The Dead Next Door (1989) User Reviews

Lots of imagination, Low Budget

[spacemonkey_fg · 6/10 · 23 August 2005]

Title: The Dead Next Door (1988)

Director: J.R. Bookwalter

Cast: Pete Ferry, Bogdan Pecic, Michael Grossi, Robert Kokai

Review: When I was starting out as a horror fan, I tried to get myself up to date with as many horror films as I could. I wanted to become an expert so I quickly rented/bought as many horror films as I could get my monkey paws on. In my research across the net for films that I had not seen, one name constantly came up whenever zombie films were mentioned: The Dead Next Door. So boy was I ever happy when I head this film would finally make its way on to DVD! My curiosity for this hard to find zombie flick would finally be quenched!

As in many if not all zombie movies, the world is being inexplicably overrun by hoards of the undead. As a counter measure the government of the United States creates a "zombie squad". A group of heavily armed government funded soldiers who's mission is to go around destroying as many zombies as they can. But hold on. Not everyone in this world wants zombies to be destroyed. There's this religious cult who wants nothing more then to let the zombies roam free in the world. And if God wants to exterminate humans by sending the zombies to do the job for him...then so be it!

OK, first off. This movie is low budget. And I'm not talking House of the Dead low budget, where a director gets a few million dollars to make his zombie opus. I'm talking really low budget. The type of low budget were everybody works for free (even the actors!) and the extras are all your friends. I'm talking about those independent films where one ambitious fan boy (in this case director J.R. Bookwalter) will do anything to make his own horror film as a homage to all his horror heroes. Its very similar to other ultra low budget horror fare like The Deadly Spawn and Leif Jonkers Darkness. Films that were made solely because there's people out there who love horror films, want to have some fun and have tons and tons of imagination.

The fan boy element can be seen right from the get go, where the movie opens up with an actual zombie going into a video store...selecting Dawn of the Dead, The Evil Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Creepshow from the store shelf, going up to the video store clerk and eating him alive. Also most of the characters in the film are named after a famous horror director. Be ready for most of the characters calling each other Raimi, Carpenter, King, Jason, Vincent and so on. So its obvious that the makers of this film are horror buffs.

In spite of its meager budget the film managed be very interesting. There's a lot of cool little ideas thrown here and there that I had not seen on any other zombie flick. For example before Land of the Dead ever came up with their own little zombie killing squad, this movie had already thought it up. I loved the idea of that. I also loved the idea about a religious cult who think that zombies should be left alone since they were sent by God to destroy humanity and make them pay for their sins. And I had never seen zombies with restraints in their faces so they couldn't bite you! Cool ideas even though you have little money to make your movie.

I also liked the make up effects which were actually pretty cool. He is uncredited but director Sam Raimi secretly funded this movie pitching in with a little money...and its obvious that that little bit of money went to the zombie effects. There's some cool looking rotting corpses in here and I gotta give the movie kudos for that.

On the downside the film looks like if it was lit with a flashlight. And I'm not exaggerating, sometimes actors are on the scene and they don't even show up because its so dark! The quality of the lighting was what really messed up this film. If only it had been well lit, it wouldn't feel so amateurish. As it is, you can tell that these were just a bunch of kids learning how to make a movie. Which isn't bad because as a result the film has a certain energy and imagination that other films lack, but on a technological level the movie suffered.

The acting is pretty bad as well. I'm not going to go into just how bad some of the performances are cause it kind of gives the film a certain fun element of goofiness. I actually dug the bad dialog and the bad acting.

All in all, not a bad zombie film. There's a lot of gore and zombie action to keep any zombie fan happy. I mean every five seconds there's a zombie related incident that usually ends up with some one getting their throats ripped off in a very Tom Savini kind of way. You know, lots of tendons and muscles. So anyhows, even though this film is so very low budget, the love and energy and imagination put into it shows. And it translates into an enjoyable and fun (yet cheap) zombie film.

Rating: 3 out of 5

For zombie fan only

[phanthinga · 6/10 · 31 August 2017]

Yeah just like the title of my review if you a hardcore zombie lover tired of mainstream stuff you can watch this movie to see some cool looking zombie and gore for the sake of gore.The story is not that bad it have a interesting look on zombie but because the poor written it come out very dull and stupid at time.The nice low budget feel and the practical effect is really good is all plus point i can give for this movie.Btw you can watch the movie for free on Youtube so no need to find a copy

No money homage that pays off

[WOZ inOZ · 6/10 · 5 January 1999]

Promising miniscule-budgeted zombie piece heavily influenced by George A. Romero's apocalyptic films.

