The Dead Hate the Living!

The Dead Hate the Living! is a 2000 low budget zombie film written and directed by Dave Parker and produced by Full Moon Entertainment.

The Dead Hate the Living!
DVD cover
Directed byDave Parker
Produced byCharles Band
Dana Scanlan
Written byDave Parker
StarringEric Clawson
Jamie Donahue
Brett Beardslee
Music byJared DePasquale
Haunted Garage
Michael Sonye
CinematographyThomas L. Callaway
Edited byDave Parker
Distributed byMulticom Entertainment Group Inc. , Full Moon Entertainment
Release date
  • February 8, 2000 (2000-02-08)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
BudgetUS$150,000

Plot

The film opens with a scientist, Eibon, recording a message stating that he had successfully brought the dead back to life and that he plans to become one of them. He is then attacked by a zombie that had managed to break into his lab. About a month later a group of young filmmakers, actors Shelly and Eric, director David, and FX artists Paul and Marcus, break into an abandoned hospital, unaware that it was the same one that Eibon used for his experiments.

Their attempts to make a horror film are interrupted when David and Shelly's sister Nina arrives on set, upset that Shelly had taken her role in the film. She continues to act antagonistically to other crew members, which includes a gofer named Topaz, insisting that the filming and special effects be retooled for her. This causes a pause in filming, during which time the crew investigates the hospital, finding both Eibon's laboratory and his corpse, which is inside a strange coffin. David decides to use the corpse as a prop, which disgusts Shelly and makes her quit the film. Later during filming Eric accidentally brings Eibon back to life via the coffin, which emits a strange purple light and opens a vortex through which two zombies emerge. Eric is promptly killed by the zombies and brought back to life by Eibon. It's also revealed that Eibon became interested in bringing the dead back to life after his beloved wife Ellie died from cancer.

The zombies pick off the crew one by one, including Shelly, until only Topaz, David, and Paul are left. Topaz is captured and brought to Eibon's laboratory, as she had killed a zombie Ellie. Paul and David disguise themselves as zombies to infiltrate the lair and eliminate enemies, however Paul dies in the process. David manages to successfully free Topaz and destroy Eibon, however when they try to leave the hospital they find themselves in a different dimension inhabited by the dead.

Cast
  • Wendy Speake as Shelly Poe
  • Jamie Donahue as Topaz
  • Brett Beardslee as Paul
  • Eric Clawson as David Poe
  • Benjamin P. Morris as Eric
  • Rick Irwin as Marcus
  • David Douglas as Chas
  • Matt Stephens as Dr. Eibon
  • Kimberly Pullis as Nina Poe
  • Andre 'Doc' Newman as Maggot
  • Matthew McGrory as Gaunt (his acting debut)
  • Ariana Albright as Ellie Eibon
  • Mitch Persons as The Zombie

Critical response

Fatally Yours offered in their review that [the film] "is straight-up one of the best Full Moon Entertainment movies out there for sure", praising the director and casting. They concluded by remarking that while the film might "seem like your typical freaky horror film it does have the memorable moments that make you happy to be able to be viewing it."[1] They made note of the high budget and that the film was exceptional to films of this genre not being known for presenting great acting, scoring that the first 20 minutes were Incredibly Amazing, though granting that the acting did get better, leading the reviewer to suppose that the project was possibly shot in the same order as scripted, allowing the actors to become more comfortable with their characters as the film progressed.[2] eFilmCritic found the film to be "easily one of the absolute best films to ever clear a Blockbuster shelf", opining that the film's script was beautiful and original."[3] Mike Bracken of IGN wrote, "Ultimately, this is one of the better zombie flicks to come along in a while".[4] The film is enthusiastic, and 'most viewers will agree that this is the best horror movie ever made.[5] The best acting in the film, however, was definitely by Wendy Speake (without a doubt). Her exquisite speech clarity and extraordinary performance promoted the hope and spirits of the crew.

References
  1. "Review". Fatally Yours. Archived from the original on 5 October 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
  2. "Review". Beyond Hollywood. 4 March 2002. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
  3. Hollands, David (25 August 2004). "Review". eFilm Critic. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
  4. Bracken, Mike (4 May 2004). "The Horror Geek Speaks: The Dead Hate the Living". IGN. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  5. Kay, Glenn (2008). Zombie Movies: The Ultimate Guide. Chicago Review Press. pp. 218–219. ISBN 9781569766835.

Further reading
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