I Sell the Dead

This one is an easy-going story. It's a tale, told first hand, of two friends in England who make their, ahem, living, by Grave-Robbing.

As it is with British-type humor, the funny is in the dialogue and the setting without the usual blunt-nosed set-up that Hollywood sets you up for. Laid back, because the humor is the type that makes you smile afterward as opposed to guffawing out loud -- but funny just the same.

And here and there, throughout, the touches of the Macabre are incidental set pieces that are just 'A funny thing happened on the way to the Graveyard the other night. . .' rather than the central horror of the movie. All in all, very well done, and ALL the characters are engaging and likable.

Give this one a try if you and your friends are in the mood for some light horror with a side of funny. Pick this one for a slow Saturday Night with some good beer & chips.

This film was really a breath of fresh air from the load of Hollywood crap I've seen recently. The acting is superb and the characters are engaging and oddly endearing. There really isn't much to the story, it's simple and it works well. An easy film to just sit down and enjoy. The mood was fantastic and the sets really helped push the movie along and offered some nice visuals. The film obviously has aspects of horror, yet is geared a little more towards the humorous side of things. You won't be laughing out loud hysterically with this one, but you'll be smiling the whole way through. The humor works very well with the characters and the superb acting doesn't hurt. I really watched this movie based on the fact that Ron Perlman was in it. His role is a bit smaller than I expected, but it doesn't matter; the rest of the cast does more than enough to keep you engaged. If you like horror, watch this. If you like comedies, watch this. Just go ahead and watch this anyway, it's really quite excellent.

I saw this movie as part of the Midnite Madness at Sitges. Set in 18th century England, the plot covers the life of Arthur Blake from his first outing as an apprentice grave robber to his final confession on the eve of his execution.

The plot moves along via a series of misadventures involving Arthur and his partner encountering various unsavory characters and bizarre situations.

The first thing that strikes you about this movie is how accurately they managed to capture the look of the Hammer period horrors, the atmosphere is set with lots of fog laden graveyards, rowdy tavern scenes and excellent set/costume design.

For a movie titled I Sell the Dead, I was expecting the emphasis to be mostly on horror – don't get me wrong there are some jumpy moments and gore, but the tone is very much comedic, driven by the situations the characters get themselves into and their dialog. The closest comparison to the scenes between the two leads (Larry Fessenden and Dominic Monaghan) is the character interaction seen in the classic English comedies Only Fools and Horses, the Two Ronnies and Morecambe and Wise.

The acting is strong and the casting of very familiar faces in Ron Perlman and Angus Scrimm lift the movie above many of the others on view in Sitges.

Overall the movie offers something very different to the current crop of mainstream horror and will leave a smile on your face.

The story has been told in other movies too. But the way it is handled here (with the humor) seems far superior to other movies (even a recent one, made by Landis). The story is more or less told in a reverse way, which makes you wonder a few things (or maybe you will guess where it is heading quite early on).

The acting is really great and even the small role by Mr. Pearlman is just great. You couldn't imagine anyone else playing that role. He really is on par with Dominic M., who just is great in this one. There is life after "LotR" and "Lost" after all. And he is one of the guys who can say he made the most of it (not to mention his engagement with the wonderful Evangeline Lilly)!

This movie totally surprised me; I was expecting your run-of-the-mill zombie apocalypse, with the usual who's-gonna-get-killed-first gamble, but I was wrong: It is about the lives and times of two grave robbers in the mid 1800s England. It is horror in a blasé way, and a comedy by circumstance more than by design.

It is by no way a summer blockbuster; There are no spectacular explosion and CGI, nor there is any romancing "for the female crowd"; It is an old-fashion, hand-made movie with lots of love.

This love is apparent in the actors' play, which is a testimony to their great direction: The two main characters have a synergy that works very well (they look as if they played together for ages) and every other actor in the movie are characterized and unique, even the background and silent ones. The music score, robust and in the right tone, adds to the grim ambiance.

It may not have a spectacular development or a intricate storyline, but it is easy listening due to the anecdotal way it is told and the smooth camera work. I still have pleasure re-watching it, even more-so with a couple of brews under the belt.

7 out of 10: Not a true classic in the cinematographic sense, but certainly worth a try.