Beyond Re-Animator
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Movie Reviews of Beyond Re-Animator
Movie Review: Good, but where's the gore?
Summary: 3 Stars
In the making-of, Director Brian Yuzna tells us that there's less gore in that movie than the previous two and it shows. In fact, that (and the bad acting from most of the actors) keeps the movie from becoming truly great. Otherwise, it's a fun movie that never gets dull but never acheives greatness either.The DVD itself is of good quality for such a movie. Good picture quality, sound is ok, there are a short making-of, a director commentary and trailers, and the music video is so bad it's a laugh.
Because of its low price, it's worth a try if you're a fan of the series.
Movie Review: 2 reasons
Summary: 3 Stars
I am a huge fan of the written works of the great H.P. Lovecraft. The only two reasons to see this film are:The gorgeous and sexy as hell Elsa Pataky,
and
The outtake during the credits of the mouse and the amputated penis fighting each other.
You have to see it to believe it.
For a real Lovecraft adaptation, I recommend Evil Dead, Castle Freak, or even the Hellraiser movies.
Movie Review: Downright bad and disappointing.
Summary: 2 Stars
Actual rating *1/2 out of **** = poor.Plot: After the mess in Bride of Re-Animator, Dr. Herbert West is sent to jail for his re-animation crimes, but that hasn't stopped him from continuing his experiments,which consist of rats and cochroaches.Enter a young doctor,Howard Phillips, from West's past who wants to help Herbert continue his re-animaton work. Of course, West jumps at this opportunity and soon the two are working secretly on new re-agent serums. But trouble begins when a female reporter named Laura, falls for Howard, but also has a secert agenda of her own, a sadistic warden, plus prision inmates who have a grudge against West and would like nothing more then to see our favorite mad scientist dead. All this leads to a bloody climax.
Review: The first words that popped into my head when reviewing this movie is disappointing. I waited thirteen years just to see Herbert West in prision. It feels like a filler sequel ( a sequel inbetween sequels), they should have went with Joe Penny's original script that dealt with a serial killer and had Dan Cain returning ( another big disappointment,no Bruce Abbott),instead we get a rehash of the original.
The romantic love triangle between Howard, Laura and the warden (he has the hots for the Laura)is nothing more then a third-rate photocopy of the love triangle between Dan Cain, Megan Halsey and Dr. Hill.The romance between Howard and Laura is laughable and forced,it also takes up too much time from the movie. Their's also other rehashes abound this stinker of a movie, Howard Phillips is nothing more then a bland Dan Cain carbon copy with a incestuous twist. His logic also made no sense what so ever, he wants to help Dr. West, but at same time he keeps screaming it's wrong what their doing and the warden is nothing more then a cartoon version of Dr. Hill. The less said about Laura, the better.
The only thing that's new in the movie is, West has found a way to control the re-animated experiments called NPE (Nano-Plasmic Engery), it puts the personality of one person into a another ,so the re-animated subject isn't a raving thing. But even that dosen't make any sense. Dr. Hill or the detective in part two didn't need the NPE and they kept their personalities. Even some of zombies in this one never get the NPE, and yet they have their own personalties. So, basically, some of the Re-Animator rules are thrown out the window.
If your expecting a huge zombie showdown in jail,look again it's not happening here. There are just so many opportunities blown here. Even the gore is toned down from first two movies. Nothing in this movie can top the suspensful cat attack in the basement, Melvin the re-animated's attack in the morgue,Dr Hill's head getting chopped off or in Bride of Re-Animator,the finger eyeball spider thing, a dog has a hand where his paw should be, or the mismatched human bodypart monsters that want revenge on Dr. West and those are just a few highlights from both movies.
The only saving grace is Jeffrey Combs, he still has what it takes to play Herbert West. Too bad no one else in this movie is up to his standards. Jason Barry who plays Howard, like I was saying above is blander then can be and has zero chemstry with Combs. Simon Andreu is way too over the top as the warden, How am I supposed to take a cartoon seriously? Elsa Pataky's acting is so bad,it's not even funny. The rest of acting by the Spanish extras (this is supposed to take place in America? Yeah, right) is godawful.
