That angle still feels fresh, and it’s something we’ve seen explored in more recent horror, too. Movies like When Evil Lurks (which is fantastic but extremely bleak and brutal) and The Demon Disorder (a solid body-horror entry) both play with similar ideas, even if they take the concept in very different directions tonally. Both are streaming now on Shudder or available for purchase on Amazon if you’re ready to take the plunge.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, Demons is one of those movies that feels completely singular. Even if you’ve seen a lot of possession or outbreak-style horror, you’ve probably never seen anything quite like this. It’s messy, loud, stylish, and wildly entertaining in a way that only mid-80s Italian horror really knows how to be.
If you’re looking to mix up your Halloween watchlist with something a little more unhinged, this one is absolutely worth checking out.
And, if you’re already a big fan and are thinking of upgrading the the 4K Edition, Amazon has the Arrow Video version in stock today.
If you’re into possession movies, 80’s horror, or cult classic discussions, we’ve covered these topics on the podcast as well:
Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2023 - includes Evil Dead Rise, Talk to me, & When Evil Lurks
Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2013 - includes Evil Dead (2013) discussion
Next up: Day 9’s theme is Serial Killer.
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