Dir. Emily Hagins (2022)
After a breakup, a young man discovers his new living arrangement is also home to a demon that demands human sacrifice.
CAUTION: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Will (Jon Michael Simpson) is a man who can’t commit to anything. He’s had job after job, hobby after hobby, quitting each activity after discovering something that strikes his fancy more. He even commit half-heartedly to his girlfriend (Amy, played by Paige Evans), whose promotion dinner he skips to take customer service phone calls for a toothpaste company. After he finds himself out on his ass, he finds a lovely little house to rent for a great deal. Unfortunately, he won’t be alone in his new digs: a demon also lives there, and Will is being offered as a human sacrifice by the home’s original tenants, who traded his soul for that of their young daughter. As strange things begin to happen in his new abode, he must defeat the demon by finally committing, lest he lose his soul.
Horror comedies are hard to pin down in a lot of cases, because more often than not they focus on one or the other rather than trying to have a nice blend of both horror and comedy. Sorry About the Demon does a wonderful job of being a sort of parody of other notable films in the genre, with various scenes calling back to classics like Salem’s Lot, Poltergeist, and others. Simpson does a great job of playing the sympathetic lead, selling the comedy in a way that is both funny and relatable. The other actors are great too, especially Jeff McQuitty as Will’s friend Patrick and Olivia Ducayen as Patrick’s friend/exorcist Aimee (the one with two E’s.) The script is really good, and while it’s not the funniest horror comedy I’ve ever seen, it’s a delightful watch that’s full of surprises.
At the end of the day, we watch horror movies, and horror comedies even moreso, to be entertained. Sorry About the Demon does just that: it’s fast-paced, genuinely funny, and an inventive story that actually adds to the genre things that I hadn’t seen before. Writer/director Emily Hagins, who previously directed segments in Scare Package 2 and the short-lived Snapchat V/H/S spinoff, does a great job with the film, creating both likeable characters that the audience roots for and an enjoyable plot that feels much faster than its almost two-hour runtime. It’s a heartwarming movie, something that’s really difficult to accomplish in this genre, but Hagins directs the whole thing like a romantic comedy and it works like gangbusters. It’s a great film with a satisfying ending, and you can’t ask for a whole lot more than that.
Who this movie is for: Horror comedy lovers, Possession movie fans, Century 21 Realtors
Bottom line: Another good one from Shudder, Sorry About the Demon is an infinitely watchable horror comedy with some surprising new ideas. The actors are awesome, particularly Jon Michael Simpson as the lead, and writer/director Emily Hagins does a phenomenal job in this satirical twist on possession movies. It’s funny, heartwarming, and absolutely worth a watch. There’s less horror than comedy, so it might be a miss for someone looking for something on the scarier side, but it’s genuinely funny and age-appropriate for even the younger horror fans. Check it out streaming now on Shudder.
