Living Death

😱 First Impressions: I had a hankering for older horror-thriller flicks and wouldn't you guess it!? Found another one, the plot description alone ensnared me and I was wondering why nobody talked about it more. Surely, there must be a reason, so I went in moderate expectations. Fortunately I did because this film will upset your stomach as well as hit the sweet spots!

Pros: 😋 The opening of the film was perfect. The setting up of Victor's character and the exploration of his open relationship with his wife (who surprises him midway through a deadly escapade). Intense because we the audience know all too well about what is about to happen with the first onscreen character in a horror movie... But it didn't! She was only crippled- which segues quite nicely to the lawyer~

😋 The cinematography was somewhat low-budget but it was quite refreshing to see. Especially from the "dead" Victor's POV which is in line with what the audience is told about the neurotoxin used to murder him. The anticipation of when he will rise up again- course obviously he will, is exhilarating despite its predictable nature!

😋 The story is nothing original but it was the first that attempted to kill using a non-lethal poison. The oversight and lack of knowledge in the method of murder is a very human thing to do. It is exactly the repercussions from this, which is very terrifying. After all the thought alone in murdering someone is already a mental load but to have that person come back and they're unprepared? Mindblown....

Cons: 😪 The actors as a whole were not terrible, but I thought the guy portraying Victor was best. He brought out the cynical and psychopath sides very well! Also he looks very familiar, I'll do more research! The rest were just average but still belivable... just!

😪 Now characters- I don't usually point this out because some will naturally shine more than others but not in this one. Nobody (from the main cast, one of the 'good guys') was likeable or rational. Roman the lawyer keeps hiding secrets from the recently widowed (though not for long) who would have benefitted by having more time to discuss what to do next. Elizabeth on the other hand, is understandably paranoid and suspects Roman is cheating even plotting to off her next. They are all self-centered and it made me question who I should be rooting for...

😪 The ending came off pretty lazy. Which a shame because it did very well in the beginning, then a little bit after Victor is resurrected. But by the end, back to the infamous torture device- which becomes overused. Victor even says it himself, sometimes the psychology torment from threatening to use the device is sufficient to instill fear. But the film never did anything remotely as clever as that. Lawyer dies and wife finally decides to retaliate. The pregnant Catherine at the end, what even is that?

😇Verdict😈 Points for the effort behind this microbudget thriller film. The plot is one to remember and a teachable moment to everyone ;). It also brought us one of the most underrated baddies in the early 2000s. But unfortunately, the film hit its peak about 3/4 of the way through due to poor character writing and a questionable ending. Therefore it is easy to see why this film was eventually forgotten... :'(

The movie was somewhat slow and I agree with some other posters, that none of the characters were likable.... Though actually I liked Viktor more than the other main characters in this strange triangle.But thats not saying much.Its like saying one likes 8 inches of snow as opposed to a foot of snow. You get my point. The movie did avoid cliché material , which was a good thing. Probably could have used some more gore but it was gory enough. The sound effects when Viktor was doing something to his fingers was spectacular. I wont say anymore about that. The acting, overall was fair. I will point out I liked Kristy Swanson in that part , because it gave one a feeling of realism. She was a bit on the chunky side and it is refreshing to see that in an American movie. I know the Brits are good at having regular folk type people , in the looks department being in their movies. I say give the movie a shot and maybe do some house work with an eye and ear on the movie for the first half hour and buckle in for the last hour.

i couldn't help but think of "Buried Alive" when i watched this one,, i like the part where the husband takes his love interest up to the attic,, she is kinky , and well she don't know he's into torture until of course it's too late,, the husband is drunk, uses drugs, pulls guns.. just not a great guy,, so his best friend the lawyer, and the husband's wife conspire to have the husband killed, the lawyer comes up with a toxin , thru a drug connection of his,, they mix it up in his Japanese take out,, he eats it , and bang instant death,, or so we think........ wrong,, doesn't happen he is just temporarily paralyzed, then when he wakes up , he is already being covered over,, and thrown into the ground, by some med students trying to cover up what they had done to him,, operate on a living guy,, instead of a dead one,, so he goes on a killing spree,, i mean wouldn't you be mad if you were buried alive,, scuse the pun.. excellent movie though.

I've seen this movie before-about 17 years ago! It was called Buried Alive and starred Tim Matheson and Jennifer Jason Leigh and aired on the USA cable network. The plot was nearly identical the only difference was happened after the husband comes back. Buried Alive was better written, directed, and acted. Taken on it's own merits, Living Death was okay but nothing special. Having seen Buried Alive, Living Death was monotonous at best. Kristy Swanson was cardboard. None of the characters were developed fully. There was waaaay too much going on. Which I'm sure was intentional to make the simple-minded viewer not realize that the story couldn't stand on it's own. What was the deal with the med students? Did we really need them for the plot? Nope. I would watch this movie again.

I almost gave up on this movie, it seemed like a drama going nowhere. After almost getting bored with the minimal acting some action kicked in with unexpected humour. Just when the laughs were rolling it turned into a gory horror movie. I gave it what for me is a pretty high rank just because it was able to switch so quickly and keep my attention. If you got an hour and half of hanging out with some friends who are OK with some gory scenes but are not big fans of movies devoted to gore-genre but want a taste of some gore with some humour thrown in then this is the movie for you . Don't watch for an emotionally enriching experience or to be challenged by the plot.