Plot
This first theatrical feature spun off from the television series Tales from the Crypt (which was in turn inspired by the infamous EC horror comics of the 1950s) concerns a mysterious man named Brayker (Bill Sadler), who arrives at a church-turned-rooming house in a small town in New Mexico. Hot on his trail is an equally mysterious and very menacing figure known as the Collector (Billy Zane), who arrives with policemen in tow; he claims that Brayker stole some keys from him, and he wants the cops to help him reclaim them. It turns out, however, that the "keys" are actually several amulets that contain drops of the blood of Christ; they can be used to ward off evil in the right hands, but they can lead the world to doom if used improperly. The Collector and his forces lay siege to the house with the other residents caught in the middle between Brayker and the Collector, including alcoholic Uncle Willy (Dick Miller), prostitute Cordelia (Brenda Bakke), sleazy Southerner Roach (Thomas Haden Church), postal employee Wally (Charles Fleischer), sensible Jeryline (Jada Pinkett), and landlady Irene (CCH Pounder). Bordello of Blood, the second Tales from the Crypt feature, hit theaters the following year. ~ Mark Deming, RoviReview
The tension runs high and the blood runs EC Comics red in Tales From The Crypt's first feature Demon Knight. Mixing scares, humor, down and dirty gore, and a nifty style thanks to director Ernest R. Dickerson, this film succeeds in all the places it should. William Sadler and Jada Pinkett lead a great bunch of character actors through each and every turn in this romp -- though it's Billy Zane who really owns this movie! His devilish grin ends up stealing every scene as the ultimate charming minion of the underworld. Zane brings it all to the table in this one, creating one of the funniest and most wicked villains seen in years. With exceptional Pumpkinhead-esque demon FX to back him up, and groan-inducing Crypt Keeper scenes bookending the film, Tales From The Crypt hits a home run on the fun scale with Demon Knight... it's just too bad they couldn't keep the momentum going with the next installment -- the sad, plodding, Dennis Miller wise-cracking dud Bordello Of Blood. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, RoviCast
- Billy Zane - The Collector
- Bill Sadler - Brayker
- Jada Pinkett Smith - Jeryline
- Brenda Bakke - Cordelia
- CCH Pounder - Irene
Credit
Colin Irwin - Art Director, Alexander B. Collett - Associate Producer, Dan Cracchiolo - Associate Producer, Jaki Brown-Karman - Casting, Alan Katz - Co-producer, Scott Nimerfro - Co-producer, Wendy Wanderman - Co-producer, Trish Keating - Costume Designer, Warden Neil - Costume Designer, Leigh A. Webb - First Assistant Director, Gilbert Adler - Director, Ernest R. Dickerson - Director, Stephen Lovejoy - Editor, David Giler - Executive Producer, Walter Hill - Executive Producer, Joel Silver - Executive Producer, Robert Zemeckis - Executive Producer, Ed Shearmur - Composer (Music Score), Tim Cooney - Musical Direction/Supervision, Henry Rollins - Songwriter, Donna Lou Henderson - Makeup, Todd Masters - Makeup, Gregory Melton - Production Designer, Christian Wagener - Production Designer, Rick Bota - Cinematographer, Gilbert Adler - Producer, Richard Donner - Producer, Richard Edlund - Producer, A.L. Katz - Producer, George Toomer - Set Designer, Sscott Coulter - Special Effects, Kelsee Devoreaux - Stunts, Scott Patton - Special Effects Supervisor, Mark Bishop - Screenwriter, Ethan Reiff - Screenwriter, Cyrus Voris - Screenwriter| Demon Kiss (2008 Film), Demon Keeper (1994 Film) | |
| Demon Lover Diary (1980 Film), Demon Lust (1997 Film) |
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