DEMONIUM

A couple is massacred by a mysterious killer; a flashback takes us back a year, during the reading of Arnlod Berger's will, an eccentric scientist brutally killed in his castle. It is in this place that a group of friends and relatives (including the two victims mentioned above) gather to learn the last wishes of the deceased. But one after another they fall victim to the hand of a fierce killer. Ladies and gentlemen, here is the debut in 35mm of Andreas Schnaas! First of all, it must be said that the film was shot in Super16, much more economical and suitable for being "blown up" to 35, because it does not give the grainy effect typical of enlargements. But let's get to the facts, to start the story. Written by Sonja Schnaas (the director's wife) and by Ted Geoghegan (formerly part of the staff of the horror site Diabolical Dominion, now a screenwriter and soon director of low-budget horror films), it is not distinguished by its originality and is affected by a few too many holes. On the technical side, little to say: Schnaas, being able to count on a professional crew and a few more means than his more recent productions, plays with steadycam and dolly (although in several scenes the handheld camera is used), so the visual side would be sufficient, if not for the photography a bit too dark that ruins several scenes. The influence of Lucio Fulci (a cult director for the author) is certainly felt in more than one scene, but the atmosphere is far from being comparable to that of the Italian master's films. Let's say it clearly: there is little tension and that little there is certainly not something memorable. The actors are an even more painful point: since the film was shot in Italy, Italian actors were used, pity that the film had to be in English and these poor guys, who obviously do not have a very credible pronunciation, make a bad figure, not to mention that they are not the maximum of expressiveness. And the splatter effects, you will ask? Well, those are there. Contrary to what those who claimed that the film was not splatter due to the high budget (a little less than a million dollars... a paltry sum for a common film, but a kolossal thing for Schnass, used to penny-pinching productions) and to leave room for the atmosphere (but which? The scenes that should keep you glued to the seat make you want to lie down on the couch), the blood flows here, simply excessively paroxysmal things (like the various atrocities of the "Violent Shit" trilogy) have been avoided: between forks used as tracheal probes, axes and, above all, a chainsaw, the gore fans can cheer enthusiastically, also because the special effects are well made and make you forget the homemade ones of the German director's beginnings. The same cannot be said of those in Computer Graphics, curated by Sergio Stivaletti, which perhaps suffer a bit too much from the lack of money available. If it were not for this and for some interesting solutions (sometimes Schnaas has flashes of genius), the film would be really to throw away. Pity, because something better could have been pulled out of all this.