DVD Release
Ya know one thing that’s always bothered me about horror has been the demand for “something different” and the eventual snubbing by fans when it’s offered up. I mean we constantly hear fans yelling about wanting a different take on zombies, werewolves and vampires but when somebody actually tries to create something original and different the films are slammed for not sticking to tradition. Hell, I do it all the time with vampires but, in my opinion, deservedly so. To me there’s a difference between offering something new for fans and creating something new to appeal to thirteen year old girls with disposable income. One says, “I want to make things interesting for fans” and the other says, “Do you think this logo will look good on a girls totebag?”
For years now I’ve heard zombies fans say they want something new because they’re tired of the same old thing and truth be told I completely agree but when something actually unique pops up they don’t have one positive thing to say. They want “original” so long as it fits into Romero’s universe, copies Romero’s zombies and follows the mythos Romero set up. Anything outside the Romero box is shot down, torn apart or completely ignored. There’s really no question in my mind as to why filmmakers continue to serve up the same old same old…they’re scared shitless of doing anything that may piss of traditionalists and instigate the bandwagoners.
Now I gotta admit I’m a sucker for “alternative” zombie concepts and most aren’t really widely accepted by the zombie film community. They Came Back, Stink of Flesh, Shadows of the Dead, Dead Creatures and I, Zombie are the kind of zombie films that I enjoy and would love to see more of but I suppose in some ways I can see why many hardcore fans would be hesitant. They certainly aren’t for everybody. Well zombie geeks, brace yourselves because Graveyard Alive is “one of those” kind of zombie films!
Graveyard Alive is an homage to those wonderful old black and white B-movies of the 50’s with a touch of noir and a healthy dose of originality. It’s sly, sexy and occasionally silly and it’s just what the doctor ordered if you’re looking for something out of the ordinary.
Nurse Patsy Powers (Anne-Day Jones of The Day After Tomorrow) is a shy, lonely woman hoping to catch the eye of the dashing Dr. Dox (Karl Gerhardt) but homely women don’t get the guys of their dreams especially when your competition is the dazzling Goodie (Samantha Slan)! Everybody loves Goodie and what’s not to love?!! She’s a beautiful woman, a capable nurse and Dr. Dox is planning to marry her.
One fine day a woodsman (Eric Kendric) wanders into the hospital with a small problem…there’s an axe stuck in his forehead! Despite the axe protruding from his cranium, his ill manners and the putrid smell of rotting flesh coming from his body…Patsy begins to fall for him! Hospital Janitor Kapotski (Roland Laroche) has also taken an interest in the woodsman and he believes the woodsman is a dangerous flesh-eating zombies! There’s only one way to stop a zombie, slam a pure silver knife into the zombie’s third eye, and Kaptoski aims to do just that!
Unfortunately, he’s a little too late. Patsy has been bitten and the change has begun. She soon begins exhibiting the signs of zombiehood including decay, rigor mortis, a hunger for flesh and an increased libido! She’s able to reverse rigor mortis and decay by consuming human flesh but that means disposing of ailing patients and the hospital’s mortality rate goes sky high. The men in the hospital, including Dr. Dox, also begin noticing Patsy for the first time! It appears as though Patsy is finally getting everything she wished for and Goodie isn’t about to allow that!
After discovering one of Kapotski’s book on zombies she deduces that Patsy must be one of the undead and should exposed and stopped at all costs! Will Patsy get the man of her dreams or will Goodie reveal her penchant for bodily dismemberment? Whatever happens needs to happen soon because Patsy has infected somebody in the hospital and the shit is about to hit an even bigger fan!
Graveyard Alive is my kind of zombie film! Don’t get me wrong…I love me a good shambling zombie flesh-feast-a-thon and if I could legally wed the bodies of Lucio Fulci and Amando de Ossorio in a totally non-“gay with dead bodies” way…I would. Fortunately for Lucio and Amando, I cannot. Occasionally I just need a fix of “different” and in this case writer/director Elza Kephart and co-writer Patricia Gomez are my pushers.
The acting in this film appeared to be decent though the only real acting I can base any opinion on is that of the voice actors. Yep, it was dubbed. Not badly, the dubbing was quite good, but it was dubbed all the same. Whether the dubbing was intentional or not I have no idea but I’m going to go out on a limb and say it was. I’m assuming it was done to increase the film’s cheesy B-movie vibe because from what I heard of Anne-Day Jones’ voice in a cast interview, dubbing really wasn’t needed. Some of the voice actors were good…others…not so good. It was hit or miss in some places but, once again, I chalked it up to the filmmakers encouraging the voice actors to be stiff. Live it up ladies, I normally don’t grant that to anybody!
The cinematography by John Ashmore was outstanding. Simply beautiful camera work featuring wonderful shadows and angles. For a low-budget indie film, it was impressive.
Now I feel this is worthy of mention though it really shouldn’t matter to any of you that may be considering renting or purchasing this film but five out of the six producers on this production…were women. I think that’s cool. Graveyard Alive certainly isn’t going to blow down the house that George built but in this day and age when Romero himself is unsuccessfully trying to break his own rules (Land of the Dead), this little indie prize is definitely a worthwhile entry into the zombie sub-genre. Give it a try and be on the look out for Graveyard Alive 2: Zombie Nurse in Paradise!