Sometimes hailed as 'the most expensive Super 8 film ever made,' The Dead Next Door's apparent lack of funds, acting resources and running time can be overlooked, as 'Night of the Living Dead' was for the same faults, because both of these films excel due to the creators energy and balls to produce something entertaining DESPITE the budgetry restrictions.

From it's punchy opening scenes of hungry ghouls stalking the streets and highways of America to the introduction of the comic 'Zombie Squad,' a mixed young bunch of gun-toting federal agents who'll be the heroes for the next seventy minutes or so as we see them try to evade the onslaught of the walking dead and attempt to find a cure for the outbreak.

As to be expected in a zombie-flick, the film delivers respectable make-up effects, tense set pieces and large quantities of black humour, all of which are captured on screen with relish. Even J. W. Bookwalter pulls one up on Romero with shots of zombies outside the Whitehouse and the aforementioned ghouls on the highway, showing the director obviously had a lot more audacity and extras than he had dollars. Low budget film-makers should take note and try to produce something as inventive and lively than the usual pap that clogs up the shelves of the local video store.

But let's not get too carried away here, for this is no horror masterpiece that 'Night of the Living Dead' and 'The Evil Dead' can truly claim to be. At the end of the day this is a small film with big ideas. The plot is familiar, as are the undefined characters and the sound and picture quality let down the entertainment. The energy of the script and pace of the film is undeniably invigorating though and recollections of how John Carpenter and George A. Romero once made films come to mind.

Let's hope Bookwalter's new productions improve with a budget he seemingly deserves here.

fun low budget zombie opus

[ManBehindTheMask63 · 7 February 2011]

This is a clever and pretty straight foreword zombie flick shot on 8mm (think of the first evil dead). J.R. Bookwalter was able to create a gory and entertaining zombie flick with a relative low-budget and local actors. Unlike hack job Todd Sheets (see Zombie Bloodbath trilogy), Bookwalter created a zombie film that gives you everything you want...Heaps of low-budget gore, a satanic occult, the "zombie squad", an unresolved ending, "Evil Dead" references, and Bruce Campbell dubbing over the main actors role(?). The Dead Next Door's video quality is somewhat poor, but looks like the first "Evil Dead" basically. Kinda grainy and low-budget, but not unwatchable like "Zombie Bloodbath". Many of the characters are named after horror directors or writers and there are some pretty cheesy dialog scenes. But overall, the movie works and keeps you satisfied due to the gore and somewhat innovative scenarios. This is an odd little zombie flick that is clever and interesting. Sam Raimi backed the film and later disowned it having his named removed from the credits. I have no reason why he would do that, considering it's pretty cool and as entertaining as the first "evil dead". The "making of" on the DVD is good and the commentary is worth listening too.

There's no budget, there's no talent either

[josh nolan · 3/10 · 24 April 2001]

This movie can claim to be a low, low budget gore movie without any attempt to actually any talent even though it thinks it has. The plans were just too big for the director J R Bookwalter to handle, he also covers most of the other production roles from cameo to credits designer, evidently everything he touches, he has no talent to back up whatsoever. The movie has no pace, tension, shock value, nothing at all. The ideas are great but Bookwalter, one can only assume was exercising sloppiness, chose not to care much about them. 85 minutes long and it feels like three hours; the acting is truly awful Scott Spiegel turns up in a small role, ruins the scene and then years later directed From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money, easily one of the worst movies ever made.

I may be a tad harsh, after all these types of horror movie aren't meant to be serious, but that's the rub, I think Bookwalter is so convinced that he was making a classic that he, and the large cast could not see that he couldn't handle the scope and the end result is so bad it's bad.

The gore parts, which is why most people watch these types of movies are good for the tiny budget, every penny spent us up there on the screen, but that is it's only saving grace. Mr Bookwalter, go and learn how to make movies before actually making one, The Dead Next Door entertained me for all the wrong reasons turning what was meant to be a serious stab at filmmaking, into a camp classic for the 'Don't care' generation. Sorry mate.

The danger of fools with video cameras!

