It's always a pleasure to review a film that delivers a genuinely fresh experience. It's an old cliché to say that a movie stays with you after the final credits have rolled but Beyond The Grave is a haunting tale of the occult.
I entered cold, not knowing what direction this Brazilian genre movie would take. Davi de Oliveira Pinheiro's tale starts like a homage to Italian crime thrillers, every frame oozing in style. There are angles and edits in the first few minutes that made me think I was watching an old giallo film, a high compliment to pay any modern offering. Dark humour precedes the beautiful opening credits, Davi De Oliveira Pinheiro giving Tarantino a run for his money.
It's clear, after a short while, that the viewer is in safe hands. This is going to be one hell of a dangerous and unpredictable road movie but you can tell that it's destined to be a memorable one. The coolest editing and stunning cinematography, combined with close-ups that rival Sergio Leone's, help deliver a sucker-punch to the audience.
I like to think of myself as an "old hand". It takes a lot to surprise me. However, this film sideswiped me a number of times, moving from thriller to zombie movie, to occult horror, seamlessly. Yet all the time, Beyond the Grave exudes a genuine '70s / early '80s vibe. The Dark Rider is a fantastic creation and its entrance had the hairs on the back of my neck standing erect (the last time this happened, I was enjoying A Field In England).
What I love (well, one of the many things in this tremendous indie offering) is how the movie treats the undead. These are zombies with a sprinkle of originality. We see, for example, zombies feeding each other and not always homing in for the kill. The child zombie, with its "knife face," is chilling and unique. Creepy stuff. Also worthy of a mention is Pinheiro's blind zombie. Yes, this is a film where you actually sympathise with one of the walkers!
Towards the end, I felt the imagery was reminiscent of a spaghetti western. The bars on the old school reminded me of a cell from the age of the cowboy. In a way, this is part western but I don't want to reveal too much.
I'm in severe danger of running out of superlatives but I love this film. The characters are solid, especially the cool centre of the movie, the umbrella-toting Franco (played by Alvaro Rosacosta) and the bespectacled but Mad Max-like hero (Rafael Tombini).
This is an unmissable film and an instant cult classic.
