LIVE EVIL *** U.S.A. 2015 Dir: Ari Kirschenbaum 95 mins
Described as “Ghostbusters meets Dawn of the Dead caught in the Twilight Zone” this Art house esque Horror/Comedy is certainly entertaining. Starting off in black & white its incredibly surreal and offbeat story follows the local police in a quiet college town as “evil” is unleashed on Halloween night. A devilish entity is captured and arrested which takes on different forms to all that look at it and will either kill or enslave you. Plus there are hordes of the undead swarming the streets…. but who’s side are they on??
The cast includes Vladimir Kulich (Vikings) and Charlene Amoia (How I Met Your Mother) as the two main cops and there is an all too brief appearance from Tony Todd (Candyman) as a Pastor. I enjoyed this movie but I have to admit to not really “getting it” as such. I’m hoping you’re not really supposed to then I don’t feel so much of a twit but even so there were bits to enjoy even if you don’t know what the hell is going on. The soundtrack I thought was brilliant! Very 80’s synth, noisy and it played an important role throughout the whole movie. The zombies themselves were also amusing and very 80’s with their glowing green eyes, skeletal faces and shuffling about not to mention driving cars, riding bicycles, firing weapons and tying people up, errrrr, yes they do all that as well. The cinematography and trippy arty moments were great and the changes from black & white to colour worked well. SPFX wise it seemed to be very CGI heavy which was disappointing and I think I missed the majority of the comedy, but hey, its low budget and aimed at a niche market of viewers who I’m sure will enjoy it. In conclusion there are good and bad points to this, I will say I’d happily watch this again for nothing else then hoping I might get what’s going on the second time round.
Review by Sarah Budd