Cemetery Man

Like Re-Animator before it, it has been a long time since I have seen Cemetery Man.

Michele Soavi was the protege of Dario Argento, but he completely comes into his own style in this film, bringing us camp, sex, and downright bizarre themes throughout. It is a story about Francesco Dellamorte, a cemetery caretaker and his mentally handicapped assistant, Gnaghi, and their exploits defending the town from the undead. As the caretaker, Dellamorte lives on the property, every night the dead rise and knock at his door and he dispenses them without even a blink of an eye. None of the people of Buffalora know that the dead return after 7 days, and all think that Dellamorte is impotent. He isn't and one day he notices a beautiful woman mourning her dead husband, and falls madly in love with her.

Dellamorte shows the unnamed woman the ossuary, which she is oddly turned on by

It is delightfully raunchy and gory, with a dark sense of humor. Soavi has a good eye and presents some striking visuals throughout the film. He also has a good sense of storytelling, and the film is interesting and even a little complex at times. It delves into the idea of life and death, as its Italian title suggests Dellamorte Dellamore, but in a fun and darkly humorous way - never taking itself too seriously. Rupert Everett plays the character in an almost effortless way. Every line delivered perfectly and cynically, defining the character even more. But Francois Hadji-Lazaro as Gnaghi, outshines him a little. The character is strange and appears to be mute, only saying "Nyah," yet Dellamorte always understands him and even has conversations with him. It is also an oddly romantic film. Both characters find and lose love and may even pull at your heartstrings a little. For some reason I remembered this movie a little differently from when I first saw it, but I did enjoy re-visiting it for the most part.

The depiction of the Grim Reaper

Gnaghi finds love in death

My rating:

Sorry for the late posts, I got caught up in many things all at once.