Demon Squad
In general, one can either make films that shoot, so to speak, real places and people or create entirely different universes. Take for example, the first option: it is quite easy to draw upon the setting of a crime drama or series which is based on known facts and tries to bend the tip and make pieces out of the available whole, in order to create a reasonable occurrence. Then there are the Marvel superheroes, and their happily ever after ending, as though comic book characters exist in our everyday reality.
Not to belittle the intricacy of making any film, but creating an alternate universe is a pretty difficult thing to tackle. Creating an alternate universe is a challenge that is bad enough especially when one is working on a relatively tight budget. The new film from director Thomas Smith, Demon Squad, does a fine job of creating a reality where the world is dominated by demons and has a classic film noir storyline that is simple to understand and flows seamlessly within this idiosyncratic universe.
Although the film had gone under a couple of re-titles (from Full Moon Inc, to Night Hunters, to Demon Squad), Demon Squad is another number of the film noir genre but only that its sub-plot revolves around the never-ending fight of demons, monsters and magic realism elements.
The film starts by introducing us to the world, where the setting is a bar occupied by demons and demon-like beings (who wear visually appealing masks having horns, additional eyes etc.). The setting is gradually changed into a detective plot, where the plot seeks after a magical dagger, preventing it from getting into the wrong hands.
The character Nick Moon (Khristian Fulmer) is a pain in the neck, who is also a Covert Investigator, although there’s more to the game as he has some magical skills too. Advertisements and unexplored women ego trips in trouble are tropes we have seen in romantic thrillers before. Many of the beats in the film are in fact straightforward from the black and white detective film beat sheet silhouette, but this movie has the additional monsters and magic element.
The movie, Demon Squad, presents some surprises too. Because it is otherwise a very respected homage towards film noir traditions, it does not have that ambient jazz music very common within the old genre. I felt like there were a couple of scenes that would have been improved with the help of a smooth saxophone melody which would have really sold that classic mystery vibe. While the black and white genre look was intensely embraced, the narrative at times comes across unoriginal or overly formulaic.
Despite a few scenes packed with steampunk accessories, criminals sporting glowing eyes and horns on their heads, and H.P. Lovecraft’s presence, a number of scenes still felt quite overused.
In general, this is a film that has its essence places where it should be. It is a good piece that showcases the possibility of creating another universe within a set budget. Performance wise, it can be said that a couple of performances would stand out such as Nick Moon played by Khristian Fulmer and his rather amazing assistant, Daisy O’Reilly (Erin Lilley). Other fans searching for bloody horror films will be disappointed to a great extend but if you want a magical story with witches and demons then this is the one for you.
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