Demon Wind
1990
Director: Charles Philip Moore
Stars: Eric Larson, Francine Lapensée, Rufus Norris
Reviewed by Brian M. Sammons
After the success of The Evil Dead, a whole slew of demon-possessing-people movies came out. Some were great, such as Demons and Night of the Demons, and others not so much. Well, what about this one? Lord knows I saw the VHS cover in every video store I ever went to in the early 90s. But in spite of that, this film has been forgotten by most horror fans today. Is there a reason for that selective amnesia or is this a sad tale of an overlooked gem? Well, let’s head out to the countryside and find out.
A group of friends go out to the “woods” (more like an empty field they were allowed to film in) to investigate the “cabin” (more like random pieces of set dressing from a high school production scattered around) one of the friends inherited from his father who recently committed suicide in an insane asylum. Once there they learn why pops was in the sanitarium: those darn pesky demons. They get locked into a Mobius strip of inescapable horror, get turned into baby dolls (no, really), seduced by bare-breasted phantoms, and attacked by a small army of goopy, boil-faced possessed people. As the “kids” (more like 30-somethings) get whittled down one by one, who will be standing once the Demon Wind stops blowing?
Demon Wind is a very low-budget, independent, direct-to-video schlocky shocker, and it shows. The acting is woeful, the special effects are really not that special, the direction is competent but without a sense of style, and the story is as basic as it comes. All that said, there is a cheesy charm to it that time and time again had me smiling. As a horror movie it fails, but as a fun movie, that kind you can watch with other horror-loving buddies and have a great time with, it succeeds.
Okay let’s get to the extras on this new Blu-ray/DVD combo pack from Vinegar Syndrome. There is an interview with producer Sandy Horowitz that’s 26 minutes, another interview with actress Sherry Leigh that’s over 16 minutes long, yet another interview with cinematographer Thomas Callaway that’s 20 minutes, and finally an audio-only interview with editor Christopher Roth that’s also 20 minutes long. The theatrical trailer and still gallery can also be found here.
Demon Wind is by no means a great film, but it is a fun one. Not a so-bad-it’s-good flick, just a low-budget cheese fest that seems to be a last hurrah for the 80s kind of direct-to-video stuff. If that’s your kind of thing, I think you’ll get a kick out of this. That is my kind of thing, so I give this a score of recommended, if only just.
