Review XXVI
Braindead/Dead Alive (1992)
To be honest, I've only ever seen one Lord of the Rings film (I only recently watched the first one), so I never really knew much about Peter Jackson, other than he made those three-hour films about walking. That is, until I came across the goriest horror movie ever (as it is occasionally referred) - Braindead, or known as Dead Alive in the United States. If I remember correctly, I first heard about it from a Head Injury Theater article about it, but I might have heard it from another reviewer. Anyway, I started telling people about it once I finally bought it, and I remember someone distinctly saying, "Peter JACKSON? WHAT?" If you don't know who Peter Jackson, that's fine - it's just funny to shock people by saying this is a Peter Jackson film. The reason why it's such a shock is because this is a zombie film and Peter Jackson went on to win an Oscar for a fantasy film. Right, enough about this - let's talk about the film.
The film starts off on Skull Island where two men, one explorer and one local, are being chased by a group of natives. The reason? The two are carrying the Sumatran Rat-Monkey, a hybrid creature from the result of tree monkeys being raped by plague rats on Skull Island. The natives demand that the creature be given back, but the two escape unharmed... Until the explorer is bitten and scratched, in which he proceeds to lose his hand, arm, and head. We see the rat-monkey is transported to a New Zealand zoo. Cut to a Spanish woman, Paquita (Diana Peñalver), finding out she is destined to be with Lionel (Timothy Balme), a mama's boy who ends up falling for Paquita. However, his mother (Elizabeth Moody) is less than thrilled and ends up getting bitten by the rat-monkey while spying on her son and Paquita. This results in the degradation of her body, and yay zombies!
The plot is simple, but hilarious. I mean, this is a zombie gore film that is made to gross you out, so the plot isn't an essential necessity (says the person who complained about Poultrygeist), but man, I love it. It's a cute little love story that demonstrates the power of love through the killing of zombies. Sigh, isn't that the best kind of love? The acting isn't spectacular, but the writing is funny, and the protagonists and antagonists do a good enough job that I won't complain about it.
The gore, of course, is the part you all want to hear about. It's awesome. Yes, it's completely cheesy, yes, it's not the most realistic, but when you're dealing with zombies, that's okay. There is, however, a lot of blood and mangled human flesh being thrown around, and the lawnmower scene is a reenactment of Elixabeth Bathory bathing in virgin's blood. I know I said this already, but it's awesome. It's hilariously done, but it still drives people to gag with the amount that's seen in the film. I always love watching it with people who have never seen it before, especially if they're easily grossed out. The nice thing is, though, is that people like that can watch it because this is a comedy. It's not a serious film where people are losing their limbs - it's a funny film where people are losing their limbs! It's one of those films you can show someone who doesn't like horror films and at least get them to watch the whole thing without a fuss. I showed this film at my high school for a movie day, and that was quite an experience. The only thing I could imagine people complaining about would be that it's too "cheesy". I don't know - I like that in a zombie movie. Sometimes you just have to have fun!
I'd give the film eight stars on ten. It seems high, but the film gives me what I want - a gorey, funny film. The acting is lacking and the story is simple, but that's okay. As I said, you don't go in expecting anything special, but you do get a kind of gem. I highly, highly recommend this film to anyone - except little kids. The film is still pretty scary for little kids, but if you're of an appropriate age, give it a try. I hope you'll see it for what it's worth - a Peter Jackson zombie cheese film!
Also, just a quick warning... Make sure to watch the uncut version. It has a bit more gore.
