Demon Wind

Director - Charles Philip Moore (Dance with Death, Angel of Destruction)
Starring - Eric Larson (Angel, Once and Again), Francine Lapensee (Death Chase, 2002: The Rape of Eden), and Rufus Norris (CBS Schoolbreak Special, Return Fire)
Release Date - 1990
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "It'll blow you away"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     When I was younger I was a movie fan.  I wasn't obsessed with horror yet but I saw all genres equally.  I spent most of my time watching kids movies like Space Jam, Heavyweights, Air Bud, and so on.  I was a product of the 90s and grew up visiting the video store almost every night.  I would sometimes mix it up with a little action, horror, sci-fi, and so on just to spice it up a bit.  It was on one of these many visits that I rented the some of my favorite films growing up for the first time; The Midnight Hour and Demon Wind.  I rented them once and absolutely loved them but could never find them again after that initial viewing.  A few years ago I was attending a horror con and found a boot of the Midnight Hours (I know, boo - hiss).  I never could find Demon Wind and honestly I forgot the name of it.  When I would ask horror fans if they knew the name of it they often met me with skepticism or thought I made it up.  However, I was able to track it down one night on the UHM forums and was heartbroken to learn that there was never a proper release of the film.  That changed recently when the fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome released the film on blu and was nice enough to send a copy my way.  Thanks guys!

     The film follows a young man and who had his estranged family tracked down by his loving girlfriend only to find that his father recently killed himself leaving his family's cabin to him.  They invite along some friends for moral support.  The locals tell them to leave but they refuse and continue on their journey until they arrive at an unusual cabin.  One side of the cabin is destroyed yet when they go in through the front door the cabin is unharmed.  Once inside they learn of his tragic past and the demonic presence that haunts his family.

     This film is far from perfect but god damn it is so much fun. I absolutely love the story and how much it reminds me of the Evil Dead films.  In fact, when I was describing this film a lot of people told me it was Evil Dead II like I wouldn't know what that was.  I do see similarities between the two but they are not the same film.  The acting in this one is so so.  The cast all has a decent listing on imdb but the cast has several scenes where they completely forget to act.  They just spit out their dialogue with no emotional attachment.  I would like to note that as the film progresses they find themselves losing their close friends but rarely show any emotional attachment to them.  This is a cold group of friends.  The story for this one has a lot going on which could explain why it was difficult to get the film completed.  The demonic possession and witchcraft angle is fucking fantastic.  The house, the spells, the angel and demon fight scene, all of it is fantastic.  It's 80s cheese that is still in date.  It could easily be set in the Evil Dead universe or paired with it for hell of a double feature.  Finally, the film doesn't have that much gore.  There is some pretty bloody kills but the icing on the cake is the oozing effects on the demons.  The effects in this are some of my favorite which is the only real reason you need to watch this film.  The rest is just a bonus.  Overall, Demon Wind is not the most polished horror film but god damn is it fun.  This is easily my favorite Vin Syn release to date and a must have for any horror fan.  Check it out.