I Sell the Dead

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)!

What's this? Another recent title? It'd be ridiculous for your fellow ghoul not to keep current with today's releases. I'll try to keep this one brief because I'm still unsure of my opinion in terms of the outcome.

I Sell the Dead is about a man by the name of Arthur Blake (played by Dominic Monaghan, commonly recognizable as Charlie from Lost and also a hobbit in The Lord of the Rings trilogy) who confesses his grave robbing crimes to a priest named Father Duffy (your neighborhood friendly Ron Pearlman). Set in the Victorian era, Blake goes into detail concerning the exploits of his misadventures with his partner Willie. They soon come into contact with a rival grave-plundering gang led by the vicious corpsegrinder Cornelius Murphy.

Several twists and turns are contained within peppered by obvious comedic elements. Unfortunately, I've seen better attempts at black comedy on BET. As I mentioned earlier, rating this film is not an easy task. Part of me thoroughly enjoyed the artistic approach and silly premise. On the other hand, I had a difficult time interpreting the pace. Several scenes felt disjointed and out-of-place, leaving me to ponder whether or not it was intentional. The acting is solid, of course. If you enjoy the mixture of comedy and horror (which, to be honest, I'm touchy about) then I would recommend checking this one out. Shut your brain off and enjoy the show...just don't expect anything groundbreaking.

I confess, I only watched this because I enjoy Ron Perlman, but I stayed with it because it is a hoot! It is neither excessively gory nor bloody, but it keeps its horror creds kinda side-wise, and kept me chuckling throughout. I find it hard to categorize this odd flick, but if you have the 90 or so minutes, give it a try - it is fun! The story line allows you to expect a bigger payoff than you get, but the actual story more than makes up for it. First you meet the apparent villain and his church appointed accuser. It rapidly becomes apparent that the real issues are not mundane but seriously supernatural!Vampires, zombies, grave robbers. The world is not as simple as you might wish. Oh MY - laugh and enjoy - it is worth the visit!

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.

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.