[Beowolf2001 · 1/10 · 10 October 2005]

This was one of the worst pieces of crap I've ever seen. This Bookwalter person is worse than Todd Sheets and that's saying a lot. He's not even creative enough to be Ed Wood! The story, a mix between Jonestown, Dawn and Day of the Dead is just terrible, but this mish most of stupid ideas is downplayed by the stupid characters contained within it! Some of the SFX were tolerable but most of this was really just bad. One character decapitates a zombie then puts his fingers in the heads mouth! They get bit off and his pals leave him to be eaten by other zombies! The acting is beyond amateur. I wish I could remove the memory cells that contain this film from my brain! This was just bad, bad, bad! Avoid at all costs! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! Oh and how the hell did Sam Raimi get involved with this crapfest? Was he feeling generous? There isn't one original or inventive thing in this whole mess. Ugh! I need an aspirin!

This is NOT a long lost zombie classic...

[DevilPaul · 1/10 · 11 October 2006]

Saw this one over at the local electronics store for $10.99 with a recommendation on the front that it was a "worthy addition to any gorehound's DVD shelf" by Rue Morgue. So I figured I couldn't go wrong on this one. I shoulda put it back on the shelf and invested in that 6 DVD "Lone Wolf and Cub" collection instead. Where do I start? OK, the plot. Well, the plot isn't much of a plot. It's in a world where zombies are overunning society and our story centers around a group of police like soldiers called the Zombie Squad. They're guarding a facility where some scientists are working on a cure for the epidemic. Meanwhile in another part of town a cult run by a guy wearing old people's sunglasses, you know those huge black ones, is doing human sacrifices and worshipping the zombie epidemic mainly because the cult leader's son was turned into one. The cultists are causing problems with the Zombie Squad and scientists over philosophical differences and that's where trouble begins. So, that's the story really. The major characters are named after famous horror directors like Raimi, Romero, Carpenter, etc. (Side note: The box claims that this film was made with the help of a LEGENDARY Hollywood Director. This is misleading. It turns out that Sam Raimi of "Evil Dead" fame merely helped finance this pile of dung.) The acting ranges from competent to "go back to the drama club... PLEASE". I mean some of these performances are just god awful bad and it's apparent why when you look through the DVD extras. There's an audition section on there where they show that everyone in the movie were just walk on's whose only requirement in the audition was to tell an interesting story about themselves and scream. No acting out any dialogue or anything. Well, you get what you get I guess. The special effects were pretty cool in some parts of the flick and lame in others. I've read some reviews that said the effects were awesome. Believe me, they are not. They're not even really that gory except for a shot here and there. Factor in that this film was shot in Super 8, a filming format not even up to stuff with an average $300 video camera you can get today, and you get the picture.

The box claims that this film was digitally remastered. I hate to break it to the film makers but transferring the original Super 8's to DVD does not constitute digital remastering. There's also a Dolby 5.1 soundtrack but it doesn't enhance the experience. I barely noticed anything significant coming from my rear speakers. The DVD is loaded with extras but they are pretty boring. One amusing extra is the "Frightvision 2000 Reunion" clip. It shows some of the original cast members and director talking about how looking back on it again they've realized what a wonderful film they made. I guess time really does make you forget. There are maybe 15 or 20 people in the audience listening to them talk one of which is some goth guy whose face says "please shoot me now".

All in all this one isn't recommended kiddies unless you are into self-torture.

Secret Comedy Gem

[otsenrah · 7/10 · 8 May 2010]

Based on many of the other reviews that have been posted, you may think that this movie sucks. In a way, you're right. If you're looking for a good scary movie to add to your collection, this movie is not for you. However, if you're in the market for an unintentionally hilarious flick disguised as a zombie-bomb, then look no further. This movie had my friends and I laughing every few seconds throughout. The dialog in this movie is rib-ticklingly awful, but the execution of the dialog is even worse. One member of the zombie squad unconvincingly tells a zombie to "have a nice day" before cutting its obviously puppetish head off with a machete. I think Bookwalter must have made this movie so hilariously bad intentionally. Mr Bookwalter, if you're reading this, I just want to tell you that you're a genius and that I appreciate your skill and sense of humor.

The government sets up a group of people to destroy all zombies.

[jmbo-jons · 3/10 · 15 January 2006]

The "Dead Next Door" was an OK movie for myself, but i have herd that many people enjoy the film and recommend it. I don't think the plot is very good, but i do realize that it was a low-budget movie. i did like the gore however (there is plenty of it) and the violent effects are not that bad, so if you are a gore-hound then you might want to pick this movie up.

i do own this movie and bought it for a fair price; i don't recommend paying an arm and a leg for this movie unless you have seen it and enjoyed it enough to shed some cash. if you're not one for mediocre acting then i also don't recommend this movie.

