Demon Wind (1990) Review
The movie opens with someone burning on a cross outside of a cabin. Inside the cabin, a woman is chanting spells to keep demons out who are trying to enter the cabin. Unfortunately, her husband spits up disgusting goop, turns into a demon, rips her apart, and she drops a snow globe, which causes the house to explode. Several years later, that woman's grandson, Cory (Eric Larson) travels up to that same cabin in the middle of nowhere with seven of his friends, including his girlfriend Elaine (Francine Lapensee), to see if he can discover what happened to them. However, once they arrive, they find the land is still cursed and one by one, they get picked off by demonic forces. Who will survive the brutal night, and can anyone stop the awesome power of the DEMON WIND?
Before I get to the meat of the review, allow me to clear some things up. First of all, there really isn't much of a "demon wind." I guess the title is referring to when the characters decide to walk away from the cabin to civilization once their car batteries all die, and once they've gone pretty far, this strange fog blows over them and they are whisked to a strange forest, then it sweeps over them again and they are somewhere else, and then it sweeps over them again and they are back at the cabin. So really, the demon wind is just a douchebag fog bank, and it's not even that important. Another thing is that some copies of the VHS had a lenticular cover. And it was awesome.
So anyway, Demon Wind is a pretty bad movie. Sure, the acting was alright, it's competently made, the gore is plentiful, the demon make-up is good, and it has a nice pace, but where this movie fails is the storyline. This chunk of celluloid is just filled with really, really bizarre moments that may have the side effect of making your sides split open from extreme fits of uncontrollable laughter. Oh, boy oh boy oh boy...where do I even begin? Demon Wind is just one of those movies where the only proper way to review it is to discuss favorite scenes, much like Troll 2. But I'll save that for later. First of all, Demon Wind is an unabashed rip-off of The Evil Dead in nearly every way possible, until the ludicrous climax that's so goofy, Mr. Raimi himself would shake his head and wonder what the hell was wrong with the writers of this lovable turd. There are definitely some moments that would fit in an ED movie, like the cow skull chomping on a woman's head. Like I said, the demon make-up is all really good and could have been scary if it were used in...well, a different movie. Did I mention this movie is bad?
NOW it's time to get down to business. Of course, I would be a major dick if I gave away ALL the fun to be had with this stinker, so I'll just discuss some highlights. First of all, there's a gas station/cafe in the middle of nowhere. It isn't even beside a road; just a dirt path, and it's only purpose is for the crazy old guy who runs it to warn these meddling kids not to go up to the cabin. Then there's the moment where, for no reason, a pick-up comes driving over a hill, a bombastic orchestral score begins playing in the background, and in the back is Kevin Bacon lookalike Chuck (Stephen Quadros), a magician who performs some tricks, then one character throws a beer can at him, to which he responds by kung-fu'ing it into the air and giving it a roundhouse kicks towards the guy who threw it. Then neither his "magical powers" nor "kung-fu wizardry" are ever discussed again. What the FUCK? Well, he does roundhouse kick a demon head off (which is still hilarious), but that is beside the point!
One girl gets turned into a doll by three little girls that just appear out of nowhere, and the group doesn't even react to this! Her own BOYFRIEND picks up the doll, frowns, puts it back down, and they all go on their merry way. One guy gets stabbed through the forehead by his now-demonic girlfriend, to which he just stares curiously at her and says, "But I loved you!" There's also a random girl who we get to see off in the distance and pointing a stick towards Cory's car for about a full minute. Genius! Then there's the cheesier-than-Gouda special light effects, the stupid characters, the aforementioned dropping of the snow globe that causes a house to explode, and the absolutely absurd climax that is a real pain for me not to talk about because I always keep my reviews spoiler-free. And that's just the tip of the iceberg, and trust me; my talking about these things won't ruin the laughs once you watch the movie (because I know you will...c'mon, how can you pass all this up?).
In case you haven't figured it out by now, Demon Wind is an insane, surreal, and hysterical mess that's failures end up becoming its greatest strengths. It's got everything a bad movie fan could want in a horror movie: A good amount of gore, nudity, random magic/kung-fu, characters that pop up half way through the movie for no reason but to build on the body count, roundhouse kick decapitations, possessed cow skulls with huge tongues, and much more! It was released on VHS by the always-reliable Prism Entertainment and, believe or not, is still awaiting a DVD release! Seriously? Even Sledgehammer got a DVD release, and this didn't? Before I throw my computer across the room, I will inform you that the full movie is actually on YouTube, so if you're ever feeling depressed one night, wire it up, grab some Skittles, and be prepared to laugh your ass off.
The Verdict: Demon Wind is, truth be told, an atrocious movie, yet it never fails to entertain, no matter what the situation. If you only like your movies serious and terrifying, avoid like the plague. If you like to have fun, it's essential.
Score: 8/10
Don't trust my judgment? Here's four other opinions:
Oh The Horror!
Bad Movies.org
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