Re-Animator - Will's Review.

Herbert West: Reanimator was a 6 part serial by HP Lovecraft intended as a nspoof of Frankenstein. This movie is an updated adaptation of that story, although it uses only the broadest strokes of the original story. 

After a cold open in which West (brilliantly played by Geoffrey Combs)  has seemingly, albeit briefly, reanimated his dead professor at Zurich University, we plough into the films opening credits, and my single biggest problem with the movie. 

Picture the scene: it's 1984, you've just made a horror movie and you need a theme tune. There are all kinds of reasons (mostly budgetary ones) you might want to use a new arrangement of an existing piece as your theme. I have no problem with that. 

But why, why use this:

Yes, that is 'prelude' from the Psycho Suite aka "The main theme to one of the most famous horror movies of all time". It can't be that they didn't want us to notice; they knew that horror fans would be watching, and (along with Jaws and Halloween) this is one of very few horror themes I'd expect even non-horror fans to know. 

I kept expecting the theme to go off in its own direction, using Psycho as a mere reference... But nope, it's the whole thing! 

I know it's a weird thing to get hung up on, but it really bothered me for some reason. 

Anyway, onto the movie proper; I did see most if not all of this at a friends house when I was 12 or so, but didn't really remember a thing about it save for the fact that it was incredibly gory - something which at time of its release was considered true. All I can say on that count is "how horror as changed" the gore in this movie is outright mild by today's standards!

It's an entertaining enough story though and the acting, while (intentionally I assume) hammy at times is perfect for the movie. As already mentioned Combs especially is brilliant as the lead. 

Theme aside, the only problem I had with the movie was an element in the finale. It's odd to use the term 'far fetched' having already bought into the conceit of  a serum that raises the dead, and a head that can talk without lungs or much of a throat; but never the less the 'laser scalpel lobotomy' that the films main antagonist employs to mind-control his victims really does stretch credibility. 

All in all though, I thoroughly enjoyed it; it's part Frankenstein, part zombie movie, and it has a darkly comedic streak running right through it... I look forward to seeing the sequels once were done with the time out 100. 

Braindead - Will's review.

I. Love. This. Movie.

Love it!

I love almost everything about it.



I love that it was made by Peter "Lord of The Rings" Jackson, but is so different to anything he would make once he moved to Hollywood.

I love that it starts on Skull Island (technically setting it part of Jacksons King Kong universe).

I love the design and animation of the Rat Monkey that bets brought back from said island, and I love that (despite being such a rare beast) it ends up in a public zoo.

I love that (after his mum gets bitten by said monkey) our hero Lionel, gradually, and accidentally, builds a collection of zombies - first because he promised to take care of his mum, and later because he has to keep covering up her victims, and her victims victims.

I Love that a fight gets narrated by an episode of  "The Arches" that happens to be on the radio at the time.

I love that one of those flying ducks that old ladies (supposedly) have on their walls in threes gets used as a throwing star!

I love the fight between the Vicar and the Zombie punks (well, Greasers really), I love the line "I kick arse for The Lord".

I love the the way the damage taken by each zombie stays with it, and they get more and more messed-up as the film progresses.

I Love the zombie sex scene, and the resulting baby.

I Love that a petrol mower gets used as a weapon, and I love that the zombies literally never die (Liquidising them seems to be the only way to stop their dismembered parts coming after you).

I love that this is the bloodiest movie you will ever see, and is chock full of zombies, but still can't really be called "Horror" - Its far too OTT to ever scare anyone, and is very firmly a splat-stick comedy.

The only things I don't love about it, to be honest, are the mcguffin wherein some type of poison is also somehow a stimulant when taken by animals, and the unexplained way that one of the zombies grows to giant size.

but overall its safe to say; I love this movie!

Army of Darkness - Will's Review.

Army of Darkness used to be one of my favorite films; in fact, I believe I saw it before I saw the original Evil Dead movies, and was initially disappointed by them in comparison.

That said, it was the mid 90's, and I was in my mid teens; With it's ramped up action and comedy, I think that teenage boys are exactly the target audience for the 3rd Evil Dead movie... How will it fare up now, while trying to look at it through adult eyes?

Actually, pretty well!

I can't be certain that some of my fondness isn't a hang-over from earlier viewings, but I like to think that I would still have enjoyed this if watching it for the first time last night.

As much as I love it though, it's best seen as an Evil Dead spin-off, rather than a true sequel; The slapstick is turned all the way up to 11 this time, way beyond Evil Dead 2, Ash has had a personality transplant, and is now a ballsy one-liner-cracking ladies man, and the horror is non-existent... Its the kind of movie my parents would have let me watch as a kid in between Hammer films.

Transported to England in the middle ages, Ash is tasked with retrieving the Necronomicon that the locals may free the land of "deities" (who may or may not be the Candarian Demons of the first two movies), the book will also allow the town wiseman to send him home. Of course all doesn't quite go smoothly, and instead Ash frees the evil fully, allowing it to amass an army of the dead, and potentially take over the world.

Although it does have a cohesive plot, at times it still feels more like a series of sketches (at least until the deadite army is risen in full force), as ash bumble from one misadventure to the next... he's attack by a miniature army of Ash-Clones, splits into two and fight himself, gets stretched cartoon-style and so fourth. He also seems immune to serious damage; at one point his face gets melted to a hotplate (to the extent that he needs to scrape himself free with a spatula) causing one cheek to be slightly reddened for a short time!

There are two endings, depending which version you see; an upbeat one, and a downer that sees Ash screwed in a whole different way. Army Of Darkness 2 is currently in development, and will apparently kick off from the downer ending.

I'll recommend this one; but as a fun action Comedy, not as a sequel to the Evil Dead movies.