Horror Movie Review: Demons 2 (1986)

A sequel to one of the best 80’s horror movies ever only had to continue the good work laid down by its predecessor to be hailed as an insta-classic. Demons 2 takes what made the original such a high point in horror and while it doesn’t quite disappoint, it does drop the ball on a few occasions.

This time it takes place mostly in a high-rise apartment block…the events of the first movie did actually happen & has since been turned into film. In a similar angle from the first we see a group of teens exploring an abandoned city that had been involved in the original Demon outbreak. They end up finding a lifeless corpse of a demon which is then accidently revived thanks to a cut on one of the girl’s hands. It gets back up & begins attacking the group.

All of this is begin watched by a young girl called Sally who is celebrating her birthday. She’s pretty into the movie when the revived demon turns to face the camera & begins to walk towards the TV. The demon climbs out of the TV & attacks Sally who in turn turns into a demon (in a great transformation) & attacks her party guests.

Before you know it the demonic party guest break out of the apartment & set about attacking everyone in the building.

The story shares a lot of similarities with the original as well as some atrocious acting, laughable dialogue & bad dubbing. It still has the Demons feel to it so it is easily forgiven…what isn’t so easy to forgive though is some of the changes made throughout.

Using actors from the first movie in new roles this time would have made sense had they not made an effort to link the original in. It’s easy to just put that to the side as the attention to detail on the main group of demons is as good as the original. The make-up on some demons is fantastic & really gory at times. Demons 2 loves its close-up shots & you often get quite an eyeful.

That level of make-up & attention to detail does mean though that the ones who haven’t really stand out in a bad way. Quite a few Demons have glaringly obvious green face paint, yellow contact lenses & that is it. Keep your eyes open for the ones whose make-up stops at their necks…

Another criticism has to be the effects used for a Demon dog & a gremlin looking Demon that breaks out of a kid’s body. Don’t get me wrong I loved both ideas…why wouldn’t it affect a dog in the same way? The Demon kid genuinely creeped me out but the end results for both left me feeling a bit flat.

Like the original, Demons 2 creates a scene that manages to stick with me…after a massacre in the car park the young daughter of one of the victims hides in a car calling for her papa. She alerts the nearby demons who quickly surround the car…it’s a pretty scary scene if you put yourself in her shoes.

Also like the original the story doesn’t really make much sense, demons stepping through TV’s & muscle men unable to fight off a single demon. It’s not something that really dwells on the mind though as its normally followed by a close-up on a bloody & gory demon. This is where Demons 2 excels & it is worth watching just for these moments.

The soundtrack is just as memorable choosing to use a lot of British rock & new wave bands. It doesn’t quite have the same kick but once again fits the movie nicely…

Demons 2 doesn’t quite hit the high points of the original but has all the hallmarks that made it great. The tower block location is just as terrifying as the cinema & some of the make-up is amazing. A few low points with regard to effects & acting manage to derail the movie at times but its easily put aside for the many entertaining moments the film does has.