In 1988, Night of the Demons became something of a cult classic. It centered on a group of friends attending a Halloween party in an abandoned mansion and the hell that ensued after guests begin getting possessed by demons. It was a campy and ridiculous film and that’s exactly why it was so much fun. Even as the horror genre was starting to fade, this film reminded everyone of exactly why the 80’s were such a great decade for those of us that love horror movies. It was only a matter of time before a sequel was made. Then in 1994 we were brought part 2 and even though it was a straight to video flick, as many were during that period, it delivered on pretty much all fronts.
This time we follow a group of teens at a Christian academy as they prepare for Halloween. The school is run by Father Bob, Rod McCary (976-Evil 2), and Sister “Save a little room for the Holy Ghost” Gloria, Jennifer Rhodes (Slumber Party Massacre, Heathers, Charmed). The father believes the students should be able to govern themselves in many respects, while the sister is a strict and devout woman. Sister Gloria is easily one the most entertaining characters in horror history. I mean there is literally a scene where she is shown fencing with a ruler. It’s hilarious and Rhodes is clearly having a blast with this role.
We meet sweet Bibi, Cristi Harris (Night of the Scarecrow), catty Terri, Christine Taylor (The Craft, Campfire Tales), and slutty Shirley, Zoe Trilling (Amityville 4: The Evil Escapes, Dr. Giggles, Night Terrors). Then there’s Melissa aka Mouse, Merle Kennedy (Dollman, May). Mouse is the sister of Angela, again played by Amelia Kinkade. It is believed that Angela died and we learn during the course of the film that she and Mouse’s parents both killed themselves. The other ladies are less than thrilled to be rooming with Mouse, especially because she wakes up screaming most nights.
Next we meet the boys. There’s cocky Johnny, played by Johnny Moran, nice guy Kurt, Ladd York (Leprechaun 4: In Space), and outcast Perry, Robert Jayne (Tremors franchise, Mythica franchise). Perry has a fascination with the occult which makes the other students and even Father Bob very uncomfortable. At one point the guy tries to contact the other side and almost gets dragged through a mirror by Angela herself. Smooth move dude.
After being forced to miss the Halloween dance, Shirley tricks the crew into going to party at Hull House. As you can imagine this doesn’t end well for anyone involved. Along the way they meet up with Rick, Rick Peters (Leprechaun 4: In Space, Veronica Mars, Dexter, Holidays) and Z-boy, Darin Heames (Dr. Giggles, Sons of Anarchy). Once the party gets underway the house begins playing tricks on them. After Shirley and her ruffian male cohorts fake an attempt on Mouse’s life the party comes to a halt and everyone decides to head back to the school. The only problem is that earlier in the film, while wandering the house, Bibi came across a lipstick that apparently is demonic. Now I don’t wear make-up but are women in the habit of picking up discarded lipsticks? I mean gross honey, you have no clue who that belonged to. Anyway, it’s through this lipstick that the possessions begin once the kids get back to the school.
Soon all hell breaks loose at the Halloween dance. We have a possessed girl’s breasts turning into hands that excrete acid of some sort and then we are treated to another dance sequence involving Angela. This one is not quite as hypnotic as the one in the first film but it gets the job done. Before you know it Sister Gloria appears to break everything up. She manages to chase away the demons but not before they take Mouse and head back to Hull House.
It’s at this point the remaining teens along with the nun and a disbelieving Father Bob decide to head to the rescue. Armed with rosaries, a yard stick, as well as a super soaker and balloons filled with holy water, they enter the house for the final showdown between good and evil. There are some fun sequences in here, including a scene where one demon is playing basketball with it’s own severed head and another where rosaries are used like nun chucks (get it Nun? lol). The only gripe I really have has to do with the snake creature at the end of the film. There is a shot where you can clearly see the strings used to make the tail move. Other than that though this film is a campy, gory blast.
The Savage Cinephile 