Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight

"Ready for your deadtime story?"

1995 1h 33m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 596

HorrorComedyThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Ex-soldier Frank Brayker is the guardian of an ancient key that can unlock tremendous evil; the sinister Collector is a demon who wants the key so he can initiate the apocalypse. On the run from wicked mercenaries for almost 90 years, Brayker finally stops in at a boarding house in New Mexico where — with the help of its residents — he plans to face off against the Collector and his band of ghouls, preventing them from ever seizing the key.

“Ready for your deadtime story?”

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Cast

Billy Zane
The Collector
William Sadler
Frank Brayker
Jada Pinkett Smith
Jeryline
CCH Pounder
Irene
Brenda Bakke
Cordelia
Dick Miller
Uncle Willy
Thomas Haden Church
Roach
John Schuck
Sheriff Tupper

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ernest R. Dickerson
Writers: Ethan Reiff, Cyrus Voris, Mark Bishop
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Tales from the Crypt Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ernest R. Dickerson, shot by Rick Bota. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Danny Elfman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Stephen Lovejoy shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Billy Zane and William Sadler and Jada Pinkett Smith carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Ready for your deadtime story?".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0114608 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ernest R. Dickerson directs. Rick Bota behind the camera. Danny Elfman scores. Stephen Lovejoy cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

131 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Part of the "Tales from the Crypt Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Ernest R. Dickerson, shot by Rick Bota. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Danny Elfman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Stephen Lovejoy shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Billy Zane and William Sadler and Jada Pinkett Smith carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Ready for your deadtime story?".
8IMDB entry: tt0114608 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Released under 16 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Rick Bota
Original score: Danny Elfman
Editing: Stephen Lovejoy
Production design: Christiaan Wagener
Costume design: Warden Neil
Makeup / hair: Daphne Lawson
VFX supervisor: John T. Van Vliet
Sound: Gregory Hainer
Stunt coordinator: Shane Dixon
Runtime: 93 min · 1h 33m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $13,000,000
Box office: $21,089,146
Return: 162% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight (1995)

Part of

Tales from the Crypt Collection

Tales from the Crypt was an American bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics from 1950 to 1955. Stories from the series have been adapted into various other media including a 1972 film and a television series that aired on HBO from 1989 to 1996. The later spawned films - such as Demon Knight (1995) and Bordello of Blood (1996) - as well as a children's animated series, a game show, and a radio series.

Also by

Ernest R. Dickerson

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Gimly2019-08-25
★ 6/10
Yeeeeeeaaaaaaah booooyyyyyyy. I have very fond memories of Demon Knight from the days of the active horror community on Tumblr. I don't know if this is "good", but must a movie be "good"? Can we not simply have BIlly Zane wearing sunglasses in the dark, commanding his squad of practical effect demon puppets, and call it a day? Sidenote: I know this is a Tales from the Crypt movie, but I would happily have given up the Cryptkeeper bookends for 5 more minutes of the actually story, silly as it is. Final rating:★★★ - I liked it. Would personally recommend you give it a go.

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