Woodyanders Review of The Dead Pit

The Dead Pit (1989)

A totally funky late 80's zombie horror splatter blast

[8/10 · 4 September 2008]

Mysterious amnesia victim Jane Doe (a game portrayal by luscious brunette stuntwoman Cheryl Lawson) gets sent to an asylum where twenty years ago the deranged Dr. Colin Ramzi (a pleasingly creepy Danny Gochnauer) was conducting sadistic brain experiments on the hapless inmates. A sudden earthquake resurrects Dr. Ramzi so he can embark on a new campaign of terror. Director/co-writer Brett Leonard and co-writer Gimel Everett do a bang-up job of creating and maintaining a grim, morbid and absolutely twisted brooding gloom-doom atmosphere: the dank and depressing tone rarely lets up for a minute, there's no goofy comic relief to speak of (however, this film does have a wickedly macabre sense of pitch-black gallows humor), Ramzi's lobotomized zombie victims are genuinely hideous and unsettling (the climactic lively zombie rampage seriously smokes, too), and we've got a handy helping of grisly gore (brains are scooped out, the tops of heads are cut off to expose peoples' glistening cerebrums, and long, sharp needles are thrust into several folks' skulls). The slick cinematography by Marty Collins makes neat use of shadowy lighting and gives the picture an attractive glossy look. Dan Wyman's spirited shivery'n'spooky score likewise does the skin-crawling trick. Moreover, the solid cast all play their parts with tremendous enthusiasm: Steffen Gregory Foster delivers an utterly engaging performance as charming explosives expert Christian Meyers, Joan Bechtel is deliciously hateful as the cruel and domineering Nurse Kygar, plus there's sturdy supporting work from Jeremy Slate as friendly head psychiatrist Dr. Gerald Swan, Geha Getz as unhinged nun Sister Clair, Mara Everett as the sweet Nurse Robbins, and Jack A. Sunseri as affable orderly Jimmy. As a yummy extra bonus, the gorgeously voluptuous Lawson spends a fair share of her screen time clad only in a tight tank top and skimpy panties (and she also even briefly bares her beautifully bountiful breasts as well!). All in all, this fright feature sizes up as a great deal of good'n'ghastly ghoulish fun.