The Return of the Living Dead Movie Review
Frank (James Karen, Poltergeist) and Freddy (Thom Mathews, Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives), two guys working in a warehouse that stores medical supplies, accidentally release a toxic gas. This makes it to a nearby cemetery, causing the dead to rise. First off, you have to love the premise--1980's horror movies sure did put the scare of toxic waste and gases in the minds of viewers! This one, from 1985, brings the idea to the screen with a wonderful blend of horror and comedy. In a stroke of really bad luck, a group of punks happen to be hanging out in the cemetery when the dead rise, and you'll likely recognize at least a few of them. John Philbin of Children of the Corn is there. Mark Venturini and Miguel A. Nunez Jr from Friday the 13th Part 5: A New Beginning are members of the gang. Finally, horror legend Linnea Quigley appears for arguably her most recognizable role.
Suicide's Squad
The familiar faces don't end there, as Clu Gulager (A Nightmare on Elm Street 2) shows up as would-be hero Burt, and Don Calfa, who turned in a hysterical performance as Paulie in Weekend at Bernie's a couple years later, plays Ernie, a possible Nazi running the nearby mortuary. I mention all these people not only to do some name dropping, but also because they are all wonderful in this film. Their performances, whether intentional or not, are hilarious--Karen especially steals the shows with his manic performance, and for as unimpressive as Mathews was in Jason Lives, he more than makes up for that as Freddy. Equally as impressive is the work with the zombies, particularly that of everybody's favorite, Tarman.
And all my friends are skeletons
The horror/comedy hybrid idea wasn't entirely new when this movie was released, and, of course, that genre has only grown since, but unlike most of the films that have come out since, The Return of the Living Dead is actually funny. The movie knocks it out of the park when it comes to both the laughs and scares, and rightfully deserves its place as one of the elite comedy horrors of all time. This movie did, however, bring a few big, new elements to the zombie genre--it is credited as being the first zombie flick to have fast-moving zombie, talking zombies, and it introduced the idea of the zombies seeking out brains specifically--and, as I did several times in that sentence, it breaks the mold by actually using the word "zombie". I'm not a huge fan of the ending, but there's not much else to complain about with The Return of the Living Dead. In the off chance you have never seen this movie, do yourself a favor and check it out.
On A Scale Of One To Ten: 8
The Return of the Living Dead Movie Trailer
No comments:
Post a Comment