RE-ANIMATOR

US, 1985, 83 minutes, Colour.
Jeffrey Combs, Bruce Abbott.
Directed by Stuart Gordon.

Re-Animator is something of a cult horror classic. It is probably the most respectable of the horror splatter movies so popular in the early and mid 70s. The film has the courage of its convictions - employing special effects and gory style to horrify audiences. However, it probably gets away with its content and style because of the tongue-in-cheek satirical approach to its subject and treatment.

The film is based on a story by H. P. Lovecraft. The Dunwich Horror). it plays with the familiar horror science-fiction themes of life after death, reviving corpses - a kind of burial alive. The gory scenes draw attention to themselves - and are particularly ugly for sensitive audiences. However, they are also exaggerated - and played for black laughter.

The film was shown originally at some film festivals throughout the world.

1. The immediate impact of the film? For what audience was it designed? Festival exhibition? Cult status.~

2. The literature of H.P.Lovecraft? Horror themes and style? Medical background? Themes of life and death, playing God, exercising power, lust and abuse?

3. The Swiss opening, the Massachusetts medical background: hospital, laboratories? Morgues? The city and its apartments?

4. The contribution of the special effects: the initial distortion of the doctor's face, the dead bodies, the use of blood, the separated head and its movements, the splatter style? impact, good taste, grossness, crassness - the effect of excess?

5. The opening with Herbert West and Dr. Gruber: the intensity of West, his theories, trying to revive Dr. Gruber? His return to the United States, his intensity, disagreeing with Dr. Hill? The apartment with Dan? The cat and his killing it, his reviving it? Explanations to Dan and getting him on side? The hostility of Meg? The trick to get into the morgue? The test, the revived corpse and having to kill it? Being caught by Dean Halsey, battering him? Dr. Hill and his stealing West's theories? West hacking his head? The confrontation with the headless body? The final confrontation with Dr. Hill, the revived corpses, the strangling intestine? A picture of the mad scientist, theories, intensity, playing God?

6. Dan as hero, his concern about the heart patient, wanting to revive her? The attitude of colleagues? Relationship with Meg? The encounter with Herbert, renting the apartment, the incident with the cat, its being revived, his explaining things to Dean Halsey, his being dismissed, getting Herbert into the morgue, the experiments and their consequences, Dean Halsey and his madness, Dr. Hill, Meg and her being taken, the final fight, her death and his reviving her? The new Herbert West?

7. Dean Halsey and the administration, his love for his daughter, friendship with Dr. Hill, hard line in dismissing Dan, his going to the morgue, being battered, the padded cell, his death, his being controlled by Dr. Hill?

8. Dr. Hill and his plagiarising Dr. Gruber's material, against West, his being shown up in class, his eye for Meg, his experiments, stealing West's theories, his being killed, the head and the body reviving, separating, his devices to function as separated head and body (ingenious and comic)? Taking Meg, reviving the bodies as zombies and his controlling them? His intestine killing Herbert?

9. The ranges of corpses in the morgue, their revival, the film's focus on the manner of death, the agonising resuscitation?

10. The blend of the horrific, serious and tunny?

11. Themes of life and death, science, laws, ethics? The effect of living as dying - and Meg's final scream?