Lamberto Bava
Dèmoni

Even before stripping Kim Rossi Stuart from his golden kimono and placing him in a leotard in the unfortunate role of the handsome lover in Fantaghirò, Lamberto Bava captured on film what is the most terrible of nightmares: being chased by some dangerous creature (for some reason in dreams it's often a dog) that has an inexplicable urge to bite, not because it is hungry but because it feels right...

Good blood doesn't lie...

...and being the son of the great Mario had instilled in him the desire to unsettle, to horrify, to make you fall asleep as late as possible (perhaps after a glance under the bed to check that everything is ok). But while Bava senior loved to combine warm red liquid with social, ecological, and psychological meanings in his works, Lamberto preferred to nourish and be nourished by blood alone...

Things happen because they have to happen...

This should be a corollary for any horror plot. Fear must come on its own, it should not have an identifiable source. A good horror should not explain why things happen but should have the same effect as a punch taken while sleeping: it must awaken you from your fictitious tranquility and make you ask... "but why????"

From this point of view, "Demons" fully succeeds in its task: a cinema, guests at a mysterious premiere, a strange mask at the entrance of the venue. That's it. We have all the necessary elements. Now let events take their course...

A girl plays with the mask, gets injured, but it's just a small cut. The film showing begins, and strangely, its plot is similar to what is about to happen in the cinema. The injured girl starts feeling bad, locks herself in the bathroom, and transforms. She is angry, very angry, and if she bites you, you will transform too. There is only one thing left to do: try to escape but, alas, the exits are blocked, so... it's tough luck...

The plot is child's play. But a good horror must be understandable to children. It's also a mirrored variation of the classic Romero theme of the "undead": while to escape the stupid, slow, and clumsy zombies one would barricade themselves in a cozy wooden house, here one must try to get out to escape the incomprehensible desires of sly, fast zombies. But Bava does not seek socio-cultural explanations in the advancement of his obsessions:

these Demons bite because your flesh is good... nothing more...

The guarantee of a resonant name such as Dario Argento in production, the special effects of a debuting Stefano Stivaletti, and the minimal and essential plot made Bava's "Demons" travel the world achieving unimaginable success, given the premises.

Imperfect, gaudy, poorly acted but supported by a soundtrack by the usual Simonetti and some respectable metal tracks (first and foremost Accept and Scorpions), "Demons" is what every film, in which liters of red liquid are wasted, should be: an hour and a half of fearsome relaxation with the popcorn cone intact (if the popcorn level drops too much it means something isn't working).

But, above all, by the end, it should leave you with an ungodly desire. It varies from person to person, I don't know about you, but at the end of the viewing, I wanted to have that damn mask...