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 Well, let me begin by giving
Fangoria a little credit here. Without their extensive articles on this film and Peter
Jackson, I might not have gone out and forcefully begged my video store to get a copy.
Fangoria really pumped up this movie, describing it in gory detail. I just finished
re-reading all the Fango articles and they weren't too bad, for once I can say good job.
Why do I like this movie so much?
You might be quick and say the zombies and you would be right to an extent, but it was
really the dark humor that got me. The gore was great, the zombies were awesome, but it
was the dark humor of this film that was the bloody eyeball that topped this horror
sundae. It really reminded me of
Evil Dead 2, the humor was
well balanced, but not taken too far. I never laughed so hard. Who would have thought
that a lawnmower would become an essential killing weapon to use against zombies.
A definite gore lovers delight. It
may in fact be the goriest films I have ever seen, but only in a very funny way. Because
of its outrageousness, none of the gore can be taken too seriously here and that is
exactly what Peter Jackson was shooting for. It was because of this dark humor that Peter
Jackson was able to go to extremes for this film.
I became a fan of Peter Jackson
because of this film. I have since gone out and rented "Bad Taste" which was a
quirky sci-fi/horror film about an alien invasion. Then I rented "Meet the
Feebles", otherwise known as "Muppets on Acid". This was one strange movie
to say the least. If you like Dead Alive/ Braindead, than you own it to yourself to go out
and rent these two films. I also thought the Frighteners was very good and that Jeffery
Combs did an outstanding job. Peter Jackson is definitely a director to keep your eyes on.
As always please
e-mail me if you have anything you can add
to this page, or if you have any comments, criticisms or suggestion.
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The story begins as a zoo
expedition is on the trail of the legendary "rat monkey", but
for some reason the natives are a little reluctant to let the beast be taken. But
why?? It is only cute, little, harmless monkey...right?? Well, not this monkey,
whose deadly bite turns Lionel's mum into a walking corpse.
Seems Lionel (Timothy
Balme) definitely suffer from an acute Oedipus complex and major
abandonment issues here. He tries to hide his mum's
condition from everyone, especially the girl of his dreams Paquita (Dina
Penalver). Slowly
but surely, dear mum begins to zombify anyone who crosses her path: a nurse, a priest, and
a gang of thugs. There's even a zombie baby. What a cutie. Lionel tries everything to
control these unwanted guests and he even has some success with horse tranquilizers,
but
not for long.
The finale is a laugh a minute
gore-fest that features a horde of zombies and a lawnmower. Ash might have had his
chainsaw, but Lionel's weapon of choice really mows them down. You can definitely see the
influences of Romero and Raimi beautifully brought together into one......Peter Jackson.
Rent or buy Dead Alive and make sure you get the unrated version.
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Braindead was the original title
for the movie, but Vidmark changed it to Dead Alive.
Great Britain, Australia, and
Germany were the only countries that had a problem with the film. It was released it uncut
in both GB and Australia. The head of GB's board of ratings remarked that he released it
uncut only because there was no way anyone would ever take this film seriously. Still
heavily cut in Germany.
Peter Jackson favorite scene (the
Baby in the park) was shot on the last two days and only because there was some money left
in the budget.
Over 300 liters of blood was
pumped out of the lawnmower per minute.
Peter Jackson was one of the
first people approached to script the Jason vs Freddy movie, but had to decline due to
other commitments.
Peter Jackson did not make one
cut from his orginial script.
The Japanese laserdisc is 7
minutes longer than the domestic release (which Peter Jackson acknowledges as the
director's cut). The extras only add to the character development.
Right before Lionel's mum's
funeral, Uncle Les is talking with Paquita, and Father McGruder is wondering where Lionel
is, the organ music in the background is "Massacre Suite" from Meet the Feebles.
The budget on this films was
about $3 million.
To checkout "DVD
Review's" of Dead Alive and other great DVD. Click on the banner it and other stuff
on DVD:
Peter Jackson is currently directing a
remake of the 1933 classic King Kong. Checkout the official site.
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Click on box cover for these recommendations
  
Click on image to navigate our other
"Dead Alive/Braindead" pages.
Buy Dead Alive on DVD
from
Amazon.com
Buy Bad Taste on DVD
from
Amazon.com
Buy Bad Taste (LE) on DVD
from
Amazon.com
Buy Meet the Feebles on DVD
from
Amazon.com
Checkout
Rotten Cotton 's great new
t-shirt for Braindead.
Checkout the new
House
of Horrors t-shirt for sale now
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