Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight
Blu-ray
Director: Ernest Dickerson
Writers: Mark Bishop, Ethan Reiff, Cyrus Voris
Cast: Billy Zane, William Sadler, Jada Pinkett Smith, Thomas Haden Church, CCH Pounder, John Kassir, Dick Miller
Scream Factory
Rated R | 93 Minutes
Release Date: October 20, 2015

“Ready for your deadtime story?”

Directed by Ernest Dickerson (The Wire, The Walking Dead), 1995’s Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight stars William Sadler (The Mist) as a mysterious drifter known as Brayker.

Brayker possesses the last of seven ancient keys that protect humanity from the forces of darkness. He is pursued by a demonic Collector (Billy Zane, Titanic), who has retrieved the other six keys.

In his quest for the final key, the Collector raises an army of goddamn demons against Brayker and the inhabitants of a run-down hotel. Armed with automatic weapons and some sacred blood, Brayker and Jeryline (Jada Pinkett-Smith) must rally the other guests in a gruesome battle against the Collector and his evil horde of ghouls.

Co-starring Thomas Haden Church, CCH Pounder, and Brenda Bakke, Demon Knight is presented in the style of the Tales from the Crypt HBO series. The film opens and closes with the iconic Crypt Keeper (voiced by John Kassir), who shows up to deliver some terrible puns that are about as dry and dusty as the crypt he crawled out of.

Demon Knight is all schlock and no shock, a horror-comedy that isn’t funny enough nor scary enough to be considered a success. Still, there’s plenty of fun to be had for those looking for pulp fiction frights. To its credit, Dickerson’s film has some awesome practical effects thanks to Todd Masters (Slither) and his fellow special effects and makeup artists. The performances are delightfully overblown, and everyone seems to be doing their damnedest to embody the spirit of the 1950s EC Comics series. And hey, it’s got Dick Miller in it – and you can never go wrong with that guy.

Demon Knight creeps and crawls its way to Blu-ray thanks to Scream Factory, Shout Factory’s sub-division of forgotten horror and science-fiction films. As with most Scream Factory releases, this Collector’s Edition of the movie looks great, with healthy grain retention and vivid colors. With a 1080p transfer in 1.85:1 and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, as well as a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix for home theater enthusiasts, Dickerson’s film has received a definitive release, which will no doubt please hardcore fans.

Overall, this Blu-ray release of Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight is a worthy addition to Scream Factory’s catalog of creepy cult classics. The film, along with its follow-up, Tales from the Crypt Presents: Bordello of Blood, is now available at Amazon. Look below for a list of bonus features, trailer, and cover art!

Bonus Features

– NEW Audio commentary with Ernest Dickerson
– NEW Audio commentary with special effects artists Todd Masters, John Van Vliet, Thomas Bellissimo, and demon performer Walter Phelan
– NEW Under Siege: The Making Of Demon Knight – Interviews with Ernest Dickerson, Billy Zane, William Sadler, Brenda Bakke, and more
– Panel discussion from the American Cinematheque featuring Ernest Dickerson, Dick Miller, and Rick Baker
– Theatrical trailer and still gallery

Trailer

Cover Art

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