Dead Alive

Play trailer

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).

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.

Read Critics Reviews

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

Read all reviews

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

@Atma-X 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

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Peter Jackson

Director

Timothy Balme

Lionel Cosgrove

Diana Peñalver

Paquita Maria Sanchez

Elizabeth Moody

Mum (Vera Cosgrove)

Ian Watkin

Uncle Les

Brenda Kendall

Nurse McTavish

View more videos

Man's Best Friend

21%

43%

Man's Best Friend

Watchlist

The People Under the Stairs

67%

61%

The People Under the Stairs

Watchlist

Leprechaun

35%

33%

Leprechaun

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Leprechaun

Tales From the Hood

60%

69%

Tales From the Hood

Watchlist

The Lost Boys

75%

85%

The Lost Boys

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Peter Jackson’s 10 Best Movies

"Resident Evil" Series to Go "Extinct" After Third Flick

View more photos

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