Shout! Factory Collector's Edition NIGHT OF THE DEMONS blu-ray review

"Night of the Demons" is easily my favorite 80's horror film. I fell in love with this one the night I first watched it. It's scary, funny, has nudity and sex, some bad acting, and some gore and cool makeup FX. If that doesn't sum up the entire 80's era, I don't know what does. This movie is everything that made movies awesome then, balled up into a nice little terrifying package. So, when I had gotten the news that Shout! Factory were the ones to be releasing the blu-ray, I couldn't have been happier. Shout! has done incredible jobs on all of their releases, and I've found myself to be quite the addict when it comes to collecting their movies.
I couldn't have asked for anyone better to release this blu-ray.

Cover/packaging: Shout! Factory always provides the coolest covers you can imagine, and this one is no exception! Their artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner always sums up the film with the cover, which makes the covers newer and cooler, yet done in a way to look old-school and retro. The slipcover is presented with his beautiful artwork, and the jewel case has a reversible cover where you can pick between the new cover or the original cover art of Angela holding the invitation. The artwork on this particular release is probably my favorite one to date. So no complaints from me on this front, other than the fact that I think Angela should have been front and center, and not Suzanne.

Picture quality: From the start you can see how crisp and restored the picture is. The colors are very rich and vibrant, and the clarity is amazing. This is by far the best way to view the film ever. The makeup FX are showcased better, and certain scenes really stand out as almost astoundingly crystal clear. Most notably, the scene where Angela and Suzanne are ripping off the convenience store is pristine. The overall quality is fantastic, and it's like watching the film all over again for the first time.
If you're like me, you still have a soft spot for VHS tapes and their quality, if only for nostalgia's stake. But, there's no denying the epicness of seeing a film you cherish updated to this kind of quality. Truly impressive.

Sound quality: The fact that this is a collector's edition and not some cheap hack copy just for the sake of releasing it on blu-ray, says it all. The sound is incredible! Now, it's hard for me to say whether or not it's perfect, but it's damn close. Crank this baby up and watch it with total clarity, it's amazing. The voices of the possessed, and the screams, and running is all amplified and updated very well. Again, I've got no complaints. I particularly noticed the sound in the scene where Angela is dancing. For some reason, even though I knew it was coming, I still got creeped out. Go figure.

Bonus features: I had previously owned the DVD version that's out of print now, and all of the features that were on it, are on this blu-ray plus tons more. It's a crazy feeling when the excitement you once felt for a film hits you again, and you have hours of bonus material to watch that you've never seen before. Needless to say, I've watched this blu-ray from back to front and didn't skip a thing.

For starters you get two (2) commentaries now. You get the same one that was on the DVD with director Kevin S. Tenney, executive producer Walter Josten, and producer Jeff Geoffray. And you get a new commentary with the director Kevin S. Tenney and actors, Cathy Podewell (Judy), Hal Havins (Stooge), Billy Gallo (Sal), and FX artist Steve Johnson. Both commentaries are informative and insightful and absolutely worth a watch.

Next there's some new interviews with director Kevin S. Tenney, writer/producer Joe Augustyn, and my favorite scream queen Linnea Quigley. I was surprised because most films that have two commentaries and a surplus of bonus stuff including interviews tend to become redundant and repetitive. Not the case with this blu-ray. All the information you hear on both the commentaries and interviews are fresh, and never gets boring or repetitive. So yes, watch them and learn!

There's also a promo reel, video trailer, theatrical trailer, TV and radio spots, still galleries, and more!

Final thoughts:  I really don't have a single bad thing to say about this release. As a huge fan of this film, I'm completely happy. Aside from wishing there was a statue or action figure of Angela included, there's nothing negative I can say. I'm a satisfied customer. If you have second thoughts about buying this, don't hesitate. With good packaging, picture, sound, and hours of bonus material, there's nothing to think twice about. Shout! Factory knocked another one out of the ballpark. 

5 out of 5 stars

Grimm Reviewz Remembers: Night Of The Demons (1988)

Night Of The Demons is one of the greatest 80's horror films made, to me, it's at the top of the list of best 80's movies when you think back on it. This movie was the pure definition of that particular era, it is everything about 80's horror we love inside one scary little box.

It has bad acting, an annoying cast of misfits, cheese, gore, lots of bloody awesome gore and it's entertaining as hell and one hell of a watch. The scares are top notch and the entertainment value is on the same level. If you're a fan of the genre in that time period then you're conditioned to alot of the things mentioned above, and you more than likely feel the same way about another movie or several.

Night Of The Demons tells the story of two girls, Angela and Suzanne who are throwing a Halloween party in the local haunted house. Supposedly the house belonged to a family using the home as their business, a funeral home, and they were practicing Satanism. They all died in a car crash. But something goes wrong when the group of misfits and troublemakers find the house to be holding an evil presence from the previous family. And one by one they begin to become picked off...and possessed! From there on it's a fight for survival.

Stooge: Ang, you can't really believe this place is possessed.
Sal: Nah, just repossessed!

I remember when I first saw the film the part that scared me the most was definitely seeing Angela turn for the first time. She was scary looking! I remember being over my neighbors house when I was a small child and they owned a copy on VHS, and I remember seeing Angela on the cover and it scared the hell out of me! I swore to never watch that movie after that. But that of course is before I grew up and could watch all the horror films I want.