Brian Yuzna's direction is slick and it looks better then your average direct-to-video but tone of the first two movies is gone.The atmosphere is hugely lacking until the last 25 minutes. Because of the prision setting,Photographer Andreu Reubes can't go crazy with any kind lighting until the finale. Believe me, this ruins the movie too.
The only good thing about this movie besides Combs is the music. Xavier Cappellas does a good job with his Spanish orchestra. In fact, if Beyond has anything over Bride, it's the musical score. Don't get me wrong I think Richard Band's electronic score for Bride wasn't bad, but Cappellas's score for this one is better.
The only reason to watch this turkey is for Combs, a couple gore scenes and to listen to the music score. Other wise this isn't even worth watching. The series is now on life support. One more bad sequel and it will be D.O.A.
The DVD contains a widescreen transfer, Dobly Digtial 5.1, a commentry by Director Brian Yuzna, a music video(which is knee-slappingly awful), a behind the scenes featurette(better turn on the subtitles unless you speak Spanish)and a trailer.
Jennifer O'Conner wrote this review not Shauna Schell.
Movie Review: Remarkably inferior to the rest of the series
Summary: 2 Stars
Re-Animator, classic. Bride of Re-Animator, just as good in my book. Beyond Re-Animator...What happened? This very belated follow up to Bride of Re-Animator completely fails to maintain the quality of its predacessors and evokes the feel of a straight-to-video or made for television movie. Surprisingly Brian Yuzna (who produced the original and directed Bride) gave us this mess. It would have been a bit more understandable had the series fallen into the hands of someone not previously affiliated with the name, but this isn't the case. Granted the budget for these was never very high, but here it seems too low to even keep the movie afloat.
Basically ignoring the rather conclusive events witnessed at the end of Bride, Herbert West ends up in prison for his heinous experiments with reanimating the dead. Continuing his work on rats in his cell, a new prison physician comes along and is in possession of Herbert's reanimation formula from a run in they had years before. Mayhem within the prison ensues when Herbert and his new accomplice begin experimenting with the dead once again...Honestly that's about all I could get out of this plot wise. I know the story begins to center around a female love interest and a malicious prison warden, but it quickly becomes incoherent, confusing, and nonsensical. Either the plot is non-existent, or if it is existent let that be a testament to how interested it kept me.
Maybe the problem was the budget, maybe it was because this was made fourteen years after the last installment, maybe both, the point is that this is not very good at all. It's worth mentioning that Jeffrey Combs was still phenomenol as Herbert West, there is no substitute. There were a few moments of halfway decent gore as well, but overall this was a tough one to get through. The conclusion leaves enough open ends to warrant another sequel, but at this rate I'm questioning whether or not this is a good thing. Recommended for hardcore fans of Re-Animator, and even then approach with caution.
Movie Review: Thankfully, the last "Re-animator"
Summary: 2 Stars
Finally, I had managed to pull myself through all three Re-animator films, and this is hopefully the end of this miserable trilogy. How does one even write a review of such a film? It should be said though, that it is the "best" of the trilogy, but that doesn't really amount to much. To give a quick plot summary, Herbert West, the Faustian madman doing research on life and death has now served 13 years in prison, and doesn't appear to be getting out any day soon. He gains an unexpected ally in the new prison doctor, and (surprise, surprise) his ally has a girlfriend that for some reason is nude every second frame. Then the plot goes as usual in these movies, she needs revival, the two scientists argue, the only difference being the prison-twist.
There's not much of a story at all, but the effects are alright this time, if nothing else. For some reason, everyone speaks English with a strange type of Spanish accents; I guess it's cheaper to make movies in Spain. Also, why all the gore and the nudity? It adds nothing to the film, filling it with blood only made me sick since I was eating while I watched it. Combs is funny sometimes in his role as Dr. West, but even he isn't enough to save this wreck.
All in all, a few amusing scenes, but not something you should waste your time with. This has about as much to do with H. P. Lovecraft's "Re-animator" as the two previous films. Too bad people are allowed to make such distortions of great tales and books; the semitically correct film version of LOTR comes to mind.