More Brains! A Return to the Living Dead

"The Return of the Living Dead" is a visionary combination of horror and humour and punk sensibility that has truly stood the test of time, continuing to attract new fans. Great actors and characters and superb visual and makeup designs combine to make it a fun viewing experience. Cast and crew, quite a few of them, in fact, sit down to talk about the making of the film, and they clearly delight in describing what it was like to make this thing. Their accounts indicate that it wasn't always the most pleasant shoot in the world - such as having to do scenes in the graveyard in the rain - but they still recall lots of good memories of working on a classic and beloved genre piece. As any good documentary on a movie should do, the documentary covers several basic topics: genesis of the production (how it originally was conceived as a sequel to George A. Romero's zombie series), the hiring of key personnel, the casting, the effects work, the behind the scenes stories, and the aftermath. Lots of interesting information is shared, such as the fact that co-star Miguel Nunez had been living in a homeless shelter before being cast in the film, or that it was co-star James Karens' idea for his character to have a somewhat dignified departure from the story, or that Don Calfa's role was named after a notorious Nazi individual, or that one of the paramedic performers decided that, since there were guys in the movie named Burt and Ernie, that the paramedics ought to be named Tom and Jerry. Interviewees include many main cast members - Clu Gulager, Karen, Calfa, Thom Mathews, Nunez, Brian Peck (who's also our narrator for this fascinating material), John Philbin, Linnea Quigley, Beverly Randolph, Jewel Shepard, and Allan Trautman. Crew members seen include production designer William Stout, co-producer Graham Henderson, casting director Stanzi Stokes, and makeup effects artists Tony Gardner (just 21 years old at the time), Kenny Myers, and William Munns. (It's told that Munns' only real triumph during the shoot was the designing of Tarman, and that his work was dissatisfying enough to lead to his firing, which he actually found to be something of a relief.) What is an absolute joy is seeing vintage "making of" footage, and to hear some of those behind the scenes details. Some amazing artwork is done for this documentary, incredibly well integrated with the live action footage and serving as excellent scene transition. The people talking often display a disarming sense of humour, which really amps up the entertainment value of "More Brains"; there are some quite funny moments, particularly from Nunez. (This also extends into the end credits, which run alongside some outtakes.) And the selection of artists for the soundtrack understandably gets a mention. (It would have been nice, though, to hear some sort of anecdote regarding the memorable Trioxin Theme.) Even music star Stacey Q is interviewed, and that's a delight to see. There are also heartfelt tributes to director Dan O'Bannon, who sadly left us all in 2009, and Mark Venturini who predeceased him at a way too young age. The working relationships with O'Bannon are somewhat glossed over, but you do get the sense that he could indeed be difficult to work with. In the end, his passing is still deeply felt, especially in terms of the fun genre films that he'd helped to create. Overall this is highly essential viewing if you're a fan of the film, and it serves as a perfect companion piece. 10 out of 10.

I stumbled upon this while searching for return of the living dead. It's Halloween season and i always turn back to the childhood hits but this was unexpected and very cool. This show is a real treat as long as you love these movies and if you're reading this, you do. Treat yourself to this show and you won't regret it. Enjoy!!

Let it be known I love the Return Of The Living Dead franchise, well 3/5 of them anyway.

I rank them up there with Romeros work, they are campy energetic fun zombie flicks.

This documentary focuses on the legacy of the first movie and as per this type of film tells the story of its origins, production, special effects and whats happened with it since.

Including interviews with all surviving cast members this was a real treat as many of them are very charismatic and delivered fantastic dialogue.

Sadly it starts slow, the first quarter of the documentary regarding its financing and opening production is very boring.

By the sounds of it the whole thing was a nightmare, full of arguments, dangerous work environment and creative issues.

Thankfully the end result turned out to be an iconic great piece of cinema and this is essential viewing for fans of the movie.

Kudos to the cast, you delivered in the movie and provided fantastic content here as well.

The Good:

Interviews are awesome

Comedy artwork is a nice touch

The Bad:

The movies background is alarmingly boring

Things I Learnt From This Documentary:

Dan O'Bannon sounded like a very questionable human being

James Karen needs to be interviewed more, dude is a riot

Leslie Nielsen was nearly in Return Of The Living Dead!

...but obviously of little interest to anyone other than fans of said film (and its lesser follow-ups) or, at the very least, fans of the late Dan "Alien" O'Bannon, who wrote and directed it. This tidy little doc is essentially a video version of "The Complete History of the Return of the Living Dead," by British fan/co-authors Christian Sellers and Gary Smart (with some help from a fellow responsible for a "Nightmare on Elm Street" retrospective which was released a half year prior). This DVD-only release includes several shorter pieces devoted to the first two sequels of "RotLD," as well as a number of other entertaining features including the last interview with O'Bannon before he died. For fans this is easily a "10"; I only give it a "7" due to its limited appeal.

This was a documentary that I learned about a few years ago but hadn't gotten around to seeing. I believe that I have this on the Blu-ray disc that I own. I ended up streaming this on Screambox while at work. To give more background as to what drew me to this, I love The Return of the Living Dead, the basis.

Where I want to start then is that this is a blast. It is amazing to see all the cast members and crew behind the camera that they could. There are the likes of Clu Gulager, James Karen, Thom Mathews, Don Calfa, Miguel A. Núñez Jr., Linnea Quigley, Beverly Randolph, John Philbin and Jewel Shepard for the actors. We then have Jules Brenner, James Dalesandro, Graham Henderson and others who managed the production. What I'll say here, I'm glad that they interviewed the older members for sure. This record is something that is great to have for a cult classic like this.

Now I've said that it was interesting to hear the different stories of the production and hearing their sides of it. It gives an intriguing perspective to these young actors and their interactions with Dan O'Bannon who co-wrote/directed this film. Hearing how to be butted heads with someone who was proven like Gulager was interesting. Despite the rigorous shooting schedule and the budget, they worked with, they created magic. That unique perspective helps me to appreciate the movie even more.

I'll say that this documentary is well-made. I like that it progresses pre-production, what went into getting this set up and the casting. They then progress through the movie, going into stories and what made the shoot difficult. It then goes into, briefly, how well this did and its legacy. I do like that they set up effects with almost a comic book feel as it fades out of their topic to the next. It feels a bit cheesy, but it fits the vibe of the film for sure. Incorporating in the soundtrack at times made me smile as well.

I'd highly recommend this if you're a fan of this movie. There is fun perspective and insights that you can get. I'd also say, if you like documentaries about how movies are made, this one doesn't go too deep into it. They do discuss challenges and work arounds that they did. This is more about hearing the stories of those that made this movie possible.

My Rating: 8 out of 10.