NIGHT OF THE DEMONS 2 (1994)
(Note: this text was published 9 years ago on my former blog, Cinematic Nightmares)
After a lengthy delay (reason: better films to watch), I decided to revisit this famous cult classic, the sequel to Kevin Tenney‘s 1988 film. The sequel, NIGHT OF THE DEMONS 2, was directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith, the well known Australian Ozploitation director (he directed the solid dystopian DEAD END DRIVE-IN, the quite popular BMX BANDITS, and the children’s fantasy film FROG DREAMING/THE QUEST). We should thank his experience for the slightly better quality of this sequel (this should be taken with a grain of salt—there’s not that much of an improvement) – but more on that later.
It is probably unnecessary to recap the plot, but I’ll do it for formality’s sake. The story is set in a Catholic academy filled with lustful youth, who are pondering how to have a good time at their Halloween party. The academy is run by the ultra-strict Sister Gloria (Jennifer Rhodes) and the rational Father Bob (Rod McCary). The arch-nemesis of our heroes is once again Angela (Amelia Kinkade, now with longer hair), and the group of youth that must resist her includes Perry (Bobby Jacoby), a student obsessed with demonology, Melissa/Mouse (Merle Kennedy), Angela’s sister, the lustful Shirley (Zoe Trilling), the caring Bibi (Christy Harris), her boyfriend Johnny (Johnny Moran), and others. Shirley, along with a few others, wants to sacrifice Melissa to summon Angela during a party at the house where Angela once met her end. After the shit hits the fan, our good characters, along with Father Bob, come to the rescue, and the party begins.
The first film featured Linnea Quigley and Bauhaus’s “Stygmata Martyr” in an excellent dance scene (here it’s Morbid Angel with “Rapture“), and a few decent gore scenes. The direction was mostly routine, and the characters were mainly comprised of a bunch of eighties teenagers destined to meet their end. The sequel isn’t much better, but there are a couple of improvements. First, the direction is more energetic, with better set-pieces (the budget was bigger), which indicates an obvious effort to cover up the poor script. The overall narrative is more coherent, and the story makes a bit more sense. Occasionally, we also get brief scenes with a spooky atmosphere (as much as possible with this material). Additionally, Trenchard-Smith decided to make an ultra-mega sleazy film, and while I’ve seen films that surpassed it in that regard, this is still quite an interesting work in that aspect. You want a demonic lipstick that attacks a horny girl? Check! Demonic bugs that crawl out of mouths after being sprinkled with holy water? Check! Basketball played with a human head? Check! Women’s breasts transforming into demonic hands? Check! Speaking of nudity, you want naked breasts constantly parading in front of the camera and sex scenes in imaginative locations (abandoned and decaying houses)? Check! If the sex scenes were a bit more explicit, this film could easily be classified as a porno horror or at least an erotic horror.
The makeup effects are excellent and were once again done by Steve Johnson (FRIGHT NIGHT, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4: THE DREAM MASTER, RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD 3, SPECIES, and other films). There was no skimping on the gore here, and Angela’s creature as a snake at the end of the film is also impressive.
The humor should also be mentioned, as there is some of it in the film, both of a less and more successful kind. One of the more successful scenes of sleazy gore humor would be the already mentioned basketball game, but in this sense, Sister Gloria’s character should be highlighted. Her character is occasionally funny, with her strict demeanor and ruler-as-a-weapon, but above all as a Rambo-style nun who is here to kick some demon’s ass. Naturally, a few problems arise from this type of attitude, as her character also serves a quite open propaganda for the Catholic Church, so anyone who doesn’t appreciate such propaganda (like me – and not just Catholic one) won’t enjoy that aspect of the film. Her actions, no matter how excessive they seem at first glance, always turn out to be justified in the end. Overall, the film tries so hard with its black-and-white division of characters and having-its-cake-and-eating-it-too approach that it occasionally becomes really tiresome. Lust as a sin while naked breasts parade in front of us every two minutes (and I mean literally)? I understand and agree with the classic exploitation reasoning, but at certain moments, it simply doesn’t work because of the abovementioned reasons. The faith that is imposed by the likable and funny characters through their Rambo-like behavior and strictness doesn’t work. These are all ways the film attempts to make a point, and I would say that’s one of the most problematic things about it.
The acting isn’t great: Amelia Kinkade as Angela is okay (and when she’s not in makeup, it could be said she looks hot), but aside from posing and the occasional one-liners, she’s sadly not given much to do with the script (the dance scene is solid, it’s worth mentioning, although not as good as the one from the first part). The only notable performances come from Jennifer Rhodes as Sister Gloria and Christy Harris as Bibi. Rhodes is given the most space, including her occasionally funny yet sometimes irritating one-liners. As mentioned, the script is thin, and Trenchard-Smith tries to cover it thanks to his Ozploitation experience, though not always successfully. Sometimes the actors and well-crafted gore scenes manage to make things more interesting.
Overall, it’s important to note that this is a perfectly acceptable film to spend an hour and a half with, so I would say go for it!
Ocena: 3-/5
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