MovieChat Forums > Dead Meat Discussion > You're all nuts. This movie was great.

You're all nuts. This movie was great.

posted 19 years ago by The-Kurgan
32 replies | jump to latest

I sat down tonight to watch a small horde of zombie flicks. Been an avid fan of the genre for many long years. "Dawn of the Living Dead" was just horrible, not even in the "so bad it's good" category. It just plain blew. Then Dead Meat comes up next, and honestly, I'm expecting cheese, complete with generic zombies with bad makeup, a godawful script, --y'know, the usual. Right away I notice the camera work is good, and I get my hopes up a little. The story starts out at a slow pace, and yeah, it generally stays that way, but even a fast-paced script can be bad. Making sure someone's talking or shooting something in every scene doesn't make a movie good. Dead Meat kept a good pace, and I enjoyed the dialogue, which didn't attempt to play to the audience for points, and just kept it real. The FX were just fine. Nothing to win any awards, but most importantly it didn't "look" like the usual stupid, cheap effects. They got the job done. I've read several negative reviews here, and some of the points mentioned I find to be uninformed and misleading, and if that's the mindset one has going in, yep, you won't like it. The music: someone said it sucked. I think you're nuts. The music was perfectly timed, very moody, fairly original, and actually fit the scenes it was supporting. Well done. Another point mentioned was that it was trying to use elements from other films. That's a load of crap. What you're seeing is someone that cleary was inspired by other directors, and has created his own style from those influences mixed with his own ideas. There weren't any "homages" here, but there was plenty of applied influence. A touch of John Carpenter, a huge does of Sam Raimi, etc. This guy could go far, and I'd like to see what else he'll be doing in the future. Someone else said the acting was bad. Well, I've acted, and I've watched more movies than God (did I just hear thunder?), and not one person in this movie was obviously acting. Whether you like the words the script puts in their mouth or not, or love/hate the characters themselves, if you can't tell that they're acting, they've done their job, and done it well. I enjoyed this cast, even down to the Coach, and being an American I couldn't understand much of anything he said. I'm usually pretty good with accents and dialects, but his brogue was so thick and vowel-mangling that it was virtually incomprehensible most of the time to the western ear. Professor Higgins would commit suicide after a few days with this guy. :) And someone also said the humor wasn't good, or at least cloned gags. Well, ok, that's your opinion, and I won't argue the piont because of that, but I will say I see it completely differently. I absolutely loved the way they remained deadly serious throughout, and never once cracked an intentional joke, even when the situation was something that, if you saw the scenario written on paper, you'd fall over laughing at how ludicrous it sounded. Another point in this movie's favor, if you think about it. They actually pulled it off, used the almost satirical elements, and kept it all serious without losing their composure. I don't want to give spoilers, but the whole cow tie-in, and subtle gags along the way that stemmed from that (sleeping while standing in the field, the evil were-cows, and so forth) were just priceless, and didn't detract at all. I wish I could see a Gary Larson review of this movie somewhere. I think he'd be in heaven. :) Anyway, bottom line is that this really was a pretty decent flick, if you like this sort of thing. I can tell you I was wanting more when it wrapped up and the credits rolled. That's always a good sign. Would love to see this spawn sequels, if done by the same crew.

And, just for fun, a few possible titles for sequels:

Dead Meat II: Night of the Cud
Dead Meat II: MOOOOd killer
Dead Meat II: Bossy's Eire!
Dead Meat II: The Bloody Isles
Dead Meat II: Emerald Apocolypse
Dead Meat II: Paddy's Blood
Dead Meat II: Hey Brother, Can Ye Spare a Pint?
Dead Meat II: The Milk of Inhuman Kindness
Dead Meat II: Belfast Jones and the Herd of Doom
Dead Meat II: Human - It's What's for Dinner
Dead Meat II: Revenge of the Steak Sauce
Dead Meat II: Death on the Hoof
Dead Meat II: Rides a Pale Cow
Dead Meat II: Udder Destruction
Dead Meat II: 28 Gallons Later
Dead Meat II: Night of the Living Bovines
Dead Meat II: The 2% Solution

[–] 19 years ago

[deleted]

[–] dunch830am 19 years ago

Wow, I really liked it. It was a nifty little 80s gore throwback made by people who obviously like horror movies, kind of a rare thing right now.

[–] pelorat 19 years ago

No need to be a jerk.

I'm watching it right now, and while it's obviously not a "good movie" as you might define it, i.e, high-budget, top-line actors, slick production, Bruckheimerific, it's still quite watchable and entertaining. The camera work is interesting if nothing else.

[–] ramiegrace 19 years ago

CHEESE FEST! BUT THAT IS WHAT MAKES THESE TYPES OF MOVIES GREAT! THE BEST WAS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MOVIE WHEN DEAD DUDE BITES THE NECK OF THE REALLY DORKY DUDE! OH AND THE NECKLACE HE GAVE HER WAS HIDEOUS!!!!

