Director: Stuart Gordon
Stuart Gordon's "Re-Animator" came along at just the right time in the mid-eighties. Horror films at this time typically centered on a bunch of dopey, oversexed teenyboppers being chased by a nutcase with a knife, chainsaw, axe, etc. That is, one kept seeing the same tired old formula rehashed over, and over, and over again. Then along comes "Re-Animator". Telling the story of two med school students trying to perfect a reanimate, a glowing green solution that when injected into the brain (animal or human, it doesn't really matter) brings the dead back to life, with extremely mixed results. Tons of blood, brains, organs and the like are splashed all over the screen as Dr. Cain and Dr. West try to perfect their formula. "Re-Animator" benefits greatly for casting zero teenagers and instead relying on an older cast who execute the job perfectly. Nobody wanders off one hundred yards in the woods to pee only to get a pitchfork up their ass in this film, and for that I am thankful. I like to think of this film as a precursor to stuff like "Bad Taste" and "Dead Alive", hyper violent flicks laced with a dose of black humor that actually work well. I'd be very surprised to hear that Peter Jackson, director of those films I just mentioned, never saw this flick since his stuff plays like a carbon copy of it. Good performances, a clever script, a frequently naked Barbara Crampton, and tons of terrific wet and bloody f/x make this one a personal favorite. Highly recommended. (dir: Stuart Gordon)
Home