Neill Blomkamp releases first horror movie Demonic. Actress Nathalie Bollt is pictured in a scene from the movie
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@nweillblomkamp
Neill Blomkamp ventures into horror genre with ‘Demonic’ [watch]
‘District 6’ director Neill Blomkamp has released his first horror movie, ‘Demonic’, out in cinemas around the country this weekend.
Neill Blomkamp releases first horror movie Demonic. Actress Nathalie Bollt is pictured in a scene from the movie
Image via Instagram
@nweillblomkamp
Acclaimed South African director Neill Blomkamp is venturing off from his science fiction roots with the release of his new horror movie Demonic.
The Johannesburg-born filmmaker responsible for hit movies, such as District 6, Elysium, Chappie and Rakka, helmed the blockbuster science fiction horror film which ventures inside the mind of a serial killer.
‘DEMONIC’ RELEASED IN SA CINEMAS
Demonic tells the story of leading lady Carly Pope who reconnects with her serial killer mother Angela – who happens to be in a coma – through cutting-edge therapy that simulates a dream world, and the ability to communicate with her sleeping consciousness.
In the altered reality, Carly discovers that her mother is possessed by an Avian-like demon, which latches on to her after it discovers a secret plot by the Vatican to “eliminate” it at it’s entry point from hell.
Demonic was filmed in 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.
Speaking of his foray into the horror movie genre, Neill told film critic Scout Tofaya:
“The main separating factor between this and the other stuff I’ve done is that there’s always a level of quirk or satire in the stuff I seem to be drawn to, and I wanted to do something that was dead serious. No room for quirk anywhere”.
MIXED REACTIONS TO NEILL BLOMKAMP HORROR
The $1.9 million “low budget” film has attracted a mixed reaction from viewers abroad where the movie premiered in August this year.
While some have loved it, others have clearly hated it. Various review on film critic site Rotten Tomatoes read:
“Demonic is one of these terrible horror movies where hallucinations and nightmares are over-used to try and distract viewers from the badly conceived story”.
“Perhaps one of the shabbiest excuses for a horror film in recent memory”
“Boring and simply not very good”.
“With Demonic, Blomkamp seems to be trying to find out for himself whether he can make a horror movie”.
Rotten Tomatoes
‘Demonic’: ‘Just something to do during COVD-10’?
South African expat Angelica Blake, who watched the film at a screening in Czech Republic, told SA People: “Neill was there to chat with everyone about the movie afterwards. Right off the bat the host told him the movie got bad reviews… Neill agreed it wasn’t his best work. It was just something he decided to do during COVID-10…”
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