Actually, although it fits that sub-genre and quite clearly is attempting to copy the associated clichés and tropes, technically no such slashing or gore actually takes place. Obvious similarities to other movies aside, clearly some attempt was made to be even a little different in it's structure and approach. Suffocation, the masked killer's preferred M.O., actually comes across very effectively and gives the film at least a hint of originality. His preference for stalking and terrorising young, pretty girls is fortunate from a voyeur perspective and so occasionally we are treated to a bit of nudity, purely exploitatively of course!To say Cameron Mitchell was under-used in this film would be a huge understatement; his untimely and inexplicable end comes all too abruptly to have felt the remotest emotional investment in his character. Not that we do with any of the array of The Demon's victims, who all act frustratingly random and stupid, although somehow ironically this propels the action further by giving it a bizarre and unpredictable quality.Shots of apparent action in complete darkness and cut-aways of waves crashing on a beach only hinder the already confusing and disjointed plot; it was seemingly structured and edited by a mad-man! And don't get me started on the insane script!Overall, what this movie lacks in technical value, appears to gain in atmosphere and individuality (which helps a bit considering it's a shameless Halloween rip-off). It's not a terrible movie, it's just not that well done.

The Demon is a South African Halloween clone about a motiveless serial killer who suffocates his victims with clear plastic bags. To be honest, it's a pretty shoddy effort in many ways but it's definitely not without merits either. In some respects one of this movie's chief problems is also inadvertently one of its strengths. The issue in question is how confusingly structured it all is. Characters are linked together only via the killer, and he is, to put it mildly, very vaguely defined himself. So the film has a very disjointed feel to it. While I can't see this as having been intentional, it does have a strange dream-like effect where we have this weird pale-faced amorphous figure appearing at various times with no fathomable reason. The Demon himself is a decent villain, as he has a good air of mystery about him, partly due to the fact that he is given absolutely no history or motivation. He is masked like Michael Myers in a white faceless mask although this mask does seem to appear and disappear between shots which must surely qualify as a pretty monumental goof. His killing method is bloodless but unusual enough for some credit. Although quite honestly even if there were buckets of the red stuff you would be doing well to even notice seeing as the lighting in this production is terrible. Too many scenes are played in almost total darkness, so you only have an impression of what's going on. Fortunately, we are able to make out the finale which is a lengthy scene involving the Demon chasing a topless girl around a house – it's clichéd but this sort of stuff never really gets old. The only name actor is Cameron Mitchell who plays a psychic colonel who is helping track down the killer. But he only ultimately has a bit part in the film and exits the picture in a very memorably sudden and unexpected way.Despite it's shortcomings I did quite enjoy this one. It may have been poorly put together but it did have some tense scenes, and some interesting moments. It's worth a look if you enjoy trashy horror flicks.

The Demon really doesn't have much going for it. The lighting is awful, dialogue is ridiculous in some spots, and some things in it just make no sense (you've got to love the random shots of waves crashing onto rocks).At least at the beginning there's something slightly different going on. The killer kidnaps a family's daughter and so they enlist the help of a psychic gifted with ESP (Cameron Mitchell). Now, I'd like to think that Mitchell is a good actor but it's really hard to judge when he's given ridiculous things to do and say ("I get feelings sometimes. Vibes, as the kids might say.")Sure, it's not very good at all, but the least they could have done was not abandon this part of the story. Cameron and the kidnapping plot end up almost being dropped completely, leading us to the story that takes over the rest of the film.Ever hear the one about the guy in the white mask who stalks some girls?Yeah, that happens here too. To be fair, this portion isn't as bad despite being a blatant ripoff. The girls are decent at acting and serve the dual purpose of being easy on the eyes. There's a few suspenseful scenes and the climax isn't all that bad despite being completely wacky. That doesn't make up for everything else, though. In the end, The Demon mostly just provides moments of boredom and stupidity.

DEMON, THE (1979) 1/2 (out of four) A small town is terrorized by a monster who appears to be killing people so that he can suck their blood out. Poor Cameron Mitchell plays some sort of psychic but there isn't a single thing in this movie that makes sense. I've read a couple reviews on the film and even they don't make any sense out of this "horror" movie, which forgot the horror, the scares and the gore. Off topic but poor Mitchell would spend the rest of the decade appearing in this low budget films. Others of interest is FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND, MEMORIAL DAY MASSACRE and JACK-O.