Dead Alive (Brain-Dead) (1992)

Be forewarned, this is grade-B all the way, so if you are a no-fun fuddy-duddy like my mom or need an Oscar pedigree for every film, you watch, you will probably find this equal parts tedious and repellent. However, for those with a subversive wit and tolerance for bad taste and a ridiculous amount of blood and gore, look no further. This is your movie.

Lionel (Timothy Balme) is just your ordinary Bates-ish momma's boy who is astonished when cute Hispanic shopkeeper Paquita (Diana Peñalver) takes an interest in him. Now this is the 1950's, so whites and minorities were not the best of friends, but Lionel is about to face a lot more than close-mindedness when his domineering mother Vera (Elizabeth Moody) gets herself bitten by a mysterious Sumatran rat-monkey and becomes a flesh-eating zombie.



Instead of killing his mother like most people would do, Lionel lets her fester, much to the misfortune of everyone around him. Meanwhile, sleazy Uncle Les (Ian Watkin) prowls around, trying to steal Lionel's inheritance, and the body count rises.

This is early Peter Jackson, before he became a Hollywood bigwig and brought to life the Hobbits of the shire. Now I'd like to say that "Lord of the Rings" means a lot to me, and that I am a LOTR nerd who owns a life-size replica of Saramaun's staff and can speak elvish. Okay, maybe not. But I'll be damned if I don't prefer "Dead Alive," with all its bile and guts and mounds of intestines and rotten flesh.

I'll be damned if Frodo and Sam's touching friendship doesn't make me fall asleep. Maybe it was all my Dad's "Lord of the Rings" marathons (featuring the four-hour extended editions), but I think I'm just about Shired out. And now that I've turned in my movie fan card and revealed myself as the charlatan and the fraud that I am, I concur.

The acting is... meh. Nobody's going to winning any academy awards, but the actors seem to be having a good time and so are we. There are many memorable scenes (the kung-fu priest being a particular favorite) and there are some creative shots. Gorehounds will find more than enough gore n' guts to satisfy their bloodlust.

"Dead Alive" is the ORIGINAL Rom-Zom-Com, before "Shaun of the Dead," before "Zombieland," before "Warm Bodies," and before the many additions of the genre to come. In 1992 it was considered by many to be the goriest film of all time, and I wonder what progressions have been made, especially in the Japanese horror genre.

People who enjoy "bad" movies that are actually good movies with a subversive sense of humor will find a lot to like in "Dead Alive," and if you don't like it, shame on you. Go watch "Citizen Kane" or "Gone With the Wind," and stay off our blog, which is way too cool for you. Fin.