"Can't you do anything right, Savini?"

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 20 April 2014]

Clearly this low budget, regional zombie film hasn't pleased everybody, but, honestly, what did they expect? Something of this nature is, more often than not, pretty crude, amateurishly acted, and downright silly. But that's part of the charm of these efforts. Filmed over a four year period, J.R. Bookwalter was given uncredited assistance by a certain major Hollywood director, and also works here with some of his associates. The gore is plentiful and often quite fun, and funny. A criticism I see here is that "The Dead Next Door" is boring, and sure, it's not the most exciting zombie story one will ever see. Bookwalter and company may not be that technically proficient, but one quality they undeniably possess is heart. That's what endears films like this to this viewer. In any event, any production like this that manages to get a shot of zombies trying to climb the fence to the White House lawn is worthy of *some* respect.

Zombies are now over running the world, and a special "zombie squad" is created, consisting of jut jawed Raimi (physically portrayed by Pete Ferry, who's dubbed by somebody whose voice you'll immediately recognize), Mercer (Michael Grossi), Kuller (Jolie Jackunas), and Captain Kline (Floyd Ewing Jr.). They end up required to make the trek to a distant location where a serum devised by a Dr. Bow (Lester Clark) just may be the key to reversing zombie symptoms. In their company is a wack job scientist, played by Bogdan Pecic, who's clearly a nod to the memorable Dr. Logan of "Day of the Dead".

As I said before, the acting may not be that competent, but like so much here, it is good for hearty laughs. The characters aren't that bright, though: witness what happens to Richards (Scott Spiegel). The story does have its comfortably familiar elements, such as a cult dwelling in the woods. This particular cult seeks to protect the zombies for their own demented reasons; Robert Kokai is good as their leader, Reverend Jones. A fair amount of the cast were also crew members, and it definitely looks like they had a good time making this. Naming some of the characters after famous people is rather an obvious thing to do, but some fans may get a kick out of that.

Overall this is solidly entertaining - no more, and no less - for living dead cinema junkies.

Seven out of 10.

Romero dregs...

[dung_rat · 3/10 · 26 November 2002]

Make no bones about this - this film is an utter disgrace and an alarmingly bad piece of cinema. I've reviewed several exploitation flicks (most of which were all produced on 'shoe-string' budgets) and have found that most, if not all, of them have some form of redeeming feature. 'The Dead Next Door' is completely devoid of anything seriously positive, though. Its self awareness of Romero's zombie movies makes it even more heinous - characters with names such as 'Raimi', 'Savini' et al. This film stands out more as a landmark of crass, mundane, tedious, z-rate, and student filming more than anything credible. The only vaguely rousing element of the film is that it does feature shed-loads of (seemingly harmless) zombies and no particular lack of gore. However, to watch this film as a parody doesn't even work.

For anyone who may be curious as to acquiring a copy of this - simply give it a miss - it is absolute garbage. Riddled with truly atrocious acting, dire plot, terrible sound (it would seem that the dubbing was inserted with a crow-bar!), laughable gore and special effects. As another reviewer has commented - this film is so bad it's simply bad. A sheer waste of time, money, and effort. 3/10

If you can tolerate a low budget, and like creative effects, shlock, and zombies, grab this

[mr_Goodbomb · 8/10 · 20 October 2007]

I really enjoyed this film. I watched it once or twice before I hit the special features and watched the featurettes with interviews from the cast and crew. I think those interviews really helped me appreciate this film more. The director had no budget and no idea how to really operate a camera (it seems the first time they shot a lot of the effects and various scenes, the light meter was trusted less than the untrained eye, and many shots came out so dark that they were unusable). With some creative and sometimes silly, schlocky ideas for gore and effects and an interesting, even compelling follow-up to both Romero's Dead films (the original three which had been released by that time) and Sam Raimi's Evil Dead I and II, I really think this film had some interesting points to it. There are no incredible special effects, the acting is silly (the main character's voice has now been replaced with Bruce Campbell's), the budget was extremely low (though it was funded by a "Mr. X," who kept his identity a secret... do a little research on that one, the answer is surprising), and I think they made something campy, fun, and even, at times, creepy. I liked it a lot for a no-budget midnight flick.

A man's reach should exceed his grasp...

