Holy Night: Demon Hunters

by Mike McGranaghan

“We may look shady, but we’re professionals.” So says Ba Woo (Don Lee) in the Korean horror film Holy Night: Demon Hunters. He’s one-third of an exorcism team, and his specific role is to literally punch demons back to hell. Sharon (Seohyun) performs the actual ritual and Kim (David Lee) videotapes the proceedings. They’re approached by a doctor, Jung-Won (Kyung Soo-Jin), whose younger sister Eun-Seo (Jung Ji-So) has become violently possessed. After initial reluctance, Ba Woo agrees to help.

That’s more or less all there is to the story. There are a couple brief flashbacks that tell the tale of a tragedy from Ba Woo’s past. Otherwise, it’s about 45 minutes of build-up and 45 minutes of exorcism. The neat twist here is that Sharon explains how exorcisms must be carried out in stages. We witness the team going through all those stages with Eun-Seo. Each is more intense than the last, and collectively they suggest the dangerous complications the characters face.

Director Lim Dae-hee stages the paranormal chaos with ominous style. An upside-down camera moving briskly through a house, kaleidoscopic images, and effective – but not overpowering – CGI combine to take viewers on a fast-paced ride. Many of the best scenes involve Ba Woo punching minions of the devil, their bodies turning to fiery ash as he clobbers them. There are few lulls in the movie. Something creepy is almost always happening.

The performances are part of the appeal. Don Lee exudes “strong and silent type” cool, letting his fists do the talking. K-Pop singer Seohyun nicely captures how Sharon enters a trance-like state when exorcising, and Jung Ji-So is menacing as the demon-inhabited girl. None of the characters gets much in the way of development, but the actors supply enough spark to keep us invested in their shared journey regardless.

Holy Night: Demon Hunters makes no pretense of being anything other than a slick blast of horror mayhem. It’s a film for genre fans who don’t want anything getting in the way of jump scares and gruesome effects. For that reason, it can’t stand alongside the best demonic possession thrillers. The Exorcist has nothing to worry about. The movie is still kind of fun, though, especially if the idea of action star Don Lee beating the crap out of monsters piques your interest.

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