"Your mother ate my dog...." "Well, not all of it!!" (Braindead (DVD))

Member Name: sparkymarky1973

Product:	Braindead (DVD)
Date:	25/02/09 (64 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A brilliant low budget movie that cries out to be recognised....

Disadvantages: Zombie babies, Zombie priests, Zombies having sex....blood, guts, gore.. what more do you need?

Having recently watched Heavenly Creatures, another early Peter Jackson movie (Yes, he who made Lord Of The Rings), I was encouraged to dig out this 90's schlock horror cult b-movie classic that was his second ever film and give it a repeat view. It has certainly not aged a bit and only gets better with repeated viewings. A non-stop gore-fest from start to finish, the movie also has more than it's fair share of all-time classic lines..."Hmmmm, lumpy custard, just like mumsy used to make...."

I always remember the trailer for this film; it began with a warning. "Those of a nervous disposition who are paticulary sensitive, put your hand over your left eye now! Those who wish to watch the trailer, put your hand over your right eye now." This was followed by a split screen; on one side footage of little cutesy-wutesy lambikins cavorting in a field was shown, on the other side, the movie trailer. At the end, a voice-over said "It's okay you can look again now..." At which point a drooling zombie launched itself at the screen! Most amusing and certainly a preview that sticks in your head years later with its highly original approach!

So what about the film itself- what exactly is it all about, Alfie?? Well, the movie opens with an explorerer finally managing to capture a very rare example of a Sumatran Rat-Monkey. Unfortunately, when he is bitten, this said explorerer loses his head quite literally...( "Da bite....da bite") and is executed by the local natives. Months later, the Sumatran Rat-Monkey finds it's way to a New Zealand zoo where it is incarcerated.

Lionel is a mummy's boy who has fallen in love with a mysterious and passionate latino girl, Paquita. His mother does not approve and on their first date at the zoo, Lionel and his new beau are followed by his mum. She gets too close to one paticular cage and the mum is promptly bitten by the Rat-Monkey shortly before the creature reaches a very sticky end. Lionel rushes to his mum's aid and hurries her away but it soon becomes clear that Lionel's mum is really not very well. Before long, she has turned into a Zombie but Lionel, ever dedicated to his mum's well-being, hides her in the cellar and keeps her dosed with vetinary anaesthetic. Unfortunately she manages to escape and infect other townspeople which Lionel must then round-up and also keep anaesthesised. All the time this is going on, Lionel tries to maintain his relationship with Paquita but soon people begin getting suspicious. This leads to a bloody massacre of a climax that sees Lionel taking on a whole host of Zombie townspeople with a lawnmower amongst other things....Never before or since has there been so much blood and intestines thrown at the T.V screen!!!

This is a hilarious romp from start to finish with lots of original set-pieces including one scene where Lionel heads to the park with a Zombie baby; locked in his pram behind a barbed wire guard!! Really it has to be seen to be believed. The script too is much more highly polished than in Jackson's first feature, Bad Taste, with the production values having a much more professional feel to them. Even Jackson gets a cameo role at one point ("I told you people, my papers are in ze post!") and there is no end of quotable lines that stick firmly in the head long after the movie has ended!! ("I kick arse for The Lord..." the local vicar proclaims shortly before taking on a mob of Zombie thugs!!)

This is without question one of my all-time funniest films and though it probably aims to be a pastiche of the traditional Zombie film, it does what all homages should ultimately try to do and that is be a great film in it's own right!! If you haven't seen it, then why the hell not? It may not be for the squeamish or faint of heart but it is very very funny.....

Bad Taste was a good romp but felt very amateurish; this, on the other hand, shows Jackson's true potential and is his best film to date after The Lord Of The Rings' movies. My movie collection certainly would not be complete without it and I cannot praise this film enough! I have seen much higher budgeted films that have disappointed more than this and cannot think of any better way of amusing myself than sitting down to watch this again! If only Jackson would make another horror flick, my life would be complete- this film shows him to be a master of this paticular genre and an excellent example of his profession!

Summary: Lionel's mum isn't very well. In fact, shes not very well at all......