Deadgirl

I have had a lot of trouble with this film. There are a lot of elements and actions in this film that could be considered ridiculous and flawed.

But you cannot mistake this film for just a brainless display if depravity.

There arn't many films that examine warped sexual desire with such efficiency. There are a LOT of boys in this film, and all of them do some...questionable things, to put it mildly. On the one hand, they are faced with something that they cannot comprehend, on the other they are faced with opportunity to do wrong. And they exorcise this to the fullest extent. The result is vile, repugnant and horrifically believable considering real world cases of gang rape such as was the case with Junko Furuta.

This film examines group mentality, and the conflict that arises from allowing terrible things to happen. And what it looks like to turn a blind eye.

Though, I do have respect for this film, I cannot recommend it.

It doesn't take a genius, or a saint to realize that rape is wrong. Whether the victim is among the living or otherwise, it just ain't cool. But are there any rules pertaining to the undead? Apparently not. Or if there are, certain individuals in this film aren't the least bit concerned. Written by the legendary Trent Haaga, Deadgirl is An utterly tasteless story about two high school chums who go off playing hookie, and drinking, ending up at an old, abandoned mental hospital. Said chums soon make a shocking discovery in one of the rooms. A dead chick tied to a table. It doesn't take long for these two genius' to figure out that she's not dead, after all. That's right! Undead. So, I guess that would make this a zombie flick, wouldn't it? An original Zombie flick. A very, very mean-spirited zombie flick. It doesn't take nearly as much effort as it should have for the bad kid to talk the wuss into not telling anyone about their new discovery... So that they can just stop by now & then (every day) for a quickie, at the expense of their undead new friend. That's not that weird, right? Wrong! Very weird, and very wrong! In other words, this movie is hilarious. I'm glad some people can see that the living dead sub-genre could use a little reinventing, from time to time. And don't get the idea that Deadgirl is just a film about rape. It's also an intriguing character-study. A coming-of-age movie. A much deeper story than one would first assume. With plenty of dark humor never too far behind. So, if you're bored with all the same old predictable Horror patterns that's been around for many a decade, you may find this particular one to be original, and quite refreshing. Deadgirl offers not one dull moment, and is no doubt a future cult classic. I'd recommend giving Deadgirl a chance as soon as possible. 6/10

I saw this at the TIFF and was expecting it to be some kind of Saw film or something of its ilk. However, it is much better than a simple horror film and really defies categorization. Deadgirl is a look into how we humanize, empathize and sympathize. It is a very provocative film and I squirmed many times. It is, however, not a film made for shock value. This is an essay on what it is to be human and where we draw the line on what we consider human. It is an exploration into where we draw the line on compassion and the hows and whys of our brutality and inhumanity. There are many scenes that affected me so deeply that I had trouble sleeping and talked about them for many weeks afterward. This is a great disturbing film.

You might think this is all smarmy and about necrophilia when two teens, Rickie (Shiloh Fernandez) and J.T. (Noah Segan), playing hooky find a dead girl (Jenny Spain) in the basement of a mental hospital. Well, she is dead, but she isn't. She's undead.

Soon, she becomes a sex tool for J.T and his high school friends.

The conflict between the two life-long friends simmers the entire movie until it boils over in the end as we reflect on just what it means to be human.

Lots and lots of blood and zombie action, not so much sex. But, if you are looking for a horror film, you will be disappointed, as it is more philosophical and can't be easily fit into a category.

Two teenage boys find a deadgirl and while one makes a toy of her, the other struggles with his conscience.

I don't do zombie flicks because they are tired, played out and too many different versions of them running around to make them anything but ridiculous these days. This film however, I like.

We have just one zombie that sorta exists without all the normal zombie expectations. She isn't the main focus of the film though. The boys who take advantage of her corpse, struggle with the moral aspects of their actions and fail to make the "right" decisions are.

It is a different sort of horror film that walks a fine line between horror and a dark drama with a bit of unnatural aspects sprinkled into it. Not a bad watch though. Just be prepared for it to be a bit disturbing in terms of how far these boys are willing to go.