Sorry About the Demon

Sorry for the Demon is an interesting concept; it’s a film that has one of my favorite types of ghost story tropes that you don’t see very often, which is that of the ambivalent hauntee. The film follows Will, a recently dumped toothpaste telemarketer who moves into a cheap old house rented out by a family trying to find a sacrifice for the demon haunting their house. The film has some funny gags with Will wandering around the house trying to keep his mind off his heartbreak as he is being haunted. At first, he is too in his own head to realize he is being haunted, but eventually catches on and is mostly just annoyed by the specters stealing his ironic T-shirts, playing the piano better than him, and writing threatening messages on the cakes he bakes to try to win back his ex. The film, at times, is a little cloying with the millennial humor, but it’s mostly a harmless attempt at a horror comedy.

I would love to see Hagins remake this movie in the future; it almost reaches what it aims for, but is stifled by inexperience. The entire runtime of the film scenes appears and disappears, with only a connection to the general flow of the plot. There was a point about 45 minutes to an hour into the film when it seemed the story was wrapping up, but there were still another 40 minutes or so left, which confirmed how the movie drags quite a bit for me. I wish there were some tighter editing, which would both enhance the horror and comedy elements and could all be said with a shorter runtime.

The film itself is a tad too long and could be a tight 90 or even a short film if I'm being honest. I do like the premise—the story reminds me of one of Clive Barker’s shorts in Books of Blood, where a demon tries his best to haunt an undauntable man. Very clever and funny. The film is a bit funny in places, but the amateurish lighting and acting leave the audience wanting something a bit tighter, with more seasoned comedic actors. I’m certainly not upset that I watched the film. I would definitely recommend watching it on the Shudder app, then deciding later whether to buy it.

Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray
Thanks to Shudder and OCN Distribution, the release of Sorry for the Demon includes a single region A Blu-ray disc in a standard case, along with a booklet with a write-up about the film by film critic Amber T. If you order directly from Vinegar Syndrome, you can snag an exclusive slipcover. 

This release is shown in 1080p, so the release looks average for a Blu-ray release. This film is a good early film from filmmaker Emily Hagins; the ghost makeup is solid. It is funny that the lead character sells toothpaste mainly because the lighting in this film makes it feel like you’re watching a toothpaste commercial. Everything is lit a little too brightly, making the horror bits feel cheesy, but not in a campy way. The video on the Blu-ray disc is pretty good.

The audio in this release is also pretty average and shown in Dolby Digital 2.0ch. The dialogue is clear from the standpoint of the physical release. The sound design could be a little better; this film suffers from being just competent enough to be not very interesting. Like everything sounds good, it’s just not very interesting or distinct.

The supplements are ok in this release; you get a commentary from the filmmaker and lead actor, which is nice that they got to do that for this release. There is a deleted scenes reel, which is fun, and there's also a trailer. It's nice that there are some supplements for this streaming release; however, it’s not enough to make the physical release more appealing.

• Deleted Scenes (HD 12:44)
• Trailer (HD 1:45)

This release is an average release for a pretty average horror comedy. The film itself is fine; I really like the premise, but the execution is too competent, lacking much style. The audio and visuals look and sound like a commercial; each scene is crisp and brightly lit, and it almost feels like when you go to your folks’ house and their motion smoothing is on. Hagins et al are competent filmmakers. The movie wasn’t bad by any means; it just needed some work, maybe some cast changes, and a tighter script. I would probably sit this one out, though I do like that straight-to-streaming films are getting the chance at physical releases. I would recommend watching the movie on Shudder and deciding whether it’s worth purchasing for you. This movie is ultimately Worth A Look