[poe426 · 6/10 · 13 October 2012]

It's not so much that this one's a low-budget Super 8/Hi 8 hybrid of questionable quality that makes it worth watching, it's the fact that this guy stuck with it for four years and got it DONE (not unlike John Carpenter and Dan O'Bannon with DARK STAR, or Dennis Muren with EQUINOX, or David Lynch with ERASERHEAD, etc.). At a recent comic convention, I asked a panel of experts- John Russo, Russ Streiner, and George Kosana- about the difference in QUALITY between NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and its bastard offspring (like THE DEAD NEXT DOOR). Russo explained that, while NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was a low-budget movie, it was made by a group of working professionals with years of experience under their collective belts: it wasn't just a knock-off of something else by somebody with a camcorder. (Not that there's anything wrong with that...) It's this experience that Bookwalter clearly lacked when he made THE DEAD NEXT DOOR- but at least he TRIED. As Russo says in his FILMMAKING SEMINAR (which also features Bookwalter): "At least make something. Don't do NOTHING!" Sound advice for anyone in any field, but especially true when you're dealing with no-budget filmmaking. I've spent FAR more time trying to talk people into making movies than I've spent actually MAKING them- and that's saying a lot: at last count, I realized that I'd started but had been unable to finish more than SIXTY shorts (thanks primarily to actors who bailed out on me for one reason or another- including the ENTIRE teen-aged cast of an X-MEN type of Public Access series I'd started, who walked out on me when I refused to buy them a case of beer after the first day of shooting)(I may have been desperate, but I wasn't THAT desperate). Bookwalter himself says: "Take what you have, do the best you can with it." Words to live by. Roger Corman (from HOW I MADE A HUNDRED MOVIES IN Hollywood AND NEVER LOST A DIME): "It is possible to go up against the system and win." NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is THE Prime Example of beating the odds, and even Bookwalter has gone on to carve out his own particular niche in the world of low-budget indie productions. I've always wanted to get at least ONE thing done that I could point to, that I could be proud of. It hasn't happened yet (and may never happen), but I'm reminded of something else Roger Corman said: "Is there tangible proof of your existence? When you make a movie, at least there is tangible proof. You create something." Like THE DEAD NEXT DOOR or not (and I DO), Bookwalter is a CREATOR- and that's saying something.

Enthusiasm Doesn't Always Make for a Good movie

[lovecraft231 · 4/10 · 24 October 2010]

If there's anything I hate, it's revisiting a movie I loved when I was a kid, then returning to it and realizing that it's not a very good movie. Case in point: "The Dead Next Door." The debut feature from micro-budget mainstay J.R. Bookwalter, it was made in the span of five years, shot on 8 mm camera, and financed and produced by Sam Raimi. The film was a revelation to me when I saw it as a teen. A made for next to nothing zombie movie that actually delivered and had some neat ideas! Well, I then learned there were tons of zombie movies like this, and though this is essentially the most well loved of the of micro-budget zombie movies, revisiting it years later as a 27 year old man, I realize that it's just not a good movie.

The premise deals with the inevitable rise of the zombie apocalypse, and a government group called The Zombie Squad that must exterminate the scourge of the dead. Our heroes Raimi (ugh) (Pete Ferry), Mercer (Michael Grossi) and others soon head to Ohio, only to run afoul of a religious cult lead by Rev. Jones (really???) (Robert Kokai) who believe it is God's will to let the dead wipe out humanity. Well, Mercer get's infected, and a cure is provided by Dr. Moulsson (Bogdan Pecic), which has some pretty bad side effects. Also, you know Jones is evil because he wears sunglasses at night (DON'T MESS WITH A MAN IN SHADES!!!)

I really don't want to rip on "The Dead Next Door." The whole thing took years to complete, was clearly a labor of love for those involved, and it's easy to see why it's such a cult favorite among horror fans. It's all done with loads of energy and enthusiasm, and not only did Sam Raimi help fund it, but Bruce Campbell serves as one of the dubbed voices! Plus, the gore effects are incredible considering the budget (about $75,000) and a decent D.I.Y. cheap synthesizers and drum machine score by Bookwalter himself. Ripping on the movie almost makes me feel bad.

Alas, it's still not a good movie. The acting is all around terrible, and the script is poorly written, giving us uninteresting, unsympathetic and all around drab characters who make increasingly stupid decisions. Hell, Dr. Moulsson is a a really bland villain of sorts, basically playing the arrogant scientist cliché poorly. And what kind of scientist wears a trucker hat anyways? (there's a lot of bad "only in Ohio" fashions from the 80's here.) Jones by the way, is just another insane cult leader, and it really doesn't help that the cult themselves feel more like a mild inconvenience than a serious threat.

