TALES FROM THE CRYPT PRESENTS DEMON KNIGHT (1995)

MORGAN'S RATING

Brayker is a man who carries the last of seven keys, special containers which held the blood of Christ and were scattered across the universe to prevent the forces of evil from taking over. If the Collector gets the last key, the universe will fall into Chaos, and he has been tracking Brayker all the way to a small inn in a nowhere town. And now the final battle for the universe begins...

Jon Kassir (Voice of The Crypt Keeper), Billy Zane (The Collector), William Sadler (Brayker), Jada Pinkett (Jeryline), Brenda Bakke (Cordelia), CCH Pounder (Irene), Dick Miller (Uncle Willy), Thomas Haden Church (Roach), John Schuck (Sherrif Tupper), Gary Farmer (Deputy Bob Martel), Charles Fleischer (Wally Enfield), Tim De Zarn (Homer), Sherrie Rose (Wanda), Ryan O'Donohue (Danny), Tony Salome (Sirach), Ken Baldwin (Dickerson), Chasey Lain, Reda Beebe, Te-See Bender, Traci Bingham, Ponti Butler, Veronica Culver, Tina Hollimon,Elaine del Valle, Mim Parker (Party Babes), Dale Swann (Bus Driver), Mark D. Kennerly (Other Collector), Peggy Trentini (Amanda), Kathy Barbour, Tina New (Crypt Keeper Starlets), Stephanie Sain (Mavis, voice), Tom Vicini (Crypt Keeper Body Double), Graham Galloway (Fred, uncredited), John Larroquette (Slasher, uncredited).

READY FOR YOUR DEADTIME STORY?

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

DIRECTORS: Gilbert Adler (Bordello of Blood) and Ernest R. Dickerson (Futuresport). WRITERS: Ethan Reiff, Cyrus Voris and Mark Bishop. PRODUCERS: Gilbert Adler and A L Katz. ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS: Alexander B. Collett and Dan Cracchiolo. CO-PRODUCERS: Scott Nimerfro and Wendy Wanderman. EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Richard Donner, David Giler, Walter Hill, Joel Silver and Robert Zemeckis.  OPENING SEQUENCE PRODUCER: Richard Edlund. ORIGINAL MUSIC: Ed Shearmur. DISTRIBUTOR: Universal Pictures.

FACTS

RELEASE DATE: January 13th, 1995 (USA) BOX OFFICE OPENING: $10.0 million (USA) BOX OFFICE RESULT: $21.0 million (USA) - Brayker says he received the key from a soldier named Dickerson, a reference to director Ernest R. Dickerson. - Several concepts, such as the idea of shooting demons in the eyes to send them back to hell, was later used by writers Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris, for their TV series Brimstone (1998).  - Followed by another Tales from the Crypt installment: Bordello of Blood (1996).

QUOTES

The Collector: Humans. You're not worth the flesh you're printed on!

Crypt Keeper: Fasten your drool cups, and ready your vomit bags! We're going to the movies! Frights, camera, action!

Uncle Willy: [drunk] Boy, listen to that thunder! God's doing some serious thinkin' tonight. I bet he's saying, "On second thought, maybe I shoulda given it all to the monkeys." Brayker: Maybe it's not too late.

CRITICAL COMMENTS

"Tepid terror tale...tries for tongue-in-cheek humor but only supplies some gross-out fore and a fair share of T&A." -- Leonard Maltin

Brayker: [eating slop] You want some? Uncle Willy: Hell, no! I'm just thinking about how much better that stuff looked when it was roadkill.

"A dragged-out single story looking to sustain the series' usual balance of gruesome gore and juvenile humor." -- Richard Harrington, Washington Post

Roach: You know this "Hell on Earth" business? Big fucking deal-- I've got hemmorhoids.

"They should have left it in the crypt." -- San Francisco Examiner

Roach: Vaya con dios. The Collector: And a vaya con diablos to you, too, sir.

"Horror movies are supposed to be scary--or, at the very least, a little shocking. Unfortunately, the only frightening thing about Demon Knight is that Universal chose to release it." -- James Berardinelli, Reel Views

The Collector: Do me a favor? Don't scream. Just hear what I've gotta say...and then scream.