Release Date (UK DVD) – 7th March 2011
Certificate (UK) – PG
Country – USA
Director – Larry Blamire
Runtime – 90 Minutes
Starring – Fay Masterson, Brian Howe, Andrew Parks, Jennifer Blaire
There are very few DVD releases that genuinely surprise this reviewer, but The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is one of them. Shot in black and white, and featuring a cast that includes Fay Masterson (Eyes Wide Shut), Brian Howe (Gran Torino) and Jennifer Blaire (The Majestic), Lost Skeleton is without doubt one of the best DVD releases of the year.
The film opens with your stereotypical happy couple driving out to a holiday home far from civilisation deep in the heart of an American national park. What follows is a strange series of events that leads a whole host of hilarious characters including a mad Doctor and a strange cat-woman to battle for possession of “that rarest of all radioactive elements—atmosphereum”.
If within the first five minutes of watching the film it hasn’t already conjured in your mind images of the likes of Dawn of the Dead, and any number of cheesy old sci-fi / horror films, then this film probably isn’t for you. If like me however, you remember with great fondness the days of Hammer Horror, and the age where cinema didn’t take itself quite so seriously, then you really are going to be in for a real treat.
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is an unashamed tribute to those great early years of sci-fi and horror. It is an affectionate, meticulous re-creation of all that was so great about the films of yester-year. From the witty self-aware dialogue to the brilliantly drawn characters of the mad Doctor, the strange aliens and of course, the Skeleton itself, Lost Skeleton is a real gem in a sea of so many high-budget yet low-quality films released into the market on a monthly basis.
One of the great strengths of Lost Skeleton, besides the writing itself, is quite definitely the music. Subtle yet perfectly rendered, the musical accompaniment to Lost Skeleton really captures the feel of the film almost as perfectly as the brilliant writing and the ‘wooden’ acting of the film’s high-calibre stars.
If there’s one fault to Lost Skeleton, it’s that it does get a little slow towards the middle. At only 90 minutes it would be wrong to say the film is ‘too long’, but once the cliché-filled formula is completely exposed there does come a point where you might find yourself wishing they’d “get on with it” as the clichés grow a little stale. The ending though, is certainly well worth waiting through the film’s slower sections for. If anything the film is worth watching just for the skeleton action sequences alone: never did I think I’d see the day I’d laugh at a skeleton climbing down a cliff, but laugh I did as the climax to Lost Skeleton produced some of the film’s funniest moments. In a film rife with humour and not-so-subtle winks to an era now long past us, to still be laughing as much at the end of the film as at the start really is testament to what is in all honesty, a cracking film.
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is out on DVD on 7th March – pre-order it here – meanwhile you can find the trailer below
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