And speaking of the cult, this brings up another problem-the whole movie is inconsistent. At one moment, the cult is going on and on about what they believe to be God's wrath, and the next they're sacrificing women while wearing black robes. Seriously, what kind of cult is this? Then there's the zombies. At one moment their shambling, then they are sprinting. And why is it that some can be killed via a bullet to the head or decapitation, and some can't? Finally, low-budget directors: please refrain from naming characters after well known directors and figures in horror. We get it, you love horror movies.

Again, I really don't want to be hard on "The Dead Next Door." It's obviously made for beer and cigarettes money, and everyone involved clearly gave it their all for years. Sadly, it didn't do it for me in the end. All the enthusiasm and love for the horror genre in the world doesn't mean you can do a good horror movie.

Pathetic

[david-345 · 12 October 1999]

Back in the early to mid 1980s, word spread around horror fandom that an enterprising young filmmaker was putting together a low budget but ambitious zombie film in Ohio. Monetary setbacks kept the film from being completed for years but it finally saw the light of day on video late in the decade. The film that many thought would be another cult masterpeice like Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Basket Case turned out to be a truly pathetic time waster that proves that anyone, no matter how untalented can make a movie and waste the veiwer's time. Yes, the film is quite ambitious but that means nothing if the filmmaker has no talent and Bookwalter has no talent in spades. The film seems to be a case of two ideas getting mashed together, the zombie plague and the Guyana like cult. But neither idea is very well meshed into the other and the result proved not to be worth the wait. Watch it for it's decent makeup effects. That's all that can really be praised. JR Bookwalter was once thought of as a great white hope who might put some gusto back into low budget genre films. How wrong we were.

Gore and nothing else. Nothing.

[gridoon · 2/10 · 24 March 2003]

"The Dead Next Door" is a nearly plotless exercise in extreme gore. Certainly the entire miniscule budget must have gone into the creation of the gore effects (which are juicy, to say the least), because all the other technical aspects (lighting, visual clarity, staging of the action scenes) are atrocious. It's hard to really hate the film, because you know it means well....but that doesn't mean that you won't be looking at your watch frequently, even though it runs only 80 minutes. (*)

Zombie Nation

[kapelusznik18 · 4/10 · 27 April 2015]

****SPOILERS*** Due to a failed experiment by the eminent Dr. Bow, Lester Clark, in trying to solve the ills of the world he created a virus that takes over the bodies of the dead and bring them back to life as flesh eating Zombies. This cost Dr. Bow his life who was killed and eaten by the Zombies before he could put a cure to this madness into effect by having it put on the open market. It's now four years later with the Zombies now outnumbering the living and and we see this anti-Zombie squad doing it's best to keep the tide of Zombies contained and from spreading although out the United States.

The anti-Zombie squad lead by the sh*t kicking and take no BS commander Raimi, Peter Ferry, has the task of finding the dead Dr. Bow's secret papers in him finding a cure for the Zombie menace and with it inoculate the still living population before they get infected. It's Dr. Bow's assistant Dr. Moulsson's, Bagdan Pecic, job to complete the task that Dr. Bow failed to finish. But as it turns out Dr. Moulsson is more interested in the safety of his hat that he feels, like Dorothy's red slippers in "The Wizard of Oz", has magical powers that can do the job far better then Dr. Bow's vaccine! Added to all this insanity there's religious nut-case and cult leader Rev Jones, Robert Kokai, who's using the Zombies to his advantage in getting him, through his promises of saving the world, more followers who he in fact turns into Zombies themselves.

****SPOILERS*** Mindless & gory Zombie movie with those that the Zombies kill and eat as well as the Zombies themselves, when their shot and run through, sprouts black, oily looking, not red blood! Despite Commander Raimi Herculean efforts to get the cure out to prevent the virus from infecting the dead or soon to be dead fails spectacularly because Dr.Moulsson's sloppy work in the laboratory. That in him looking after his magic hat more then the human population of the planet earth. Ramimi who was later attacked and bit by a Zombie ended up joining them when the serum that the incompetent Dr. Moulsson had "prefected" used on him totally backfired!

The Dud Next Door.......

