Braindead (1992): A Forgotten Classic
by Michael Hefferon-Mccone
With the Halloween season upon us, I was initially going to write about a horror movie which came out this year (of which there are many very good ones; I recommend Resident Evil (2026) if you haven’t had the chance to see it yet), however, I figured it would be nice to discuss a hidden classic instead.
Peter Jackson’s (The Lord of the Rings) 1992 New Zealand cult classic Braindead (A.K.A. Dead Alive by American audiences as another film by the name of Braindead starring Bill Paxton (Aliens, Near Dark) and Bill Pullman (Spaceballs, Lost Highway) had released in 1990) is a must-watch this month. It’s… bizarre, to begin with. From the title alone, I’m sure you’ve all gathered it’s a zombie movie. I know it’s a genre done to death, but Braindead does something special with it.
To summarise the plot and not give the entire movie away, the film follows Lionel Cosgrove (Timothy Balme), a neurotic young man with an overbearing mother Vera (Elizabeth Moody), who falls in love with a girl named Paquita (Diana Peñalver). As Vera tries to spy on them on their zoo date, she’s bitten by a Sumatran rat-monkey. Over the course of the next few days, she gradually rots and develops a taste for human (or dog…) flesh. Lionel then attempts to constrain the growing zombie hoard in his house as it spirals way out of his control.
First and foremost, it is a black comedy, following melodramatic performances not unlike those low-budget 1950s B-movies, even setting it in 1957. No part of the film takes itself seriously in any sense of the word. It’s surprisingly sweet too, with the romance plotline between Lionel and Paquita being a consistent driving force within the film without making it cloying, so I suppose it’s a romantic comedy too. That’s a lot of genres!
Unfortunately, why I refrain from calling this a lighthearted flick is due to it being one of the bloodiest movies of all time – quite literally; it held the record for just over 20 years (until it was usurped by Evil Dead (2013)) thanks to its use of 300 litres of fake blood during the climax of the movie alone [1], nevermind the rest. It is excessive, constant, and so over-the-top it’s unbelievable. It’s bad taste, really (a pun, I’m sorry). Jackson’s 1987 directorial debut was a mediocre, questionable, and equally as silly sci-fi/action/horror film called Bad Taste, though it was on a much lower budget. Braindead is self-conscious of this, and by pairing the blood, guts and slapstick comedy with a contrapuntal score composed by Peter Dasent, possesses the sharp kick needed to hold space in your mind that won’t disappear for a long time. Trust me, I was fifteen when I saw this.
Sure, it’s a long departure from Jackson’s later works such as his Tolkien-inspired trilogies, King Kong (2005) and The Lovely Bones (2009), but it’s really worth a watch. Braindead was his first big budget film, reportedly made for about $3 million USD (though, I have no doubt this should be adjusted for inflation), but unfortunately it bombed, only grossing $242,643 in the US despite receiving generally positive reviews from critics [2]. Despite this, it remains a solid cult classic for modern audiences, having been an inspiration for many other zombie-comedies (zom-coms?) such as Shaun of the Dead (2004) [3], with many story beats and archetypes acting as prototypes the future of horror cinema. Besides, it’s good too if you like something with film references, which include Psycho (1960) and King Kong (1933). The latter reads as some foreshadowing to me.
Overall, Braindead is a fantastic, original and underrated cult classic which, considering it’s approaching its 25th anniversary, has been overshadowed for too long, and has an array of fun performances and a plot that will keep you hooked. Just be mindful of its content ratings before you watch it [4].
[1] Cho, Seongyong. “One of the most disgusting horror films ever made.” Roger Ebert. December 14, 2012. https://www.rogerebert.com/far-flung-correspondents/one-of-the-most-disgusting-horror-films-ever-made.
[2] London, Evan. “DEAD-ALIVE (braindead) (1992).” Villainous Cinema. February 12, 2023. https://www.villainouscinema.com/blog/dead-alivebraindead-1992.
[3] Bishop, Kyle William. “Vacationing in Zombieland”: The Classical Functions of the Modern Zombie Comedy.” Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, vol. 22, no. 1 (81) (2011): 29-30. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24352425.
[4] IMDB. “Braindead.” Parents Guide. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103873/parentalguide/
