Night
of the Demons
 |
| Amelia Kinkade in her signature role. |
1988
Director- Kevin Tenney
Cast- Cathy Podewell , Linnea Quigley, Alvin Alexis, Amelia Kinkade , Lance
Fenton, Hal Havins, Billy Gallo, Jill Terashita, Allison Barron, Philip
Tanzini,
Not be
confused with the very serious 1957 movie, Night of the Demon, this movie is pure fun. In a way, it’s the archetypal 80s
horror film with many of the conventions, and faces, popular in that era. The
most familiar face is of course, scream queen Linnea Quigley. Horror fans will
know her as the punk Trash in Return of
the Living Dead and a lot of
other good horror films from the 80s.
Its
Halloween night and a group of horny teens decide to throw a party in the
town’s haunted house (will these kids never learn?). For fun they decide to
have a séance (will these kids never
learn?). This summons a demon that has been living on the haunted land for a
thousand years. The demon proceeds to possess various kids and kill them off
one by one, particularly as they are trying to have sex (I guess these kids
never learn).
The film
has stand out moments mainly provided by the individual performances and the
practical make up effects. Amelia Kinkade as the goth Angela looks beautiful
and creepy in her black dress. She never goes over the top as the film’s
principal antagonist. Although Linnea Quigley had a more prolific career,
Amelia has permanently staked out her spot in horror history with this
character. In particular is her wild dance number, with the gothic rock band
Bauhaus playing in the background.
The special effects, by long time effects wizard Steve
Johnson, were pretty good for a B-movie of the 80s. Johnson has worked on a
list of movies a mile long including The
Howling 1 and 2, Big Trouble in Little China, Fright Night, Nightmare on
Elmstreet 4, Highway to Hell, Species, Blade 2 and about a million others.
The best effect is when Linnea Quigley (Johnsons one time wife) makes a
lipstick disappear in a most unusual way. That scene blew my mind as a teenager
and still holds up pretty well today.
The film
was followed by two sequels, both starring Amelia Kinkade reprising her role as
Angela, as well as a 21st century remake. These vary in quality. For
some real Halloween entertainment, stick to the original and travel back in
time to the era of screams queens and video stores.
 |
| Maybe not Linnea Quigley's best side, but still ,a pretty good side. |
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