''Force of Darkness'' is a horror film about demonic possession. A woman witnesses a murder and a detective investigating the case believes the killer was possessed by the devil. It starred

Mel Novak Mel Novak (born June 16, 1942) is an American actor who is best known for villainous roles in ''Black Belt Jones'', ''Game of Death'', and ''An Eye for an Eye''. He is also known for doing all of his own stunts and fighting scenes. Career 1970s ...

, Doug Shanklin, Loren Cedar, Mark Milan, Marlin Fischer,

Gordon Rigsby Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

and Eddie Hailey.

Story

This is a film about a man who is under

demonic possession Spirit possession is an unusual or altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors purportedly caused by the control of a human body by spirits, ghosts, demons, or gods. The concept of spirit possession exists in many cultures and reli ...

. Gloria Ramsey witnesses the murder of her man who is a doctor. Detective Ben Johnson believes that Gloria is innocent of the crime and he goes after the killer who was the doctor's last patient, who has

multiple personality disorder Dissociative identity disorder (DID), better known as multiple personality disorder or multiple personality syndrome, is a mental disorder characterized by the presence of at least two distinct and relatively enduring personality states. The di ...

. Detective Johnson believes it's demonic possession that is involved. Conrad who is the killer roams the streets looking for victims. Detective Johnson has a job to stop him. The quest takes him to

Alcatraz prison United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or The Rock was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, the site of a fo ...

. Alcatraz prison is not empty. There are people who are staying there. The killer's possession may be related to demons that reside in Alcatraz. The demons that possess Conrad have an interest in Gloria and they beckon her to come to Alcatraz. A final confrontation is due in the prison that has been closed for 22 years.

Background

The film story was by Jack Baylam. The video release slick says, The EXORSIST opened the door and now someone has made contact.

Possible Christian connection

There's a possible Christian connection to the film. Eddie Hailey who played Murry in the film, and Gene Redlon in '' Another Life'' had been a born again Christian for some years prior to this film. While on the set of ''Another Life'', he would lead the cast in prayer each morning. Mel Novak who played Conrad in the film has been an ordained Christian pastor for decades. James Gabriel Stipech who composed the music for the film also worked on a pro-life film called ''

The Silent Scream ''The Silent Scream'' is a 1984 anti-abortion propaganda film directed by Jack Duane Dabner, narrated by Bernard Nathanson (an abortion-provider-turned-anti-abortion-activist), and produced in partnership with the National Right to Life Committ ...

'' which was released the previous year in 1984. He had been a member of Christian rock band The Way in 1976.''Classic Christian Rock'', Sep 25, 2015
The Way, "The Way...wait!

Cast

References

External links

Imdb: Force of Darkness

Videospace: Force of Darkness (1985)

Video Collector: Force of Darkness (1985)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Force of Darkness American supernatural horror films American horror drama films American psychological thriller films Demons in film American psychological horror films American police detective films American serial killer films Religious horror films Films about spirit possession Films shot in California Films set in San Francisco Films set in the San Francisco Bay Area Films shot in San Francisco 1985 horror films 1985 films Alcatraz Island in fiction 1980s English-language films 1980s American films