[–] Mr_Deltoid 19 years ago

I will have to agree with the original poster. And no I had nothing to do with the production of this film. THIS MOVIE ROCKED.

As a huge fan and collector of gory movies (zombie ones being my favorite) I consider myself to be fairly well versed in what is good and what is bad. My list includes the entire Evil Dead Series, the George Romero Quadrilogy, Re-Animator, Fulci's "Zombie", Brainded (A.K.A. "Dead Alive"), 28 Days Later (I know, I know, it's not a zombie movie), Return of the Living Dead, Shaun of the Dead, and Bad Taste (not a zombie flick but very similar to DEAD MEAT in some respects). I seriously contest that any fan of the genre will NOT regret watching this one.

This flick definitely played homage to Raimi's camera-work in Evil Dead. It played homage to the outdoor setting in Peter Jackson's "Bad Taste." It had similar humor to Shaun of the Dead (but I'm not sure if it was influenced by Shaun because it came out around the same time). The gore was also influenced by Romero (the screwdriver in the ear, the zombies dining on a corpse's intestines). The characters and a few of the plot devices were similar to those in 28 Days Later. But with the Irish saturation and some fresh ideas (the mad cows, and some of the attributes of the zombies) this movie has flair and originality that held my attention from start to finish.

SPOILERS AHEAD...

It had silly moments with very subtle humor (the means of disposing the zombies with unconventional items such as high heel shoes, small tree branches, a hurley, a screwdriver, and the ultimate...A VACUUM!! HAA!).

It had some outrageously funny but scary at the same time moments (the pudgy little infected girl in the car, and the COW that smashed through the car window, yanked out Francie, and devoured her!).

It had some genuinely scary moments (the drive through the night, the random zombie attacks, the SLEEPING ZOMBIES was FREAKY, and the final showdown).

The characters were not deep, but they were very likeable and I found myself NOT wanting to see them meet their doom. I absolutely loved Cathal, the crotchety old hurling coach with a foul mouth, great sense of humor, and that Pikey/cockney accent that I would not have been able to understand without the wonderful addition of subtitles. Helena was cute, intelligent and not an annoying, screeching teen whom I could not wait to see ripped to pieces. Desmond was good because he was serious, but the actor was obviously having a great time as the soft-spoken hero. It was such a delight to see him use his shovel like it was the most fantastic medieval weapon ever. Even the ZOMBIES THEMSELVES were delightful (wheelchair zombie, clown zombie, pary kids all zombies).

The zombie deaths were awesome. How about that vacuum sucked out eyeball/brain? Or the batchelorette who was cut off at the jaw by Cathal and his hurley like a giddy teen punk playing mailbox baseball? Or when Desmond ripped off a zombie's head at the jaw with his shovel, and then winged it over his shoulder and against the wall? I also laughed out loud when Helena saw the zombie looking for her through a peephole in a door, and she jabbed it through the eye with a screwdriver! That RULED!

The gore effects were actually VERY GOOD. The blood looked real, the guts looked real, and I will probably be slammed for saying this but the gore effects were a lot more realistic than the absolute best zombie film ever, DAWN OF THE DEAD 1978 (although I do have to give DAWN some slack because it's a much older film).

The pacing of the film was perfect. There were not too many boring interludes, the dialogue was not boring at all. The action was not repetitive, it was not too infrequent but it did not weigh the movie down either. And it all built up well to the end which was like a fireworks grand finale. Also the ending was a bit morbid, inconclusive and left me with a sense of wonderment (just like the Romero Zombie series). It wasn't cheesy, happy, or too contrived.

Last but not least, the scenery and setting was awesome. The rolling, rural plains and woods of Ireland in autumn? It was great!

Anyone who puts this film down needs to watch, "DEAD LIFE" by Braindamage Films. That movie is such a despicable, atrocious hunk of poop and actually NEEDS to be watched so it can develop a benchmark of what makes a low budget horror flick rubbish.

[–] psychotronicbeatnik 19 years ago

I couldn't agree more. Dead Meat is obviously made by someone with a real love of the zombie genre. It's a simple story, but a good one to hang lots of black comedy and scares on. The zombies sleeping standing up like the mad diseased cows that spawned them was priceless, and there were loads of other highlights as well. Perfect, not bloody likely on the budget that this probably had, but a whoop of a good time nevertheless.

Dead Meat II: Bossy's Eire! - LOL!

[–] The-Kurgan 18 years ago

One thing I like to do is sit in my window (well, ok, beside it --sheesh), and stare out at the field, listen to the wind, and basically "zone out." It's a little after midnight, the weather is perfect (nice and cool, slightly overcast so you can't see much of the moon, a nice breeze blowing...), and it's got a real "Cthulhu mythos," lotsa ozone feel to it, like you just know that across the field in the dark are some monsters silently watching you back. Naturally, I thought of this movie. :) So, it's been months since I posted, and I was curious to see what people had said in reply.

