DEMONS VS GHOSTS

DEMONS VS GHOSTS is a film which asks as much from its audience as it does from itself. Made on a budget of a few rubber masks and a dream, director Benjamin Engdahl achieves an impressive amount with the materials available. But in order to really engage with Engdahl’s vision, the audience becomes an active participant in the making of the film. You must decipher some of the plot's more confusing aspects; you need to imagine the space the characters inhabit (a bedroom becomes an office, for example); you need to believe and give yourself over to the film to truly get where it’s going and, importantly, laugh along with it. And when the movie works, it works incredibly well.

We open in small-town USA. Our nameless lead, played by Engdahl, as almost all characters are, is working a thankless office job. The job is vague, somehow working within the film, financial, and construction sectors, but whatever it is, it sucks. We spend a long time in this office, which is a shame because it is the weakest section of the film. But both our lead and we get a reprieve when the cock sured manager sends the protagonist to a small town in Texas, where the real action starts.

After we arrive in Texas, the real movie begins. Our lead quickly learns that the house he is staying in is haunted by three demons (affectionately called ‘The Stooges’), and a battle of wits and hijinks ensues. The battle, which fills the final hour of runtime, is cartoonish; more Looney Tunes than The Conjuring. The film is at its best when it shows off Engdahl’s knack for physical comedy, both in his direction and Chaplin-esque body movements. A particular favourite scene is when Engdahl battles a haunted locked door. He's thrown around the room, constantly knocked out, then bouncing right back up Wile E. style and trying a new technique.

Despite the comedy working wonders, DEMONS VS GHOSTS is convoluted and downright confusing at times. The opening stretch set in the office is obsolete and unnecessarily weighs down the film. And while the haunted home war is fun, it feels like Engdahl had a number of ideas for specific scenes and struggled to find a reason to connect them. The result is just that: a jumble of funny scenes that don’t flow cohesively from one to the next.

In the end, while charming and at times hilarious, DEMONS VS GHOSTS is too much for too long. A 30-minute version would have been killer, but as it stands, its lack of a throughline sags everything down.

DEMONS VS GHOSTS can be viewed on YouTube for free here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDixVKZusik&t=12s