It's crazy thinking how a movie can have that effect on you at such a young age and yet it ends up becoming one of your favorite movies in the genre. Same thing happened to me with The Evil Dead.

I think the most suspenseful part for me was when you knew Angela had become possessed and she's dancing in the strobe light. The anticipation was nail biting. I had to look away a few times trying to avoid being startled by a sudden movement or action causing me to jump.

DID YOU KNOW?

LINNEA QUIGLEY HAD TO COME IN AND PRACTICE EYE GOUGING

The cast in this movie was undoubtedly annoying, but they were a fun cast and even if they did get on your nerves they still gave you plenty of laughs. And you still cared for them, knowing the grave night that was ahead of them wasn't deserving.

And the opening scene was amazing and totally struck a chord to the inner kid in me, instantly showing me that this movie was going to be fun and enjoyable. I also loved the theme.

DID YOU KNOW?

PRODUCED FOR A VERY MODEST 1.2 MILLION, THE FILM RAKED IN OUTRAGEOUSLY LARGE GROSSES IN ITS LIMITED RELEASE. DEBUTING IN DETROIT, IT HIT NEW YORK CITY AT THANKSGIVING AND EARNED 3.109M, HOLDING SCREENS UNTIL THE END OF THE YEAR.

How could you help but not hate Stooge but turn around and laugh at him the next. I knew this dude was trouble and he proved me right. I remember him turning into his demon form the first time and it startled me. He made such a nasty looking demon and you knew he was a dirty, gritty character, and that's never good in a demon movie.

Stooge: Festering ****wads! You cannot take this bitch anywhere, man.

DID YOU KNOW?

HAD THE FILM OPENED NATIONWIDE WITH THE NUMBERS IT EARNED IN DETROIT, IT WAS PROJECTED TO HAVE EARNED $13 MILLION DOMESTICALLY IN ITS OPENING WEEKEND- WHICH WOULD HAVE RANKED IT AMONGST THE TOP GROSSING HORROR FILMS OF ITS DECADE.

The old man in the film that we see in the beginning ended up playing out brilliantly! And his closing scene was a great salute to fans of the genre, not only ending on a high note, but making it bloody and demented. Satisfying the horror fan in us. It was particularly good to me because I didn't see him playing a part in the movie as he did. Good stuff.

Now lets get to the most memorable scene in the movie- the lipstick scene. WOW. No one saw this coming and it was especially impact-full because the effects were so damn good! It looked real. Totally shocking and brilliant scene. It was one of those scenes where you go out of the movie talking about it.

Suzanne (Linnea Quigley) uses her lipstick in the proper way- on her lips to 'freshen up'. She then shoves the lipstick into her boob. Right dead center in the nipple. And like I said, it looked very real.

DID YOU KNOW?

LINNEA QUIGLEY (SUZANNE) AND SPECIAL EFFECTS ARTIST STEVE JOHNSON MET WHEN SHE CAME IN TO GET THE MOLD FOR HER FAKE BREASTS FROM. THEY WERE LATER MARRIED.

Angela: Blessed be the sinners, for the day of atonement is at hand.

Sal: Say what?

I remember the ending of Angela's party when daylight arises and I loved it. I thought it was so scary seeing these dead friends/ possessed friends coming at you and wanting you dead. Being only two survivors of the movie, you know so serious crap went down. I loved seeing the demons turn to fog and disappear. It was a simple trick but was done tactfully and not cheesy.

The gore in this movie was top-notch and lovable to any fan of the genre. They were very well done, and the possessed looked scary as all hell. Like I mentioned earlier, Angela scared me as a child and that's why it took me so long to see the movie. The most memorable is the eye gouging scene. It looked unbelievably painful.

Angela: Oh don't tell me you're leaving? Sal wanted to go...but he decided to stick around! 

[shot of Sal with a wooden stake through his heart]

DID YOU KNOW?

NIGHT OF THE DEMONS WAS SHOT IN 4 WEEKS

Angela: [shouts] Come on! Your face looks fine. I have never seen anyone spend so much time in a mirror!

Suzanne: Relax! I just wanna look good for the boys. You did remember to invite some cute boys to the party I hope.

Angela: Of course I did, and we're gonna scare the sh*t out of them.

In conclusion I'd like to encourage anyone viewing my page to see this movie for their own sake. If you love horror and love 80s horror then do it. You can't go wrong. You'll enjoy it. If you don't find it scary you'll find it funny, if you don't find it funny you'll find it scary. It's entertaining and a true underrated gem.

Night Of The Demons was one of the last horror movies of the 80s and it reminded us by slapping us in the face with everything we love from that era and genre in one fun, gory and extraordinary horror film dedicated to fans like us. For those of us who get it, we love it.

This movie is cemented as one of my all-time favorites and frequently comes up in almost any horror conversation I have. I could watch it over and over. 

I later heard that there was a 6" cardboard stand-up that was made available for fans of the movie when the movie was released. I wish I had one of those...I may hunt one down and get it for the mancave.

Coming Next Month

Grimm Reviewz Remembers