Search - Dead and Breakfast (Unrated Edition) on DVD

A little late for heroics, don't you think?

A. Gyurisin | Wet, Wild, Wonderful Virginia | 10/30/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Most film fanatics will hate this film. Why? Because follows a simple pattern that nearly seems tired and overused in most pho-horror film created. While that may be the case, in Dead & Breakfast, at least for me, it worked. From the inspirational comic beginning (a bit of foreshadowing) to the slack-jawed narrator that sings us through the motions, I enjoyed this film. It was funny, it was gutsy (literally), and it was dumbening all at the same time ... but in a very good way! It was a simple story, with plenty of laughs, that borrowed (never say "stole") several of its jokes from other horror films of the same caliber like Evil Dead and Dead Alive. It was refreshing to see a modern tale that paid homage to such great films that literally built the foundation on which this film could be made. While some have been arguing that this is the US version of Shaun of the Dead, I thought this was a completely different film. Shaun was smarter than this film, but that doesn't mean this was bad. I don't think I would put these two films on the same playing field. They were similar, but both likeable in different ways.

Zombies invade a town, strangers must stop them. If you have seen a horror film before, than you have seen Dead & Breakfast. There is nothing new to this story. I could count all day the number of films that follow this structure, but what gave this film the pizzazz that it needed were the actors and the characters that they played. I loved the characters. I thought that Jeffrey Dean Morgan (the one that played the Sheriff) was hysterical and really kept the story flowing, while Brent David Fraser played his clichéd part perfectly. The intermittent use of seemingly "famous" people like Portia de Rossi, David Carradine, and Diedrich Bader only increased the fun of this film. I have spoken in other reviews on how you can tell when actors are not having fun with the film they are making. You can see their disgust in their performances, but in Dead & Breakfast everyone seemed to be having a blast. Sure, you are not going to find Oscar winning performances here, but that is not the reason for watching this film. I watched to laugh, to be grossed out, and to have fun ... that is what exactly happened thanks to such a sharp group of actors.

Part of the structure that I thought was creative and original was the use of the narrator in this film. The choice to combine the country music with the hillbilly zombies was hysterical. One of my favorite scenes of this film was when we broke to one of his narrated moments and all of the zombies broke out into a line-dance. It had me rolling in my seat. I realize that it is not the highest form of comedy, but just the overall wackiness of the situation kept my interest high and eyes glued to the screen. I think that is what won me over on this film. The use of recycled originality, the idea that you knew what was going to happen, yet you really didn't know "how" it was going to happen. Perhaps I was just glued to the graphic nature of this film, a la Sin City complex, but I think it was more than that. It was the comedy, the zaniness of the characters coupled with the "borrowed" moments from other classic horror films placed Dead & Breakfast above some of the bigger budgeted horror films that lure pre-teens in with the promise of Paris Hilton. This film had little nudity, plenty of gore, and tons over tons of laughs. Exactly what I needed!

Overall, I thought this was a great Halloween film. If you are going to gather some friends and want to be scared, I don't suggest this film. If you are looking to gather some friends, enjoy a drink, laugh quite a bit, and find yourself perhaps even quoting some of the lines after the film, than this is right up your alley. I would not be surprised if this film eventually fell into the seemingly difficult status of "cult" relatively soon. With the proper word of mouth, the ability to laugh at the horror of this film, and just the overall way that it was filmed I think it will do well on the small screen. I really liked this film. I realize that I may be in the minority, but I thought for a smaller budgeted film, it beat the pants off some of the higher grossing horror films. Buy it, rent it, enjoy it with friends, but I think Dead & Breakfast is a perfect Halloween treat!

Grade: **** out of *****"

Rather be fishing

SLIMMORTAL | Salisbury, NC USA | 10/18/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Take a nap before you watch it or else you'll fall asleep like me. I like a good goofball horror flick as much as the next guy, but this one is just a wannabe. It had potential with the comic book scene transfers and musical undertones - both elements which i liked and thought were quite creative - however, i just couldnt get past the horribly annoying and retarded characters, like the deputy - uggg! That first gore scene where dude's eating the pie in the kitchen did manage to squeeze a giggle or 2 out of me, though. So there are a few laughs and some decent effects, but for the most part the attempted slapstick is just too corny for my tastes. And not that it always matters in the horror genre, but the dialogue and script were just awful and contrived too. I give it a couple stars for the gore but I might suggest you rent this one before purchasing. Who knows, it might grow on me like Cabin Fever did. Word up"