Dead & Buried (1981)

First off, i really like fun cheesy 80s horror. The kind that you can pop in and relax with, but this film just had too much negatives for me to enjoy it without being taken out of it constantly. Even though i don't regret sitting down and watching it, i do think this film is really poorly written. And these guys wrote Alien! That was the unexpected twist that really worked!The pacing is fine, but the direction was pretty bad and the plot was amazingly predictable. Besides the fact that for most of the film, every time its night time you cant see worth sh!t. There are some well utilized camera movements, but its mostly amateurish. The acting is... okay. And I'm speaking mainly because of the main character. The rest? Not so much.In the end, i can see how people find this film enjoyable. I have my fair share of guilty pleasures, but this just wasn't that kind of material for me. 5.5/10

"Dead & Buried" takes place in the small coastal community of Potter's Bluff, where mysterious locals seem to be hacking tourists and passersby to death—but instead of dying, they are coming back from the dead and joining the mob of their zombie-like murderers.Giving the fairly prolific cast (James Farentino, Robert Englund, Jack Albertson) and other talent behind this film (including Dan O'Bannon, co-writer of "Alien"), I had fairly high expectations of this film. The opening scene entails a photographer who is lured onto an empty beach by a beautiful woman who asks him to photograph her; suddenly, a mob of ghoulish townspeople appear out of nowhere, and he meets a gruesome fate. It's a terrifying scene, exacerbated by the fact that it occurs in broad daylight on such an innocuous sunny beach."Dead & Buried" is, as many have said, an atmospheric film; it has the dreary coastal atmosphere down to a T, and it is also extremely well-shot. At times, it reminded me of 1973's "Messiah of Evil," which has a similar premise. It is also fairly well-acted from its lead cast. Where the film falters is in its pacing and plotting—there are bizarre editing choices and arrangements of scenes throughout that are frankly distracting. While some films use this kind of approach with purpose, such does not seem to be the case here; it feels as though the editors legitimately did not know what they were doing, and the result is that tension and suspense buildup are never really given an opportunity to grow.As I mentioned, the acting is solid, with James Farentino playing a convincing cop, and Jack Albertson (who most will recognize as Charlie's grandpa in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory") playing the local coroner. The film has an intriguing twist ending that demands a serious suspension of disbelief, but it is nonetheless a legitimately weird plot twist that colors the film with light shades of science fiction.Overall, "Dead & Buried" is a bit of a mishmash. While the film is atmospheric and has some legitimately scary scenes, it is also badly-edited and not nearly as suspenseful as it feels it should be. Its wilder psychotronic elements that come into play during the final act have earned it a cult following, and understandably so—but at the end of the day, it is a flawed film—one with some exceptional scenes and ideas, but no less flawed. It is worth watching for the general weirdness of its atmosphere and a handful of spooky moments, though it still feels like a gem that needed just a bit more polishing to really reach the next level. 6/10.

A suspense horror film set in a small coastal town where, after a series of gory murders committed by mobs of townspeople against visiting tourists, the corpses begin to come back to life.Officially, the script was written by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett; O'Bannon later disowned the film, claiming that Shusett had written the script by himself but needed O'Bannon's name on the project to promote it being from the creators of "Alien". (Shusett and O'Bannon co-wrote "Alien", but the latter was the bigger name. Even today, Shusett is not well known, despite producing such science fiction hits as "Total Recall" and "Minority Report").The most noted horror name here is Robert Englund, who appears as Harry. At this point Englund had appeared in "Eaten Alive" but not yet "Nightmare on Elm Street", so he is given relatively little screen time and few lines to speak. In retrospect, I am sure the creators wish they had featured him more. But stealing the show was Jack Albertson, who portrayed William G. Dobbs as no one else could (as then passed away the same year). Although the film has a solid plot and good gore, the Dobbs character is what makes this a cut above the average film.Definitely a film that should be seen by those who have not yet had the pleasure...

After reading so many positive reviews about 'Dead and Buried', I felt like giving it a try and my try didn't go in vain. D&B is one of the most influential zombie horror films of its time, whose plot still seems fresh. Gary Sherman has done a great job as his characters 'come to life' and stay credible throughout the movie. I bet Gary has got midas touch. The film doesn't rely on a big budget to prove its worth. What scares a viewer to death in 'D&B' are the characters who turn up alive after being murdered in previous sequences. If you are looking for an eerie set-up, foggy and silent nights, spooky town, strange people, hacked but twisting arm, syringe-poked eye, and a crazy re-animator, then Ladies and Gentleman....WELCOME TO POTTER'S BLUFF'. The film deserves a 10/10 for its lingering nature. You won't forget anything about it even after 10 years and I promise, you'll take this to you graves.Dan Gills (James Farentino) is the friendly Sheriff of Potter's Bluff, a small coastal town. He lives a contented life with his wife Janet (Melody Anderson), who is a school teacher. It so happens that a certain itinerant George (Christopher Allport) is caught by some crazy townspeople and is murdered in a gory fashion. However, George survives, but before he could tell anything to Dan, he is murdered by one of the female assailants right under the nose of Dan and Doctor Joe (Joseph Medalis). George's murder is soon followed by the murders of a vagrant and a young lady backpacker. A family traveling through Potter's Bluff is attacked by some townspeople in the middle of the night. That's when Dan has his first encounter with an assaulter. During all these days, Dan had been discussing the murders with Dr. Dobbs (Jack Albertson), who is apparently Potter's Bluff only mortician. Dobbs is often sarcastic with Dan. Little does Dan know that Dobbs is working on a hidden sinister agenda. Dan's wife Janet had been behaving strange lately. She comes home late at night and it looks as if she is holding a secret. So what's her secret?; and more important, what's the secret of Potter's Bluff? Does this town really teach us 'A New Way to Live'? Unlike other horror movies, D&B doesn't go around silly teenagers or campfire tales. This is no silly or cheesy stuff. Farentino as well as other characters including a younger Robert Englund have shown the viewers one of the highest crests of the American cinema. Farentino is great as sheriff and so are Melody and other actors, but one who really steals the show is Jack Albertson, with great portrayal of Dobb's character. You want Dobbs to be secretive and he is. You want Dan to be sincere in his efforts and he is. You want Melody and several others to be a part of this fishy scheme and they are. The end comes like a big surprise as the viewers are baffled and forced to think whether they should really believe what they just saw. This movie is credible with its tight plot, effective screenplay and matchless atmosphere. Potter's Bluff reeks blood and has everything a horror addict would ever need; a great set-up, deserted beaches and orphan boats, old-style agoraphobia inducing hospital corridor, freaky café with strange customers, uninhabited houses, rainy hillsides, old truck, foggy nights, and finally a scheming cold-blooded re-animator who is about to take over the town with his re-animated creations. D&B with its great atmosphere is capable of bewitching anyone who wants a relentless dose of atmospheric horror. This film has 80's written all over it and seems obsessed with the quality horror of its time. Simply unmissable!