[davendes · 1/10 · 16 August 2005]

With a voice dub from the always awesome Bruce Campbell, oodles of "cult classic" comments/reviews, and a DVD release from Anchor Bay, you'd be led to believe this is truly a lost gem resurfaced. Wrong, wrong, WRONG.

Give a 18-ish man-boy (J.R. Bookwalter) two weeks worth of grocery money and let him indulge his crippled "genius" through a Super-8, and this is what you get. Every minute of this movie is saturated in ineptitude. The plot is unimaginative to the extreme, the gore is laughable, the acting is beyond HORRIBLE, and the original actors voices have been clumsily dubbed back in (why???) complete with loads of woodenness.

Looking for something more specific? How about that most of the characters in this movie have names like Raimi, Carpenter, Savini, etc., and get this- The zombie loving cult leader's name is Rev. Jones. Wow, how original; must have taken weeks to come up with that one. The "sets" are a real joy to behold too. Double-wides, abandoned houses, and a high school serve oh-so-realistically as hi-tech labs, government offices and a cult headquarters. Get the idea?

"TDND" isn't low-budget- It's NO-budget and worthless in every aspect. Bookwalter is still at it today, nearly twenty years later, and is just as talent deprived (ie- Ozone) as he was when this piece of trash first came out. Surprise, surprise.

(The 1 star- It's for Campbell.)

It's bad (but I liked it!)

[bowmanblue · 7/10 · 1 August 2020]

There are many great zombie movies around these days. 'The Dead Next Door' will never be one of them. And that's a shame, because if films were rated on the effort and love put into them, I think this one would get a 10/10.

The dead have risen. Society has fallen. Now a few humans... Yeah, you've heard it all before. Why should you bother with this one? Well, you probably shouldn't. Zombie movies were done better before (the George A Romero trilogy prior to this one's release in 1989) and after it with more recent films like '28 Days Later' and TV shows such as the early seasons of 'The Walking Dead.'

'The Dead Next Door' is extremely cheap. And I don't just mean the special effects look like what you'd probably see on a made-for-TV B-movie. This movie has all the hallmarks of a student's final film studies production. The film stock used seems to be grainy, the actors are about as good as the local janitor, the characters are so dumb they make your average blonde bimbo in a slasher film look intelligent and the dialogue appears to have been dubbed on in post production. So why do I own a copy of this carcrash?

Maybe because it's just so bad it's good? Not just that. The was a distinct 'drought' of zombie films after 'Day of the Dead' (1986) and 'The Dead Next Door' kind of filled that void in the early nineties until 'Resident Evil' kind of single-handedly reignited the genre. Plus the idea behind 'The Dead Next Door' is pretty reasonable. It deals with people's reaction to losing their loved ones and, although it does borrow a few of the more minor themes from greater zombie films, it does its best to expand on them and try something different.

So, I enjoyed it and watch it from time to time. However, it's definitely an 'acquired taste.' I wouldn't really recommend it to everyone, unless you're incredibly forgiving when it comes to your films and don't mind the cheapness and bad acting contained here. Although, to be fair, the gore is pretty good and the zombie make-up is as good as any in a Romero movie!

So bad it's NOT good

[Thom-P · 1/10 · 17 September 1999]

Depressingly awful. Looks like the director cast his mechanic, postman and a truck stop waitress in the lead roles, resulting in the type of performances typical of porn movies. I've seen more atmosphere in my father's 8mm home movies. Even hardcore horror fans will be pressed to find anything enjoyable about this bottom-feeder. It's actually packaged as a "Collector's Edition" and includes a "Making of..." documentary tagged on at the end, as if to suggest this is a "classic" to be cherished for the ages. Hopefully the director was able to get his job back at the bottle-capping factory after the shoot. Nobody should see this movie.

Micro-Budget Zombie Fun...

[EVOL666 · 7/10 · 22 October 2005]

THE DEAD NEXT DOOR has got to be in the top 5 in the "So BAD it's GOOD" horror film category. Every aspect of this film is inept, except for the gore FX. The acting is atrocious. The voice-over dubbing is ridiculous. The script writing is ludicrous. The obvious nods to famous horror icons (with characters in the film named Savini, Romero, Carpenter, King, etc...)that get old after the first 10 minutes, the camera-work that is so horrible that even the daylight shots are too dark to see what the hell's going on and are usually out of focus when you CAN see what's going on...I could go on and on about the faults in this film. Even so, it's the whole "who gives a sh!t" attitude about THE DEAD NEXT DOOR that makes it so "good" (and I use the term "good" very loosely...) - and also the obvious fact that the ENTIRE budget had to have been spent on the gore/make-up FX that are actually very good.

