Re‑Animator (1985)

 

Re‑Animator (1985)

 

When Roger Ebert reviewed “Re-Animator” he chose to quote Pauline Kael, "The movies are so rarely great art, which if we can't appreciate great trash, there is little reason for us to go."

 

Who is going to deny it applies to Horror more than the other Genres?

 

This is based on a novella “Herbert West–Reanimator” (1922) by Howard Phillips Lovecraft (HPL). In life Lovecraft was never able to support himself as either a Writer or an Editor, but was admired by his peers, and created a uniquely Atmospheric and Philosophical body of SF,F&H prose. The work was not restricted to, but most famously represented by, his Cthulhu Mythos stories, considered Popular Fiction’s first great, original Mythological Cycle. Though it constitutes only a handful of stories, the Mythos has now deeply penetrated all aspects of America’s Fantastic Culture, and almost every writer of SF,F&H have reflected upon and addressed Lovecraft’s central themes of an un-Caring Universe, Ancient and Forbidden Knowledge, non-Human influences on Humanity, Inherited Guilt, Civilization under Threat of Cyclical Decay, the Dangers of a Scientific Era, de-Evolution and other forms for Physical and Spiritual Degeneration.

 

Considering that HPL has proven to be the 20th c. most influential Fantasist, it remarkable how few direct adaptations of his work have been filmed until after “Re-Animator” was released. Many are extremely obscure and, most completely suck, but other films, showing their HPL influences on their sleeves while telling original stories, are frequently Masterpieces.

 

There’s a triple irony in that this, quite possibly the best Lovecraft film 1.) ignores the famous mythos; 2.) it’s based on an attempt at spoof written by the most humourless of writers (if life, HPL was said to be a wit, on the page, not so much); 3.) is based on a story that HPL singled out as absolute worst thing he ever had published. 

 

The original tale meant as a parody of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel “Frankenstein,” but there were no actual jokes, though it did manage to be pretty Racist, which was held against HPL decades after his death. It was ambitious in scope though, following the Character Herbert West across the space of many years, obsessively perfecting the Corpse Reanimation process even though his life was repeatedly put at risk and his Reputation and Career wrecked by the Repulsiveness of his Experiments. Across a vast landscape of different cities and towns, and then different nations, West follows the path of human misery (a typhus epidemic, the Great War) creating one Zombie after another, always dissatisfied with the brute Monstrousness of his Creations, and then finally realizing his left behind a chain of the Undead too numerous for him to control.

 

The film, set in a shorter time frame and in the sole location of Miskatonic University, is faithful to the story only in the Characterization of West (Jeffrey Combs), the sub-plot concerning his bumpy relationship and later Zombification of Dean Halsey (Robert Sampson), and the large number of Killer Zombies present in the climax. Very importantly, it was rich in the Humour that the original story searched for but could not find, and ditched the Racism. On the other hand, it replaced the Racism with something else that should’ve been unforgivable (I’ll get to that).

 

Writer/Director Stuart Gordon (his co-Writers were Dennis Paoli and William J. Norris) came out of a tradition of edgy, shock-orientated Live Theatre.  He was constantly pissing of his School, the University of Wisconsin, who were unmoved by the fact that his early Extremist work combined the shock tactics with presumably serious Social Commentary (“The Game Show” (1967) was intended to satirize or passive apathy towards cruelty, and featured undercover Actors within the Audience Humiliated, Beaten and Raped; and his Vietnam-protest version of “Peter Pan” (1968) got him and his future wife, Carolyn Purdy, Arrested for Obscenity). The films he later became famous for would be just as Extreme but display no such Political or Social Ambitions. Remember, his theatre career started in the 1960s, and everybody took everything so much more seriously then. The movies started appearing in the 1980s, a perfect era to wallow in Cheerful Soullessness.

 

 

The film is clearly influenced by the success of “Evil Dead” (1981) it features the same over-the-top-is-not-high-enough attitude towards novelty gore (HPL would be appalled). Moreover, it improved on “Evil Dead” by having an actual plot, honestly funny one-liners (something “Evil Dead II” would borrow back in 1987) and Characterizations a far better than serviceable two-dimensionality; these Characterizations were further propped up by fine performances. Moreover, it pulled off what “Evil Dead” could not. “Evil Dead’s” notorious tree-rape scene is much criticized, but when “Re-Animator’s” most notorious scene extended its novelty-gore into sexual violence it was actually kinda hilarious (and I’m so ashamed of myself for laughing so hard). The film challenged the audience’s reflexive Morality and Outrage and won. (The Victim was Megan Halsey (Barbara Crampton), and the Sexual Predator was a Zombified Dr. Carl Hill (David Hale)).  

 

That this film achieved Cult Status is less shocking than it receiving positive Critical response, but Gordon had an irrepressible Enthusiasm and high degree of Craft that no one could deny, or as Roger Ebert put it, "I walked out somewhat surprised and reinvigorated (if not re-animated) by a movie that had the audience emitting taxi whistles and wild goat cries." Janet Maslin wrote, "Re-Animator has a fast pace and a good deal of grisly vitality. It even has a sense of humor, albeit one that would be lost on 99.9 percent of any ordinary moviegoing crowd.”

 

There can be no denying Actor Jeffrey Combs, who Gordon know from his college days, in the title role made all the difference:

 

Critic Paul Attanasio, "Beady-eyed, his face hard, almost lacquered, Combs makes West into a brittle, slightly fey psychotic in the Anthony Perkins mold. West is a figure of fun, but Combs doesn't spoof him"

 

Kevin Thomas, "The big noise is Combs, a small, compact man of terrific intensity and concentration"

 

My favourite line from the film, spoken by Character West, “People fail. Not I.”

 

Gordon has gone on to make several other Lovecraft adaptations, often utilizing the same talent both in front and behind the camera. All the latter ones are based on better stories, and most were (marginally) more seriously told. For the most part, they are a respectable lot, but none touch the excitement of this improbable film.

 

Trailer:

 

RE-ANIMATOR (1985) Trailer | Stuart Gordon Classic Horror | 4K Restoration