The Dead Come Home

"The Dead Come Home", "Dead Dudes in the House" or "The House on Tombstone Hill" is a unique horror movie. It doesn't really have characters that are all that interesting, but what it does have is a an interesting premise that is done really well, style, humour, gore and a surprising amount of physical fights between the characters. It's a good movie for the genre lovers that clearly had thought and love put into it and I think it deserves at least a 6.5/10, a whole point+ more than the rating currently is. The whole thing could have been even better if the characters were more interesting and the budget was higher. It's not a masterpiece, but it's a good movie that will provide you with 90 minutes of fun, especially if you are a genre fan! If you are a casual though, you won't find anything deep here. It's a fun movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and that's pretty much it...

Eight friends go to fix up an old house that Mark has purchased. Upon arriving they find the grave of Annabelle ( the former owner) in the back yard. She had killed her husband back in the 40's. Bob ( one of Marks friends ) smashes the headstone and awakens Annabelle, this begins the carnage. But the dead don't stay dead and the living can't escape as the house locks down tight to keep them in. Lots of blood and guts right from the start. A must see for the true "B" movie fan , so if you get the chance watch it.

Finally found this movie on DVD bluray from Vinegar Syndrome. Saw this movie years ago on VHS and couldn't remember the name but happily stumbled upon it.

The title of the film shouldn't influence you at the time of deciding whether to rent it or not. DEAD DUDES IN THE HOUSE is a good slasher zombie flick, better than the average. It's one of those horror films where you can't say what's gonna happen even when the movie it's about to end. I watched this film for the first time back in 1993 on cable, those where the days where the slasher era was dead. This movie tried to bring to life a more than dead genre.

What it seemed to be an average fun weekend for eight friends turned into a carnage that could be described as one of the most freaky and horrible massacres ever seen. These dumb dudes buy and old house to have a place to chill out, have pre-marital sex, and drink some beers. While fixing and cleaning the old house one of these dumb teens smashes the headstone in the backyard just to immedieately awaken the owner of the house from the dead.

The owner is named Abigail, a woman who murdered her husband back in the 1940's (as seen in a flashback). Now 100 year old or so Abigail is very pi**ed off and she will murder these teens one by one with no mercy.

After getting murdered, these dudes return as zombies just to wander in the house and increment the horror atmosphere. To make things worse, the house seems to have own life and it won't let these dudes escape; in fact the house will provide help to Abigail in order to kill them. You have to watch to believe. Ms. Abigail Leatherby seems to be wiser, and stronger than these dudes. Who will survive from this weird carnage? What's going on with the dead daughter of the owner? Follow the dudes and the dead dudes in this slasher film that starts with a terrible murder and ends a la Evil Dead.

DEAD DUDES IN THE HOUSE provies lots of slasher fun! it's your average slasher to watch on midnight. The movie contains gruesome murders, creepy settings, a creepy atmosphere, and an effective score. As a hard core horror fan I plenty recommend this movie to any horror fan. The body count is ok and maybe unexpected. I wonder why there wasn't a sequel to this hidden gem.

6.5/10

While released by gross out distributor Troma, The House on Tombstone Hill (or Dead Dudes in the House in some circles) is pretty different from most of their regular output. It's still low budget and there's a nice helping of gore, but it's a bit more mature and ambitious than expected.

There's a bit more emphasis on creepy atmosphere and mood than on slashing or gore effects. When the gore does show up, it packs a punch, but it's refreshing to see a Troma film that embraces more than just blood, boobs, and silly gross out humor to tell a story.

Speaking of the story, it's your usual "people want to fix up a haunted house and creepy things happen" saga, but these ghosts seem like they might still be alive, including one creepy homicidal granny.

The effects work are better than usual and some moments reminded me a bit of Sam Rami's Evil Dead films. It's definitely a movie worth checking out.