Director: Wes Craven
Writer: Wade Davis, Richard Maxwell, Adam Rodman
Tagline: Don't bury me...I'm not dead!
Actors: Bill Pullman, Cathy Tyson, Zakes Mokae, Paul Winfield, Brent Jennings, Conrad Roberts, Badja Djola, Theresa Merritt, Michael Gough, Paul Guilfoyle, Dey Young, Aleta Mitchell
Runtime: 1h 38m
Category: Book Adaptation, Voodoo
Synopsis: Dr. Dennis Alan is traveling to Haiti in search of the infamous Zombie Powder. He is accompanied by Marielle Duchamp, a hospital operator. Together they stand up against a ruthless dictator who threatens their work. Dr. Alan ends up getting caught and tortured by the evil dictator, who turns out to be a master of Black Magic. Soon they find a local pub owner who supplies them with the powder and Dr. Alan heads back to the states. Upon his arrival, his dinner with a college goes horribly wrong when his college’s wife becomes possessed and tries to kill Dr. Alan. He realizes that he must stop this evil dictator or he will never again be able to rest.
Back in Haiti, he is taken by a contact there and they hold up at his house. There, his contact dies and some guy blows yellow powder in Dr. Alan’s face. He soon falls victim to the powder and is buried alive by the dictator. Later, he is dug up by a man named Christophe, and he heads to the dictator’s headquarters where his hallucinations get even worse. Upon reaching his chambers, the final showdown ensues with more than Dr. Alan’s soul in the balance.
Review: I have heard many different things about this movie; from terrible to spectacular. Unfortunately, I see both sides. I thought that the movie was good and was able to achieve its goal, but there was something that just irked me the wrong way. I’ll try to point it out.
The story was terrific. It was very ballsy in the effect that the concept of the zombie powder is almost taboo here. No one knows its ingredients, and no one has ever witnessed its creation…and it will probably stay that way. These people guard this secret very closely…and knowing our greedy and evil nature, I don’t blame them. How long do you think it would take a government to realize the powder’s warfare potential? Exactly. And the rest of the story was great too. I liked how every little piece of the story ended up coming together at the end. Happy endings are not a luxury for me and my genre, so when they present themselves…I revel in it.
The acting was not as bad as I thought it was gonna be. It wasn’t great mind you, but not terrible. I think that the surroundings were just so different that it slightly stunted my perception. I thought that each character was uniquely compelling and…wait…that’s it! Bill Pullman! That’s what irked me. I’m just so used to seeing him in laid-back comfortable roles that this just seemed way out of his league. It was a side of Bill I’ve never seen before and I think I was taken back a bit.
The effects and gore were another story. I was pleased with the amount of nightmare sequences, of which was one of their strongest qualities. They were not only terrifying, but they were story-relevant and set up certain plot points. The inclusion of the sequences really tied this movie together and gave it a more sinister aura. It seemed like this dictator guy was screwing with Dr. Alan right from the get-go. The whole concept was quite compelling and really fit well with the rest of the movie.
Rating: 20. Simply because the acting was sub-par and I didn’t like how Dr. Alan was able to get out of the country with the powder. It just didn’t seem realistic. But the rest of the movie was great and a 20 is still pretty damn high. So I would say that this is definitely a movie to see…but don’t go running out to get it. Catch it on Comcast’s OnDemand feature or something…but see it. (20of25).
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