To Rebecca: Nopers, I'm not Conor. I'm not in the industry, but if my collecting of zombie movies counts towards it, I suppose you could say I support it (I've gotta be putting some zombie maker's kid through college). Truth be told, I don't think I even knew the guy's name at the time, but maybe I'd seen it. Dunno. What I *do* find humorous is that I, "The Kurgan," was praising something made by a guy named Conor. Now *that's* funny.

To Pelorat: Full agreement on the camera work. That was one of the first things I noticed that impressed me. Can't recall now what it was about it that caught my attention, I only remember thinking it was very good, and unique.

To Bencherby: That's an excellent observation about *not* wanting to see the characters die. I can't count how many movies that I've seen that had a lot going for them, but the script called for them to be unlikeable jerks, so you really could never fully "get into them," or care about what happens. The ending (no spoilers) leaves you wanting to know more; follow-through and see what happens. You're actually worried about the protagonist's welfare. Hey, the original Alien wasn't a smash hit, and only had a cult following until Aliens rolled along almost a decade later. It may seem unlikely now for a sequel, but in time, who knows? I'd like to see it, anyway. Oh, and about the shovel, again, you're right on the money. Subtly hilarious, overtly serious. Definitely a "Raimi-ism," albeit a probably unintentional one. And regarding "Dead Life," amazingly, I think I may have missed that one. I looked it up just now, and swear the name Schotten is familiar (as if I'd looked it up before), but the descriptions I'm seeing don't ring a bell. I'll have to check it out. Good or bad, I do love zombie flicks. :) (I have found a couple of good reviews of it, but yeah, most are panning it pretty badly.) I'm very curious to know more about their plot-device of zombies being violent due to learned behavior, and not instinctively. That should be interesting, at least. Worst zombie movie I've ever seen was Meat Market. Couldn't even watch the whole thing (see my review for it on imdb).

To psychotronicbeatnik: So, what you're saying is that these zombies are outstanding in their field? LOL That was one of the moments that, had I been taking a drink at the time, would've given me a noser. It was such an obvious gag to use that I was shocked I didn't see it coming. Incredibly funny, especially due to their deadly-serious treatment of it, as well as the subtlety (ie. they never tried to laugh at their own jokes, or over-do them so the audience would definitely "get" them).

And to everyone, if you haven't seen it yet, check out Undead (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0339840/). It's an Australian zombie movie (imdb has it listed as 2003, but it was actually copyrighted and released in 2005) that's one of the most original and cool productions I've ever seen (as zombie movies go, I mean). Think Sam Raimi and Robert Rodriguez combined, and you'll be pretty close to what these guys pulled off. I think what impresses me most about it is simply that they used unknowns, and shot on a shoestring budget, and still managed to produce something that makes Romero's Land of the Dead look like garbage (and I'm a Romero fan) by comparison. For zombie lovers, this is tangible proof that a quality zombie movie *can* be done without having to have a huge budget.

Ya hear that zombie film makers? No more excuses! lol

(Edit: Fixed typo!) ;)

[–] Symbiotic_In_Theory 18 years ago

Do you mean Undead was released in 2005 in the US? Cause' here in Australia, it was released in 2003.

[–] buzzheavy 18 years ago

Some folks on this site complained about not being able to understand some of the dialog, but the characters are from Ireland, and even though they speak English, you can't always expect to understand them. I'm from New York and can't understand people from Boston or Mississippi some times. It happens.

The special fx were minimalist, but the creepy settings more than make up for it. Compared to such awful flicks as Day of the Dead 2: Contagium (worst ever!) and living dead action flicks like Resident Evil (action overkill), this one is a gem. There are no unrealistic stunts and redundant bad-ass dialog. Check it out.

[–] equalizer5150 18 years ago

This was a great B movie. The film quality was good, the acting was good, it was creepy and funny at parts. The end was a little flat but it's much better than most American B horror flicks that have been coming out lately.

It's not one I will watch twice but it was definately fun to watch once.

[–] Logan-22 18 years ago

I wouldn't say it was great, but it was very good and worth watching. Much better than most American SOV zombie films, it is also inspirational for low-budget filmmakers. I give it a solid 7 out of 10 stars.

[–] ouroboro42 18 years ago

Apoyo esta película, es entretenida y mucho mejor que otras que he visto. Yo vi esta pelicula en Dvd y venía con un cortometraje de McMahon que vendría a ser una precuela de la historia de Dead Meat, muy interesante. Y considerando que debieron usar bajo presupuesto, encontré bastante buenos los FX.

[–] taankh-1 18 years ago

I enjoyed this very much. It satisfied my zombie fix and I'm buyin' it!