As far as story, there's something about some kind of "zombie virus" and a serum and a cult and some doctors and some scientists and all sorts of nonsensical bullsh!t. Regardless, it's still a pretty fun watch - and did I mention the gore is well done and plentiful? THE DEAD NEXT DOOR is one of those types of films you really just have to make your own mind up on. If you're looking for a serious, well-done zombie film - this ain't it. If you're interested in some mindless, gory, zombie ridiculousness - this IS the one. I have to give THE DEAD NEXT DOOR a 7, even with the faults I was honestly entertained with this one...

Pretty much a complete waste of time....

[innocuous · 2/10 · 10 March 2008]

One star is the lowest I can give this film, but it deserves a second star simply because it got made and turned out to be a whole movie.

Unlike many C-movies, this movie actually used extras and has some scenes set in public streets. It doesn't all take place in somebody's basement or in the woods behind the director's house. There are also some OK special effects, including several beheadings. On the other hand, it's a terrible movie.

If you want to watch a Bookwalter movie and stay awake, give Polymorph a chance. It's a much cheaper movie, but the story is actually sort of interesting.

Avoid The Dead Next Door.

A must see zombie flick.

[xpunk_rock_poetx · 8/10 · 29 May 2010]

In The Dead Next Door the world has become over ran with zombies, in response the government has created a elite squad with one mission and one mission only to eliminate the zombie menace.

And at the same time defending themselves against a cult of zombie sympathizers that believe that its god's will that zombies take over the earth. When one of their own are bitten it becomes a race to find a cure and ride Akron Ohio of the horde of walking dead.

First off one of my favorite things about this movie when I was a kid and still today was all the horror references and trivia involved with it. In the early beginning of the film be on the lookout for a quick shot of Dawn of the dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Evil Dead, and Creepshow. Also some interesting facts about The Dead Next Door the great Bruce Campbell does unaccredited voice work and was also a audio post-production supervisor. Also producing under the name The Master Cylinder, Sam Raimi was also involved and also the namesake of one of the main characters. There's also characters with the last names Savini and Carpenter.

This movie is not filled with top notch acting or big budget special effects. But what it is filled with is beautiful make up effects and mind blowing zombie gore. This is a true zombie classic that any hardcore horror fan should take the time to experience. It's very Evil Dead like in the respect it's loaded with humorous one liners and a over the top silly plot mixed in with graphic gore. This is no where near a serious movie but it is loads of campy classic 80's horror fun. And once again for you readers with Netflix memberships this film is currently available via instaview so you have nothing to lose and a ton of enjoyment to gain.

8/10 - Ritualistic The Liberal Dead http://liberaldead.blogspot.com

simply a bloody good time (for zombie fans)

[movieman_kev · 7/10 · 27 April 2007]

Deep in Akron, Ohio a father and his daughter board themselves up into their cellar to escape from the dead who've been brought back to life. Thus begins J.R. Bookwalter's first and arguably best film to date. Having to do with a group of government-sponsored 'zombie squad' and their adventures defeating the hordes of the living dead as well as a fanatical religious cult, this is actually pretty good. Now please understand that good is a very subjective term, most non-horror fans will openly dismiss this film as poorly acted, highly derivative crap. And yes they would have a point about the acting as well as it having more than a passing resemblance to "dawn of the dead", "Evil Dead" and a few other films. However one can plainly see that this movie has heart. I'm more apt to forgive the film for it's shortcomings simply because I was entertained for the duration of the very low budget zombie homage. Plus Bruce Campbell always rocks (even if it's just his voice)

My Grade: B-

This movie was a terrible waste of my life!

[wangchung8080 · 1/10 · 25 December 2005]

I went to "Best Buy" one day browsing through the horror section and I happened to glance at the movie "The Dead Next Door" and i had before read reviews on numerous websites that stated it is a fun and enjoyable cheesy horror b-movie...BIG MISTAKE buying this movie...The Budget not only made the movie cheesy and sh$#ty but the acting was Horrendous!!! I almost could have believed that a few young kids made this movie with ketchup and other home appliances...Basically, the plot was lacking and the acting stank-ed.

I would never recommend anyone to go out and buy/watch this movie on account that you will feel used and bored half of the time.