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Dead Alive

Play trailer Poster for Dead Alive R 1993 1h 41m Horror Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
89% Tomatometer 45 Reviews 86% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Overprotective mother Vera Cosgrove (Elizabeth Moody), spying on her grown son, Lionel (Timothy Balme), as he visits the zoo with the lovely Paquita (Diana Peñalver), is accidentally bitten by the fearsome Sumatran rat-monkey. When the bite turns his beloved mother into a zombie, Lionel tries to keep her locked safely in the basement, but her repeated escapes turn most of the neighbors into the walking dead, who then crash a high-society party thrown by Lionel's boorish Uncle Les (Ian Watkin).
Dead Alive

What to Know

Critics Consensus

The delightfully gonzo tale of a lovestruck teen and his zombified mother, Dead Alive is extremely gory and exceedingly good fun, thanks to Peter Jackson's affection for the tastelessly sublime.

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Critics Reviews

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Scott Tobias AV Club 10/05/2019
[O]nce Lionel stops trying to cover up the zombie threat and starts fighting it, Dead Alive becomes a delirious showcase for molds, squibs, and other old-fashioned horror effects. Go to Full Review
Peter Rainer Los Angeles Times 10/19/2016
After you see it, you want to race out of the theater and recommend it to your sickest friends right away. Go to Full Review
Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader 10/19/2016
Ordinarily I don't care for this kind of thing at all, but something must be said for Jackson's endless reserves of giddy energy, which are clearly meant to be silly. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 10/27/2024
3/4
A film so excessively gory that it makes the Pacino version of Scarface look like a vintage episode of Reading Rainbow by comparison. Go to Full Review
Kristy Strouse Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying 10/26/2022
Dead Alive has killer effects and eccentric hilarity, and it thrives through Jackson's passion. This is a must-see for any horror-comedy fan. Go to Full Review
Tim Brayton Alternate Ending 04/06/2022
4/5
Made with extraordinary, obvious joy by a filmmaking team besotted with the idea of making a movie. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Steve Y @Cubby65 Dec 15 This isn't merely dark humor, it's downright pitch black. They must have had a ball making this. See more Maksim S @MaksimusMovies Nov 1 Braindead (1992) reigns as the king of over-the-top splatter, second only to Evil Dead II. Peter Jackson’s film fuses slapstick comedy and unrestrained gore with remarkable precision, turning every exaggerated death into a theatrical spectacle. Its simple narrative merely scaffolds a series of increasingly outrageous set-pieces, making the film viscerally thrilling, absurdly fun, and a masterclass in cinematic excess. Slapstick gore at its absolute finest — not to be taken seriously, but impossible not to admire. See more Stephen C @bob25009 Oct 22 Scary funny in 1 hour and 41 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ages 17 and older!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Ed . Aug 29 I know this film by its title BRAINDEAD. The title makes me curious as the undeadizens in this movie relied on all body parts and innards except for their brains. While no medical doctor would ever sign off on the accuracy of the storyline, it was quite entertaining and, at times, humorous for the right reasons. The most dynamic and appealing character? That bratty-ratty monster baby had me do an almost 180 degree turnaround to the point of almost rooting him on. It's a shame this wasn't a breakout character for a franchise where they could, one day, throw out this baby with the bath water. See more Luis G Aug 5 This movie is dumb, cheesy, disgusting, over-the-top,gore fest......and I love it. See more Erik B Jul 28 The follow-up to Bad Taste is even more gory and horrific...but it's also more of an actual film. Worth checking out...if you've got the stomach! See more Read all reviews
Dead Alive

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Dead Alive

Dead Alive: Official Clip - Baby Face Dead Alive: Official Clip - Baby Face 1:24 Dead Alive: Official Clip - I Kick Ass for the Lord Dead Alive: Official Clip - I Kick Ass for the Lord 3:00 Dead Alive: Official Clip - You Don't Scare Me, Mum Dead Alive: Official Clip - You Don't Scare Me, Mum 3:02 Dead Alive: Official Clip - Party Crashers Dead Alive: Official Clip - Party Crashers 2:51 Dead Alive: Official Clip - You've Got the Bite Dead Alive: Official Clip - You've Got the Bite 3:00 Dead Alive: Official Clip - Rat Monkey Attacks Dead Alive: Official Clip - Rat Monkey Attacks 2:46 Dead Alive: Official Clip - You're Not Well Dead Alive: Official Clip - You're Not Well 2:45 Dead Alive: Official Clip - Your Mother's Dead, Lionel Dead Alive: Official Clip - Your Mother's Dead, Lionel 2:59 Dead Alive: Official Clip - Hyperactive Baby Dead Alive: Official Clip - Hyperactive Baby 3:00 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis Overprotective mother Vera Cosgrove (Elizabeth Moody), spying on her grown son, Lionel (Timothy Balme), as he visits the zoo with the lovely Paquita (Diana Peñalver), is accidentally bitten by the fearsome Sumatran rat-monkey. When the bite turns his beloved mother into a zombie, Lionel tries to keep her locked safely in the basement, but her repeated escapes turn most of the neighbors into the walking dead, who then crash a high-society party thrown by Lionel's boorish Uncle Les (Ian Watkin).
Director
Peter Jackson
Producer
Jim Booth
Screenwriter
Stephen Sinclair, Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson
Distributor
Trimark Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Horror, Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 12, 1993, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Sep 8, 1998
Box Office (Gross USA)
$70.5K
Runtime
1h 41m