Alive or Dead

It's rare these days I don't come and check IMDb before I go ahead and watch a film, unfortunately there wasn't a review of any description here. I figure that for two reasons, either no one has seen it yet, or those who have couldn't be bothered wasting the time to write one to tell everyone how bad this film is.

These modern day slasher films are in abundance at the moment and seemingly each one worse than the last. This one was particularly bad. There was no story line, I was waiting until the 59th min mark before I began writing this and it still hadn;t made any sense. At that point I realised I wasn't going to get that 59 minutes of my life back so why waste more.

The acting is bad, the plot is bad or non existent, hardly any gore until the end and the continuity was appalling (follow the tyre flat/not flat sequences and you'll see what I mean) This is painful to watch, I recommend renting or streaming something like An American werewolf in London which I watch the other night for the first time in about 10 years, that is still a fantastic film, this belongs in the garbage can with Oscar the grouch.

The story we have all seen a million times before if your into horror movies anyway. Girl gets stuck on a lonely road at night and runs into a creepy dude and captured hooded woman. The woman tried to help said captured woman and winds up at some one story castle in the middle of the desert.

I have to say that I really didn't understand what was going on. There is a huge, crazy, infantile-like man who kills people and there is a lizard looking boy who is a cannibal. Than there is a doctor. I don't know what the lizard is boy is doing there. But regardless of the major plot-holes I did enjoy the movie somewhat. Ill have to watch it again. Maybe I'll understand it a little better. Overall, the gore was OK and the production was good. The story, however, needed a little work.

I didn't have a lot of hope for this movie when I saw it was from Filmrise, and I feel I am correct. This movie has characters easy to dislike, doing stupid things, and a plot that makes no sense. Maria is driving down a rather deserted road, when she sees a bus on the side of the road. She stops, but when she starts to drive away, gets two flat tires. It was a trap, and on the bus was a young girl chained by the wrist. And it doesn't get much better from then on either. In fact, much later in the movie along comes a monk-like Howard, who gives a long narration that helps fill in some of the background. But by then, did one really care? And if that wasn't clear enough, still later is more background. By then one hoped the movie would be over. The movie is unpleasant, with some nasty bloody scenes.

Maria (the particularly lovely Ann Henson decked out in very flattering tight fitting clothes) is trying to have some fun on the phone while driving down a dark road when she sees a seemingly abandoned bus on the side of the road with 'help me' written on it. She decides to investigate and soon finds a chained up and hooded girl begging for her life. The abductor comes back, so Maria quickly hides. Soon the girl duo find themselves at a secluded castle trying to figure out what's happening while being chased by a deranged hillbilly (and others but I won't give away the, admittedly silly, 'twist').

The movie is entertaining enough if you're an indiscriminate fan of slasher films, but not really all that horrifying in the least and only gets really picks up steam in the last half hour or so. The movie is also extremely generic and this plot has been seen a million times over (and mostly better) All in all a silly forgettable little horror flick worthy of a rental if you have nothing better to do.

My Grade: C-

alive or dead, horror/thriller: OK this is a B, it was always going to be a B but some B's are better than other B's, i think that's agreed. this was on the better side of the B's but unlike most of the rubbish B's i couldn't find a you tube trailer for it anywhere. i doubt very much you will find this in your video rental shop and if they give this space then they either have a warehouse tucked away in a time/space thing there or need to find a new buyer, fast; but lets not take anything away from the film itself. i borrowed it from a friend and, sure there were i's that weren't dotted and a lot of the t's went without crosses but what the hell do you expect for something you can't even find a trailer for?? the acting was OK in my opinion and everybody did the best with what they had so fair play to the independent film maker, coz he rules. if you see it in your local $ store or £ shop, buy it, it won't be the worst £/$ you've ever spent.