I have seen and reviewed numerous films, and "Dead Alive" is one of the few that defy any conventional analysis. It is so gleefully offensive, so unabashedly over-the-top, that most will find it difficult to objectively evaluate. Some viewers will consider it a tour de force, a masterpiece among spatterfests. Others will denounce it as the most violent, disgusting thing ever made. Depending on your tastes, they could both be right. It is certainly the most gruesome film I've seen. A young man's widowed mother is bitten by some sort of "rat monkey," eventually transforming her into a zombie who bites others and spreads her infliction among others. The unspeakable ensues. Certainly, if director Peter Jackson had tried to take the material seriously, the film would be an utter disaster, or at least not be as watchable. He wisely refuses to play it straight at any time, making sure everything is appropriately cartoony and surreal, with swooping camera movements and utterly absurd situations. Its critics were missing the mark when they said it was so unrealistic--that was the point! The film benefits from an energy and wit that is usually lacking in most gore flicks.
The actors do a good job, considering the admittedly difficult task they were faced with--how to play the material. It is fortunate that all concerned came to the realization that the best way to act in a comedy is to pretend you're in a serious movie. This approach paid off; Timothy Balme and Diana Peñalver are very effective as a young couple inexplicitly faced with the powers of darkness. They have real chemistry together, and elicit genuine sympathy from the audience. An important aspect of making a successful horror film is to give us characters to care about, and "Dead Alive" is an unqualified success in this area. Without them, it would merely be an exercise, but with them, there is a center of morality that kept me connected to the story on an emotional level. Elizabeth Moody adds good support as the hero's domineering mother, who never fails to get on the nerves whether as a human or zombie. Ian Watkin plays a troublesome uncle who only cares about himself, and whose comeuppance is most welcome. Stuart Devenie plays a man-of-action priest who gets the film's most memorable line while fighting the zombie onslaught.
I cannot blame anyone who lacks the stomach to sit through "Dead Alive." Indeed, at times even I found it to be a bit much. Yet, I cannot help but admire its sheer all-or-nothing approach--Jackson certainly had guts to film this, and persistence to secure financing. The subplot about the baby zombie is utterly tasteless, yet undeniably hilarious. As a matter of fact, even "From Dusk Till Dawn" (as good as it was) never went as far as this movie did. One is rendered speechless, unable to immediately process what he's seen. It is not easy to award this film a star or numerical rating. Some would argue that ratings do not apply for the movie. I am judging it by what it set out to do--provide a roller coaster ride of splattery thrills. On that basis, it succeeds, although some would make a similar observation in a much more negative light.
*** (out of ****)
Released by Trimark Pictures
The actors do a good job, considering the admittedly difficult task they were faced with--how to play the material. It is fortunate that all concerned came to the realization that the best way to act in a comedy is to pretend you're in a serious movie. This approach paid off; Timothy Balme and Diana Peñalver are very effective as a young couple inexplicitly faced with the powers of darkness. They have real chemistry together, and elicit genuine sympathy from the audience. An important aspect of making a successful horror film is to give us characters to care about, and "Dead Alive" is an unqualified success in this area. Without them, it would merely be an exercise, but with them, there is a center of morality that kept me connected to the story on an emotional level. Elizabeth Moody adds good support as the hero's domineering mother, who never fails to get on the nerves whether as a human or zombie. Ian Watkin plays a troublesome uncle who only cares about himself, and whose comeuppance is most welcome. Stuart Devenie plays a man-of-action priest who gets the film's most memorable line while fighting the zombie onslaught.
I cannot blame anyone who lacks the stomach to sit through "Dead Alive." Indeed, at times even I found it to be a bit much. Yet, I cannot help but admire its sheer all-or-nothing approach--Jackson certainly had guts to film this, and persistence to secure financing. The subplot about the baby zombie is utterly tasteless, yet undeniably hilarious. As a matter of fact, even "From Dusk Till Dawn" (as good as it was) never went as far as this movie did. One is rendered speechless, unable to immediately process what he's seen. It is not easy to award this film a star or numerical rating. Some would argue that ratings do not apply for the movie. I am judging it by what it set out to do--provide a roller coaster ride of splattery thrills. On that basis, it succeeds, although some would make a similar observation in a much more negative light.
*** (out of ****)
Released by Trimark Pictures