Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things (1972) Movie Info
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Movie Name | Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things (1972) |
| Director | Bob Clark |
| Screenplay Writer | Alan Ormsby |
| Based on Novel by | — (Original screenplay) |
| Lead Actors | Alan Ormsby |
| Cast | Alan Ormsby, Valerie Mamches, Jeff Gillen, Anya Ormsby |
| Genre | Horror, Comedy |
| Release Date | 1972 (United States) |
| Duration | 1h 27m (87 minutes) |
| Budget | Low-budget independent production |
| Language | English |
| Country | United States |
| Box Office (Worldwide) | Cult success / limited historical data |
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A group of thespians take a boat to an island that was used as a graveyard for a night of creepiness. Once there, playing around with black magic and being generally obnoxious makes the dead rise and eat them.
From reading the boxcover you’d think this was a horror-comedy, or so cheesy that you’ll see more corny one liners than actual horror. Not so. The box is very misleading, although completely accurate. It’s not a goofy movie, it’s a serious zombie flick that happens to some goofy people. Once the zombie’s show up their senses of humor is torn out with their guts.
The most unrealistic thing about this movie isn’t the zombies, zombies are completely believable compared to Alan. Alan’s the most irritating, unlikable and over-acted character to ever grace the screen. The rapists in Last House on the Left are more sympathetic.
The unrealistic thing is the idea that he could strand himself on an island with a group of actors, then terrorize, harass and annoy them as much as he wants while they just hold their tongues for fear of losing a job in his low budget play. In the real world they’d have beat his striped bell bottoms wearing ass to death, then left before the zombies showed up. I’d brave the zombies just for a chance to join in the ass-beating.
Another amazing thing about this flick is how much time is dedicated to showing us how clever the dialog isn’t. It’s three minutes more than an hour before any hint of the supernatural makes an appearance. When it finally shows up, though, it’s good. The sight of all the dead rising from their graves is truly inspirational. Most the zombies look good, they move well and act like zombies should, and I particularly enjoyed their mournful wailing.
Once the zombies are in full-swing, the movie turns into what we think of when we think of a zombie flick, stranded in a house, no where to run, nailing up the doors and it’s good. The fact is, I like this movie. The idea of sticking a theater troupe in the mix instead of a bunch of stereotypes is a good one. Alan being such a dickhead is both entertaining and makes all the others seem that much more sympathetic.
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