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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
With a title like "Undead or Alive," of course this is a zombie western comedy, December 15, 2007
This review is from: Undead Or Alive (DVD)
You have to admit, that if you are going to do a zombie western comedy, "Undead or Alive" is pretty much the perfect title to let viewers know what they are in store for when they check out this DVD. Written and directed by "South Park" alumni Glasgow Phillips, this 2007 direct to video movie satisfies your curiosity as to what would have happened if Sergio Leone had made "Shaun of the Dead" as a spaghetti and zombie western. The unlikely heroes are Luke (Chris Kattan), who aspires to being a real cowboy, and Elmer (James Denton), as the laconic stranger. When they end up in jail together in a small town, the boys find they are sharing it with a zombie, the result of Geronimo's "White Man's Curse," which is payback for what has happened to Native American culture (Tommy Smothers once declared that the Native Americans knew what they were doing when they gave the Europeans who arrived on their shore the "gift" of tobacco, and I still think lung cancer has zombies beat all to the hell as far as payback goes).
The boys meet up with Sue (Navi Rawat), a Native American back from growing up in New York City, who provides necessary exposition to go along with a pretty face. I was happily surprised to find that Kattan was not going to go off the deep end with his character, as so many "SNL" cast members tend to be when they get to do a lead in a movie, and Denton seems to be having fun channeling Clint Eastwood. As a zombie western comedy the comedy is better on the western part than it is on the zombie part; an example of a zombie gag is to stab it in the mouth with a knife and the zombie keeps fighting, so we are not talking big laughs here. The best laughs with the zombies have more to do with the ongoing debate over exactly how you kill them (remember, these people grew up without the benefit of George A. Romero or anybody else providing your basic zombie education).
My favorite parts of the movie had nothing to do with the zombies and more with the bickering between Elmer and Sue regarding the clash of Western Civilization with Native American Culture. There they are, looking at the Grand Canyon (which has the Colorado River at the bottom of it), and these two are going back and forth about wheels being the "basic benchmark of civilization" versus smallpox as a cross-species plague. They are going to be high school students watching this movie because they like zombie comedies and suddenly they will be reaching for pen and paper to copy down what Sue has to say about abundant founder crops and big slow ruminants leading to the development of agriculture, riding, and maritime technologies by monkey ancestors. If there is anything in this movie better to know than the back of your hand, then that stuff would have to be it. "Undead or Alive" is okay; it is not going to be anybody's favorite zombie comedy, but it is not likely to grossly offend your sensibilities regarding the genre.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A silly yet fun zombie comedy with a Western bite, February 26, 2008
This review is from: Undead Or Alive (DVD)
Undead or Alive is part of a flood of direct-to-dvd zombie movies trying to milk this new golden age of zombie flick resurgence of the past couple years. It stars SNL alum Chris "Corky Romano" Kattan, Desperate Housewives' James Denton and Numb3rs' Navi Rawat. The movie takes the zombie premise and puts it into an Old West setting involving a curse put into motion by Apache warrior and hero, Geronimo. Undead or Alive is not what most would call as an example of film's greatest achievement. The film on the other hand does end up becoming a fun, silly zombie comedy in an Old West setting.
The movie itself doesn't seem to take itself seriously and this shows in the irreverent attitude the actors have. It doesn't mean they sleepwalk through their scenes and just say their lines with rote, but they seem to know how ridiculous a movie they're in and have fun with it. This is especially true with the ever-irreverent Chris Kattan as the weak-link Luke to James Denton's more seasoned Elmer and Rawat's spunky Sue. The dialogue is as silly as the title and the premise with enough Old West cliche in-jokes and out-of-place modern references to make one put their face in their palm and groan with resigned amusement. But this wouldn't be a proper zombie movie if the most important ingredient wasn't mentioned and that would be the gore.
For a direct-to-dvd movie with a cast of barely-known actors Undead or Alive manages to pull off the gore factor quite admirably. Limbs are pulled off and blood splashes against walls. There are times where the effects betray its low-budget roots, but by the time these happen one either has bought into and enjoying Undead or Alive or probably has already turned off the movie and went on to something else.
Undead or Alive won't win many awards and if they do it probably won't be for anything to be proud of. The filmmakers and actors did create a fun little Western zomcom with performances that won't embarrass the viewer for having even seen it. While it's not something to place in one's collection of movies to watch over and over again this little zombie comedy is something that would entertain for a sitting when there's nothing else to do or see.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hilarious, Little-Known Zombedy Western!, July 16, 2010
This review is from: Undead Or Alive (DVD)
Naïve and clueless "cowboy" Luke (Chris Kattan) finds himself partnering up with a U.S. Army deserter named Elmer (James Denton) after they rob one really mean Sherriff in a town slowly falling victim to zombie infestation. As they attempt to elude the zombie posse that is hunting them, they cross paths with a saucy Native American girl named Sue (Navi Rawat) who is out to kill the soldiers who destroyed her people. The trio teams up on a mission to attack a fort they find also has been infected by the undead, and soon they are in the fight of their lives, desperately trying not to be eaten or join the zombie ranks themselves.
Even if you're a big fan of zombie movies, you may not yet have even heard of the direct to video release "Undead or Alive". Well, if the idea of a zombie comedy/western appeals to you, then you're in for a treat! "Undead or Alive" is just that, and it is hilarious and yet full of great zombie makeup and effects. Good to see a zombie film with such an original take and plot! Of course, much of the comedy comes from Chris Kattan, who proves he is still in top form playing a lovable goofball, but the rest of the cast is excellent too, playing off him and each other perfectly. This is definitely the "different" zombie film you've been looking for, and I'm only tempted to knock a star off because the use of the music adds that direct to video feeling that otherwise could have been avoided. Really, otherwise the film seems totally like a big screen release, but there's something about direct to video flicks that they just don't handle the music right, inserting songs in situations when there should have been just music without lyrics, and often they are lame songs at that. I will give props to the main theme song to this flick though, by the same title, as it is cheezy but hilarious and fun to sing long after the movie is over. And you'll be thinking about this movie after it's over, too. It is just too hilarious and the ending doesn't wimp out on you either. If only they'd make a sequel to this one where the surviving characters encounter vampires, ha!
The DVD is an excellent release for fans of the film, as it includes commentary with the stars and director, two featurettes, and the trailer. Plus, you can find this movie out and about for a steal, but even at regular price, you won't regret picking this one up if you are a fan of zombies and Chris Kattan! And if you like this one, check out "Fido", "Shaun of the Dead", and "Zombieland", not to mention anything with Bruce Campbell, but particularly the Evil Dead Trilogy! And the Return of the Living Dead original trilogy as well!
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