Demons!
Oh boy, where do we even begin with the horde of demonic forces and evil entities that have
plagued the horror cinematic landscape since time immemorial.
It’s safe to say that there’s a lot to get through, and after the proverbial cork
was shot out of the demon-bottle, way back when in 1973 with William Friedkin’s The
Exorcist--horror cinema has been rife with more possession movies and demonic investigations
than you can cram into a well worn Necronomicon.
And thankfully for us, they all make for some particularly terrifying horror content.
Let’s jump into it shall we?
Hello horror fans--what’s going on, and once again welcome back to the scariest channel
on YouTube--Top 5 Scary Videos.
As per usual, I’ll be your horror host Jack Finch--as today, we curiously take a look
at the Top 5 Scary Demons From Horror Movies.
Roll the clip.
For the curious amongst you, of course--that scene was the demonically possessed Regan
MacNeil under her affliction of the Demonic Overlord himself, Pazuzu.
Because, of course it is--this is a Scary Demons In Horror Movies list--and we have
to pay tithe to the forefathers of demonic horror cinema, else we’ll be running the
risk of ticking off more tumultuous entities than our insurance can cover--so, yeah.
Better safe than sorry, right?
Of course, William Friedkin’s The Exorcist is our most honorable of honorable mentions,
but you know that we like to keep things fresh over here at Top 5 Scary Videos--so hopefully,
a few of these horrifying entries will surprise you.
I mean that in a good way.
Hopefully.
Oh-- and also, there may be a few spoilers in this particular list, so don’t say I
didn’t warn you.
Kicking off at Number 5 - Bathsheba Sherman
Oh man--don’t you just love that scene?
And I think it’s quite fitting to be kicking off our list with perhaps one of the most
iconic demonic entities in recent times, the otherwise horrifying Bathsheba Sherman, first
depicted in James Wan’s The Conjuring back in 2013.
Now, throughout the events of the film, the entity of Bathsheba plagues Roger and Carloyn
Perron, along with their five daughters Andrea, Nancy, Christine, Cindy and April--after they
move into an old, dilapidated farmhouse out in Harrisville, Rhode Island.
Not only did Bathsheba turn hand-claps into a terrifying horror device, but it was also
in the relentless attention to authenticity where this particular demonic entity truly
shined--framed by the notorious paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren.
And that’s when we were exactly where James Wan wanted us with this film.
Because, perhaps more than any other demonic possession film--it kind of felt real… because
it kind of was.
Loosely based on the true story of the Haunting in Harrisville, Bathsheba Sherman was the
malevolent spirit of an alleged devil worshipping witch back in the mid 1800’s.
As the legend goes, Bathsheba was a direct relative of Mary Towne Eastey, one of the
many women executed for alleged witchcraft in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.
In 1863--Bathsheba married a rich farmer, where under she took the surname Sherman--and
gave birth to his child.
When that child was just a week old though--her husband caught her attempting to sacrifice
her baby to the Devil--and when she was exposed, Bathsheba climbed to the top of the tree outside
the Harrisville home, proclaimed her love for the Demonic Overlord--cursing all those
who would take her land in the future, and hanged herself from the branches.
There, her demonic reign began--and there, we have, The Conjuring.
Yeah.
Either way, Bathsheba is pretty damn terrifying.
Next up at Number 4 - Deborah Logan
And really, the truth of the matter is--I need only play that particular clip to highlight
how utterly grotesque and terrifying the Demonic Deborah Logan is.
Because come on, I don’t care if you’re the most seasoned horror fan of all time--that
scene is well and truly messed up.
But in actual fact, we have to give credit where credit is due--because when we say Deborah
Logan, we actually mean Henri Desjardins--the malevolent entity that is the true antagonist
of 2014’s The Taking of Deborah Logan, written and directed by Adam Robitel--which as a side
note, is an awesome horror film, and in particular one of the most well crafted found footage
horrors of the decade.
The pain and suffering comes from two seperate directions for the poor Deborah Logan, as
she has been afflicted by the terrible disease, Alzheimers, whilst also being paranormally
puppeted by an evil French Physician--Henri Desjardins, who uses Logan as a means to return
to our plane.
As the film goes on to elaborate, prior to the events of the film--Henri Desjardins mysteriously
disappeared after a series of cannibalistic ritualized murders of four young girls--after
which we discovered that Desjardin was attempting to re-create an ancient demonic ritual that
would thus make him immortal.
Also, my favourite part of this film comes after that particular revelation, where Gavin--the
camera operator that serves as the pilot for this found-footage documentary, instantly
leaves after hearing that particularly terrifying information.
As in, we never see him again, Gavin gets one sniff of cannibals and demonic ritualistic
sacrifice--and he’s straight out of dodge like a bat out of hell.
I’m not exactly sure why, but in an otherwise genuinely terrifying film, that particular
attention to detail made this film so worthwhile.
Well, other than the fact that Deborah Logan is frickin nightmare fuel.
Swinging in at Number 3 - Paimon
It’s always bad news when you’ve got a demonic cult in your treehouse, isn’t it?
And it’s even worse news when that particular demonic cult has just used you as a vessel
to usher forth their demonic overlord.
Now, obviously--spoiler alert for those of you that haven’t yet seen Ari Aster’s
resounding, 2018 instant horror classic--Hereditary--but if you haven’t, stop what you’re doing,
go and watch it--and then come back so we can discuss the demonic implications of King
Paimon.
Hereditary is a terrifying film--but what makes this particular demonic entity deserve
a place on our list, is in the even more terrifying implications of his nefarious reign.
