NIGHT OF THE DEMON (1957)

• Director: Jacques Tourneur
• Cast: Dana Andrews, Peggy Cummins, Niall MacGinnis
• Film: 96mins | UK | Subtitles | Intermission
• Event: Doors 6pm | Intro + Film 6:30pm – 9pm [18+]
• Event takes place in the Members’ Bar (membership not required)

“MOST TERRIFYING STORY THE SCREEN HAS EVER TOLD!”

An American professor arrives in London for a parapsychology conference, only to find himself investigating the mysterious actions of a Devil-worshipper.

Cult film night BAR TRASH continues with CELLULOID JAM, an unofficial celebration of 50 years of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975).

Referenced in ROCKY HORROR’s lusciously lip-synched opening number, ‘Science Fiction/Double Feature’, British horror film NIGHT OF THE DEMON (1957) should not to be confused with the 1980 dick-ripping Sasquatch video nasty of the same name… This film is a wondrously creepy story of Satanic worship, murder, and intrigue set in the English countryside. American star Dana Andrews (eating prunes or otherwise…) was a popular leading man of the 1940s and 50s and appears here alongside Peggy Cummins and Niall MacGinnis (as the mysterious Dr Karswell…).

NIGHT OF THE DEMON was famously re-edited by the studio to include a monstrous demon/kaiju/creature that director Jacques Tourneur really hated. So do many fans of the film who have attempted to remove it completely in unauthorised YouTube re-edits. We’re showing the full-length pre-release version restored by the BFI National Film Archive which includes the demon but we’re alright with that: it’s a menacing joy to behold as it steams down the tracks (sorry fans!). This version also reinstates more than 14 minutes of material cut for the film’s North American release. 

“Tourneur, who excelled at films that staged the eruption of repressed desires, made the classic horror films CAT PEOPLE (1942) and I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE (1943)… here, his extraordinary placing and handling of the camera imbue seemingly ordinary surroundings with a brooding sense of menace… an object lesson in atmospheric horror.” 

Phil Hardy, The Aurum Film Encyclopaedia

Polite notice: We are showing the 96min pre-release version of NIGHT OF THE DEMON in 1.75:1 ratio with subtitles from the best available digital source.

// Part of BAR TRASH Season 9 — CELLULOID JAM, an unofficial celebration of 50 years of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975). Hosted by queer film fanatic Token Homo (creator of BAR TRASH and QUEER HORROR NIGHTS), all films screen with an introduction, intermission, and subtitles/captions (where possible!). Tickets £8 / £5 for PH members. Adults 18+ only. Follow @tokenhomo on Instagram for news and updates. //