 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
VENGEANCE OF THE DEAD
Produced, Written, Directed, and Edited by Don Adams and Harry James Picardi
Director of Photography - Peter BiagiEric - Michael Galvin
Grandpa - Mark Vollmers
Julia - Susan Karsnick
Little Julia - Ashley Bodart
Mother - June GraciousMuch has been made about the great strides Full Moon has taken to improve their output of product over the past few years. In the Summer of 2001, Full Moon announced that they were going to go outside their stable of talent and acquire finished or nearly finished films for distribution. VENGEANCE OF THE DEAD was one of the first productions picked up and it must be a mixed blessing for the company. Not only is VOTD one of the most genuinely eerie and dread-filled horror films from Full Moon, it's better than anything the company has released in nearly a decade.
Big words, I know, but as I watched VOTD, I was reminded of a conversation I had with my good friend Mitch Walrath over the Korean action film SHIRI. Mitch made the statement that "it's good to see a film that's all about character, and not the gimmick." Those words couldn't ring more true especially when you're talking about the horror genre. In order for the films to work, the audience has to care about the characters. Whether it be from empathy or sympathy, true cinematic tension stems from emotionally connecting the audience with the on-screen characters.
Recent Full Moon productions have all been about gimmick. Even ones I've enjoyed, such as STITCHES and THE VAULT, are more concerned about the hook that pulls the audience in rather than the characters that occupy the story. This isn't a trend exclusive to Full Moon by any means, take a look at other, more prominent, horror titles over from past few decades. You don't identify Leatherface with his cross-dressing, you identify with the chainsaw. The same can be said for Freddy Kruger and Jason Vorhees, it's the cutting instruments people talk about, not the backgrounds of abuse. But all these films have made lasting impressions due to the characters they've created. There's history present in each one that an audience can connect with on a three-dimensional level, and that's something that goes far deeper than the relative "coolness" of a chainsaw, machete, or a knife-laden glove.
Did director's Don Adams and Harry Picardi set out to set out to make such engrossing film? Probably not, but I'm sure they intended to release a good movie, which is the very least any filmmaker should aspire towards. Like many directors working in the independent horror field, Adams and Picardi started as devoted fans of the genre. As you listen to the DVD's commentary, you get a feel for who the pair were trying to emulate. Names like Agento, Hooper, and Raimi come to mind. That's not to say VOTD is knock-off of any of these director's films, merely inspired by to the point where Adams and Picardi cared about their craft as much as the genre.
Their story revolves around Eric, who hasn't visited his loving Grandpa in sometime. Upon his arrival in town, Eric starts having dreams of a mother-daughter set of ghosts. The two were untimely killed as looters broke into their home. The daughter, Julia, falls in love with Eric as she visits him. The mother has other plans for the boy. As Eric embodies the mother's pain and rage, he slowly comes to realize he's no longer in control of his own soul.
With the previous short paragraph, I've officially given too much away. I could start to discuss each character's psychological well-being, but that would take up far to much space. Besides, I would rather save that discussion for people who have already seen the movie. There's text and subtext galore, which the filmmakers might never have intended as they never touched upon the films many levels during the commentary, but would also make for interesting conversation. If there ever were a recent American horror effort that merited discussion, it is VENGEANCE OF THE DEAD.
The DVD version of VOTD is one of Full Moon's far to infrequent Lunar Editions. A common thread in the Lunar discs is that they tend to focus more on the filmmakers rather than the film at hand. VOTD is a prime example, it's a encyclopedia documenting Adams and Picardi's filmmaking history from teenagers to their present day adventures in Hollywood. Early featurettes include SCHREK, a tale of neo-nazi wanna-be who resurrect a part leader. This comes complete with commentary and making-of video. There are also making of segments for other unreleased feature length projects, RED EYES and WARWOLF (with the always gorgeous Amber Newman). My favorite of all the special features were 3 short newscasts profiling the filmmakers in they early days in Wisconsin. The same newscaster met with Adams and Picardi on a yearly basis to see if they had come any closer to their dream of Hollywood. While little more than filler for a slow newsday, the newscasts illustrate the support independent filmmakers can sometimes get from the community around them.
After going through the entire disc, the only thing I'm left wondering is when the hell WARWOLF will see completion. After viewing VENGEANCE OF THE DEAD, even if WARWOLD is only half as entertaining, it should be a blast.
For the time being, you can purchase VENGEANCE OF THE DEAD at www.TempeVideo.com for a nice sized discount.
Tempe Video
Full Moon Pictures