Much like with Bliss, I picked this feature to look at partly because it hadn’t gotten a good reception from audiences and critics (hell, I think this one has been received even worse than Bliss), but also because part of me still hopes for something worthwhile here. And in the case of Demonic, that desire is largely off the back of writer/director Neill Blomkamp’s last film Chappie, which still has one of my all-time favourite endings of any film I’ve reviewed on here. It’s the kind of finale that managed to make up for just how mishandled everything leading up to it had been, so I’m basically going into this with the anticipation that it might not work out, but still hoping for something that measures up to that flash of brilliance, if only for a moment.
And we’re already off to a good start, as this film’s main ideas are connected to Chappie’s look at man’s relationship with technology as something almost divine, with a story following Carly (Carly Pope) as she reconnects with her estranged mother through the combination of an artificial reality machine and a squad of militarised demon hunters. Yep, it’s pretty damn high-concept right out of the gate, presenting itself like a cross between The Exorcist and Tarsem’s The Cell as it combines a traditional demonic possession storyline with mind-exploring sci-fi.
Just for making that kind of combination, this film already wins some points with me because, quite frankly, it’s getting kind of boring for possession movies to be so firmly ingrained in the old way of doing things. The more Luddite, holy water and crosses methodology has its place, but there’s room for experimentation within that framework, and that’s basically what we get here. The visual effects for the virtual simulation are very well-done, like a scratchier and glitchier version of Richard Linklater’s mo-cap work (and I mean that in the nicest way), which creates this Uncanny Valley effect that makes the eventual appearance of the demon in question that much creepier. That, and the sound design within the simulation is just as well executed.
From there, it cross-breeds psychological and supernatural horror in a way that does justice to both, but without getting into the dicer aspects of that juxtaposition (like, say, conflating mental illness with demon possession). Not only that, but between Carly’s regular nightmares, the possibility of hereditary conditions from her mother, the simulation, and the presence of a demon, there’s a lot of possibilities for reality-bending and mind-screwing that feels like this hybrid concept is being used for a reason.
Now, admittedly, there are times when those two halves chafe against each other. The further along it goes, the wobblier it gets in balancing the sci-fi and supernatural elements of the plot. Hell, I honestly think they missed a trick by not going full Cam and having the ultimate showdown take place inside the simulation. But even if it isn’t a perfect synergy, the idea of using both technology and faith as a way of dealing with one’s demons (literal or otherwise) still shows through. While the simulation itself gets sidelined at times, the use of technology is still quite prevalent, especially with the finale and its use of heat-sensor goggles.
Yeah, I have to admit, while it definitely could have been done better, this is still a pretty interesting and spoopy feature. It continues with Blomkamp’s use of technology to explore aspects of the human condition (albeit without classist undertones in his previous films), it’s quite effective as a straight-up horror film, and for all the different styles it ends up juggling, it handles the switch-ups more times than not. It’s another cool example of cinema made in the midst of the COVID calamity that manages to do a lot with very little breathing room and a smaller budget.
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