Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave

This final (?) film in the Return Of The Living Dead horror film franchise puts a final nail in the lid of the coffin for this series. The film has little to do with previous entries, except for the Trioxcin gas found in the barrels. Supposedly this is a sequel to part 4. Some of the main characters return, true. They have graduated from high school and are now in college. The problem lies in the fact that they have all seemingly forgotten what befell them in the previous film. So when the barrel with the gas and the zombies do show up, it is as if it is all brand new. Heck, even main character Julian seems to have forgotten that he hates his uncle (Peter Coyote in a very small cameo) after the events of the last film. The zombies are not very exciting visually (mostly some grey skin and latex cheekbones) and the rules of how they act seem to change as the story decrees it necessary. For instance, at times they can run and later on they can only shuffle about. Its too bad that the series had to go out on such a low note. It really did deserve better than this.

This has to be the lowest of the many lows that the Sci-Fi Channel has finally reached. What an horrible, awful movie. This movie is just plain awful. Rats become zombies and then disappear and are never seen again. The special effects are pathetic. Over and over again the zombies bite into the heads of victims and a tiny squirt of blood is occasionally shown.

The actors have thick Russian accents and claim to be agents for the U.S. Government. The moronic efforts at comic relief are insipid and horribly dumb. There is absolutely nothing good about this film. Return of The Living Dead Part III, was an excellent movie, too bad the Scum-Fi Channel did two horrible sequels. ROTLD 5 is a disgrace to all zombie movies.

If you thought that the Return of the Living Dead series couldn't get any worse than the pointless third sequel, you'd be right. While this is still an awful, stupid mess; at least it's a (slight!) improvement over the first of the 2005 offerings; but of course, that isn't saying anything. Quite why someone has had the bright idea to resurrect a series that was never massively popular anyway is anyone's guess; and the fact that the resulting movies are a complete waste of film stock aptly shows what a bad idea it was. The subtitle, 'Rave to the Grave', should be enough to put any sane movie-goer off seeing this film...but anyway, this time the stalwart bunch of teens that always inhabit this kind of movie are having fun getting stoned off their faces with a new drug. 'Z' will get you high...but it will also turn you into a brain eating zombie. It doesn't take long for the whole school to be infested with zombies; and the rave that they've all been looking forward to may well turn out to be what it's name suggests; a rave to the grave.

Ellory Elkayem, the genius behind Eight Legged Freaks, is in the director's chair for this film, and gives us a tour-de-force of forgettable direction once again. The film uses dreary nu-metal trash for its soundtrack far too often; as if the rest of the film wasn't enough of a turn off on its own. The zombie design is nothing to write home about, although in fairness; it's not the worst I've ever seen. There is a zombie in the movie that seems like a nod to the first zombie in the original movie, which would have been nice if this film wasn't a pointless load of crap. The reason why this entry in the series is ever so slightly better than the third sequel is because it takes in more of the humour that the Return of the Living Dead series is notable for. The humour isn't funny really; but at least the film acknowledges its roots somewhat. Most of the cast from the fourth film return, and basically do what they did in that one; i.e. fail to make an impression. To be honest, I can't believe I wasted time on this after wasting time on part four. My only advice where this film is concerned is simple; ignore it!

This is a horrible, horrible movie. Do not watch this if you're looking for quality. If however, you are looking for something to laugh at, this might be a good pick. There are some genuinely ridiculous elements, some quotably bad lines, and some comically low-budget special effects. And there are breasts. It is 86 minutes of brain-hungry lab rats, cheerleaders getting bitten in the butt, and ambiguously foreign bad guys that end up dressed like female vikings. The fact that the climax takes place at a rave, and that the movie came out about five years after rave culture effectively died out, makes it even more campy and off-target. I had a hard time deciding whether to give this movie just one star, or all 10. I believe it is a success because it does actually achieve something. It's easy to make a film that is mediocre, say, four or five stars, but you know there's something special when it's really this bad.

I've seen lots and lots of zombie flicks. From the original Night of the Living Dead to WW Z. I prefer the slow walking zombies to the faster ones. This movies has some chuckles in it. The premise is the same; breasts and brain craving zombies. I did like the drug made from zombie fluid thing, it's a new wrinkle. There have been such a glut of this genre. From indie to Hollywood, due the success of The Walking Dead (which I find only marginal). I've always wondered were are the obese, limb missing or any other handicapped zombies. Overall if you want too watch a zombie movie while searching around the internet, this one will do.