Michael_Elliott Demonia (1990)** (out of 4) Five nuns are brutally murdered and five hundred years later their spirits get a chance for vengeance. Archaeologist team Professor Paul Evans (Brett Halsey) and his partner (Meg Register) begin to realize early on that something isn't right.DEMONIA is a later day Lucio Fulci film, which is actually slightly better than its reputation. By this time the Italian horror market was taking its last gasps of air so if you're expecting something that looks or feels like ZOMBIE or THE BEYOND then you're certainly going to be disappointed. With that said, if you've seen Fulci's later day films like THE GHOSTS OF SODOM then you'll be happy to see that this here is better than that.The biggest issue with DEMONIA is the same thing that haunted a lot of these films and that's the fact that there just wasn't enough money to pull everything off. The story here is an interesting one but it's never fully developed, which is really too bad. As I said, the budget was certainly very low here but Fulci still managed to build up a nice atmosphere and there's some minor gore, which his fans will enjoy. I also thought both Halsey and Register were good in their roles and they at least keep you interested in what's going on. Al Cliver (ZOMBIE) also appears briefly.DEMONIA certainly isn't a classic movie and if you're new to Fulci it's certainly not the place to start watching. With that said, there are a few interesting ideas and moments scattered throughout.

callanvass Fulci was in the twilight of his career at this juncture. As saddening as it is, great talents can hit a wall sometimes. Kinda like Dario Argento these days. Fulci made a few stinkers near the end of his career, and this may be his worst. This movie is endlessly talky, providing no scares or thrills what so ever. Even at 85 minutes or so, this feels unbearable to watch. For an exploitation movie, there is very little nun action or anything that controversial. I'm used to incoherency when it comes to Fulci plots, but he's usually able to overcome it with his style and vision, here he can't. That surrealistic feel is there, but there is nothing interesting going on. Not only is the dialog insipid, but it feels really cheap as well. I wasn't that impressed by the ruins, and I had no idea what was going on in Fulci's head to make such drivel. The typical Fulci obsessions are there! Seances, cats, death involving eyes. There is gore, but it's not a gore fest. Two drunks randomly stumble and impale themselves on spikes (!!) , eyes are clawed and ripped out by cats, a nun is staked, a tongue is staked. We also get a hook in the neck, and a spear in the chest. Not bad, but pretty tame for Fulci's standards. The acting is hard to judge because of the dubbing. Meg Register is gorgeous, but that's about it. We also get a twist at the end I saw coming a mile away. Al Cliver (A Fulci favorite) shows up briefly. Lucio Fulci has a glorified cameo as a detective. If you're looking for nunsploitation and debauchery, expect very little. This is one of Fulci's worst movies, if not his worst! It's a chore to sit through. I'd avoid it like Ebola2/10

craigaholmes I've seen most of Fulci's output (that's available in English anyway) and even I found this one in particular to be disappointing. It's dull, seems incredibly long (though isn't)and even the odd gore scene which aren't very frequent or impressive do little to relieve the boredom.This seems to be the work of someone running low on ideas and, I'm sorry to say, motivation. It's a similar situation with a few of his later works. I'd recommend House Of Clocks, Touch Of Death or Cat in the Brain for a taste of Fulci's later works.Go for one of his many other classics, ignore this unless you're a completist like me and have to have it all!

gridoon This film comes up short in many areas, but it's still not Fulci's worst (it's better than "Aenigma", for sure). The script is thin, and the ending makes no sense, but there are enough well-executed gore set-pieces (considering the budget, the scene where a man gets split in two is a real dazzler!) to make the picture worth seeing, if only for horror fans. (**)