Dead Heat (1988)

VERY GOOD

It's alovely film from my new age..anyway very good dvd but i prefer to had english subs.so my ears worked vary nice and i listen the movie in english!!!pls write in your page site what subs have the dvd's or the blu-ray 's my only wish.. September 28, 2008

Best Movie Ever Made???? Yes!

This movie is stunningly and shockingly good. This movie is genius because it works on so many levels; a side-splitting comedy, a chilling psychological thriller, and mullets, and a haunting warning to mankind not to dabble in the science of resurrection (or any science for that matter because its just too risky). Hey, who would win in a fight between a Cylon and Dead Heat?? Seriously though, I thought the love story between the poor russian peasant girl and the Earl of Devonshire seemed overwraught and somewhat hackneyed, like it was tacked on at the last minute. But overlooking that minor love story element- this is a must see if you like movies, or just good old-fashioned storytelling. Like the Black Hole, which is even better than this movie. Except for Old Bob- he is kind of gay!! So is Vincent for that matter, I think there was some kind of homoerotic element there between these two robots, but I was too young to pick up on that. Kind of like that episode of Different Strokes where Arnold and Dudley have to take off their shirts for the bicycle shop owner and pose like Tarzan.But I digress- so if you like Treat Williams and Russian Peasants, and the Earl of Devonshire- see this flick NOW!!!! July 15, 2008

Buddy Cops Vs. Zombie Hoodlums!

I had no idea this movie even existed until a few months before its release on DVD. I never saw it in theaters when it came out in 1988, and by the looks of its box office receipts I wasn't the only one that missed it (ahem). I was only 11 back then and it was an R-rated film after all, so there's my excuse. How it escaped my keen horror radar in the following 16 years is a complete mystery, however. You'd think that I would have caught it some late night on television or on video at least once in all those years, but DEAD HEAT proved as elusive for me as a successful movie career did to Joe Piscopo.

While Joe Piscopo may not have had a stellar career in movies, as soon as I found out that he was in DEAD HEAT and that the film is billed as half "buddy cop comedy" and half "zombie horror", that's all I needed to hear. I was sold. In a rare move for me, I bought the DVD without even having seen the movie. My instincts proved correct once again as I found out that zombies plus Joe Piscopo equals comedy gold! Actually, gold might be overstating it. Comedy silver? Maybe. At the very least, DEAD HEAT is pure comedy bronze!

It doesn't take long before it strays from your normal buddy cop formula in a big way. When Roger (Treat Williams) bites the big one in a doggie euthanasia room while fighting a hefty undead two-faced biker (don't ask me about the two faces, I don't get it either) and is resurrected shortly thereafter, it becomes a race against time as he and Doug (Joe Piscopo) try to find Roger's killer. Can they find his killer before his body decomposes and he turns into worm food? Can Doug keep from becoming a walking corpse himself? Who's behind this zombie crime wave? Did Joe Piscopo's career tank after SNL or what?

Piscopo's character Doug is a veritable one-liner factory, churning them out fast and furious. It's probably because we're too busy trying to absorb them all that the audience essentially ignores Treat's character, Roger. Joe Piscopo delivers the lines with ease, some being real gems and some are just plain bad. The bad ones don't linger too long because there are enough good ones to get you through. These one-line jokes make up essentially all of the comedy, and in that respect the script is a little weak.

Like a lot of horror movies, the special effects and makeup are almost a character in themselves. Dead Heat is no exception. I was highly impressed in the job that Steve Johnson (SPECIES) did. With no CGI, all the effects withstand the test of time, even after all these years. There's a particularly nice scene of a woman who fast-forward decomposes right before your eyes. Even better than the decomposition scene is the Chinese restaurant scene. In one of the most phenomenal scenes in all of movie history, you can see all manner of animal get resurrected and get very ornery. From a pig on a platter and a flying liver of unknown origin to, best of all, a completely skinned undead steer on the attack. It's so utterly ridiculous, it's brilliant, and I doubt anything quite like it will ever be seen again on celluloid.

Director Mark Goldblatt's vision for DEAD HEAT was for it to be a legitimate comedy/horror crossover. If you hold it up to that standard it definitely falls short, especially if you compare it to the 80s film that was the most successful at it, RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD. Where ROTLD was funny, yet still very much a horror film, DEAD HEAT doesn't nearly compare. There's just no horror to speak of. All of the scenes that are supposed to scare just don't work very well. Zombies attacking with Uzis in broad daylight are more laughable than horrific. They would have been better served to just concentrate on the comedy.

Simply put, despite its shortcomings, DEAD HEAT is a fun piece of cheese that is distinctly 80s. Vincent Price has a small, but important role, and what his presence adds to a film you just can't quantify. This is one of his last films, and it's worth seeing almost for that fact alone. June 8, 2008

Zombie Cop vs. Zombie Robbers

`Dead Heat' accidentally ended up on my DVD list presumably due to a cameo by Vincent Price. But I'm glad it did.

`Dead Heat' is a lot of fun. The film gets off to a great start with a high scale armed robbery by Uzi brandishing zombie. A shootout that puts the West Hollywood shootout ensues.

80s wise cracking LA cops Treat Williams and Joe Piscapo are unphased by 20 of their fellow cops being gunned down right in front of them, they diligently investigate why zombies are committing armed robberies in LA. While these questions are never answered the two buddy cops take a wild ride throughout LA battling zombies including the resurrected food of a Chinese restaurant.

With zombie movies on the rise--how many remakes of `I Am Legend' can we take? One per decade is enough!--`Dead Heat' features zombies in a whole new light, experiencing the 80s and loving every minute of it.
December 4, 2007

Junk Food for the Brain...

If you want a completely ridiculous over the top action-horror film that is ultra-violent, ultra-gory, and a completely beautiful disaster, then look no further. Think Re-Animator meets Lethal Weapon starring Joe Piscipo and Treat Williams. Awesome, totally awesome. November 17, 2007

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