Perhaps more so than any other demonic horror film, Paimon seems to cut above the rest--despite
the fact that, well, we never once see him.
And therein lies the rub.
You see, whilst Hereditary *is* very much a film about a demonic entity--it’s a film
about how one single source of evil can affect the lives of many, many people--hence, you
know--the demonic naked cult in the treehouse.
The fact that Paimon has an entire chain of command that serves to manifest his evil will
on our earthly plane, is a concept that has, for the most part, been entirely overlooked
by the genre.
I mean, you could argue that The Omen and it’s sequels were the original progenitor,
but I’m not entirely sure whether The Number of the Beast is equally as terrifying as Paimon
searching for a host and making people behead themselves with piano wire in the process.
The Demon Paimon is the embodiment of despair and hopelessness, exemplified within the events
of 2018’s Hereditary--and in some ways, it may be the most visceral depiction of demonic
possession in horror.
Coming in at Number 2 - The Gemini Killer
And I’d just like to preface this point with the fact that William Peter Blatty’s
The Exorcist 3 is the rightful spiritual successor to William Friedkin’s 1973 classic--The
Exorcist--and in it’s own right, is perhaps one of the most satisfying sequels slash third
entries when held up to most horror franchises.
I mean, it should be--given the fact that William Peter Blatty was the author of the
original novels, and this film is very much him setting the record straight.
And rather than the Pazuzu and Regan MacNeil show, this time--we get a whole host of demonic
possessions and a whole new terrifying paranormal concept.
In the events of the film, Lieutenant Kinderman is on the case of a murderer, investigating
a series of murders that seem to fit the modus operandi of the renowned serial killer, James
“The Gemini” Venamun, played by the awesome Brad Dourif--who, strangely enough--was executed
seventeen years prior to the events of the film.
And well, yeah--you guessed it.
The Gemini Killer was so damn evil in his mortal life, that his soul was sentenced to
eternal damnation, to remain in a state of torment as a demonic entity--and as it turns
out, The Demonic Spirit of the Gemini Killer just so happens to take possession of a very
familiar figure, Father Damien Karras, one of the two priests to oversee Regan MacNeil’s
exorcism during the events of the first film.
As it turns out though, Pazuzu is still kicking about--and the demonic overlord has taken
the Gemini Killer entity under his wing, using his power of possession to enact his revenge
on Father Karras, keeping him in a state of eternal pain and inner conflict.
Based on Brad Dourif’s performance alone, without the fantastically horrifying narrative
of this film--The Gemini Killer is one of the most unnerving demonic entities in cinema,
and rightly so.
And finally, coming in at our Number 1 spot - The Stranger
And this may be a little bit of a surprise to some of you, but just stick with me--and
also note that if you haven’t seen the incredible 2016 South Korean Horror, The Wailing, written
and directed by Na Hong-jin--then please do.
Because it’s awesome, and also a true demonstration on how to pull off an utterly unnerving horror
movie purely by characterisation alone.
The truth of the matter is though, there are so many conflicting forces of evil at play
throughout the events of The Wailing--that on first viewing, it’s incredibly difficult
to decipher exactly which evil to be afraid of.
There’s Moo-myeong, AKA no-name, the woman in white--who may perhaps be an all-powerful
god of the land, or a malevolent witch that uses people as playthings.
Then there’s Il-Gwang, the drifter shaman that seems to have all the answers.
But it’s most unsettling character--alongside many other worthy evil entities, zombies included--is
The Stranger.
Who just so happens to be, the devil himself.
Maybe.
There’s a lot going on with this film.
However, *the* most terrifying aspect of The Stranger, hands down--is the fact that although
he very much is possessed by the Devil, The Evil Crow Spirit, the Tengu of Buddhist Mythology
and all of those things combined--what we see throughout the first few acts of this
film, is the human side of him trying to cling on to whichever morsel of his own mind that
is still left behind.
The Stranger is very much a tormented victim of this demon, and it’s through the extraneous
lengths that his human side goes to--to try and cling on to life and hope--that makes
it that much worse for us to see as viewers.
We don’t know *who* to trust in this film, that’s a given--but as those few closing
scenes roll around, it becomes very clear that all hope has been extinguished--and evil
has won.
And it doesn’t matter if it’s a Demonic Horror Movie or not--that’s where the real
fear lies.
Well, there we have it horror fans--our Top 5 List for the Top 5 Scariest Demons From
Horror Movies.
What did you guys think?
Do you agree?
Do you think there’s plenty more where that came from?
Well, why don’t you let us know your thoughts down in the comment section below, as well
as any choice picks of your own.
Before we depart from today’s video though, let’s first take a quick look at some of
your more creative comments from over the past few days.
Chauncey Shearin Jr says --
Jacky my boy, quick question.
What’s your number 1 move that you won’t watch before going to bed?
Or idk, maybe that could be a Top 5.
-- Well Chauncey, that would be an oddly specific top 5--and also, we could probably fill up
a few parts with that.
Ermmm---I’m not entirely sure really.
Recently, I was going to re-watch Hereditary late at night--and then I kind of stopped
myself and realised that I was sitting in a dark room and it was passed midnight...
So yeah, probably not the greatest idea.
Well on that oddly specific note, unfortunately that’s all we’ve got time for in todays
video--cheers for sticking around all the way until the end.
If you were a fan of this video, or just Top 5 Scary Videos in particular, then please--be
a dear, and hit that thumbs up button, as well as that subscribe bell, and I’ll be
seeing you in the next one.
As per usual, I’ve been your horror host Jack Finch--you’ve been watching Top 5 Scary
Videos, and until next time, you take it easy.