Welcome to one of the main features of 'Castle Dracula,' the movie reviews section.
The reviews placed here are from all around the world, from the USA to the UK Japan
and everything inbetween. The formats reviewed are video and DVD. I have included the
origin of the film reviewed so you can check your player for compatibility. You may
also notice that there are some DVD-R reviews. These are not 'bootlegs' or 'copies'
but official screeners that I have been sent containing an as yet unreleased film to 
review. All the reviews here have been reviewed either by myself or my current movie 
reviewers. If you're an avid watcher of horror movies then why not join 'Castle Dracula'
as an official 'staff member' reviewing them. To do so, just click on the 'Join My Staff'
link in the menu to the left for details of this and other vacancies.
New reviews are normally placed here once a week, check my front page for under 'Castle
Dracula Updates' to see what latest movie reviews have been placed.

- Children of the Living Dead - NTSC Video -  

Children of the Living Dead starts with defeated and destroyed zombies being burned
by citizens of a small town. The local authorities hunt down the last few surviving
flesh-eaters. For a few minutes I thought this movie had some promise. Tom Savini
(horror special effects guru from Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead) plays deputy 
Hughes. Savini seemed ready to give a pretty good performance. Unfortunately he was
only in about the first ten minutes. As soon as Deputy Hughes meets his death, the
film slowly slides to its own demise. 
The plot quickly becomes muddled. We are thrust fourteen years into the future.  
A group of four young friends are traveling to a concert in a van. They stop at a 
cemetery to view the grave of Abbott Hayes mother. Abbott Hayes is a condemned 
murderer who died in prison. Legend has it that his body was missing after his 
death. As the concert-goers drive down the road a zombie blocks their path. The 
van crashes over a cliff and they are killed. Their graves are nearly robbed, but 
the grave robbers are killed by a...well...I think it was a zombie. 
The plot then shifts another year into the future.
I tried to follow the plot. Several times I rewound the tape. That did not help.
Besides, I found myself rapidly losing what little interest I had in this movie.
The acting was terrible. Most of the cast members seemed to be reading from a script.
It gave the appearance that many of the scenes were unrehearsed. The make up and 
effects were awful. Abbott Hayes did not look like a zombie. Instead it looked like
someone walked onto the setwith a cheap Halloween costume. The other zombies were 
pathetic at best.
Naturally there are a few blood-filled scenes. They either seemed to drag or just
had no impact on me. This horror movie was not scary at all. I had never heard 
of director Tor A. Ramsey or screen writer Karen Lee Wolf. Now I know why. 
Wolfs screenplay was lackluster and tried to do to much. Too many subplots and
unnecessary characters confused me. The anti-climatic battle scene was tedious 
and seemed like it would never end.
Ramseys direction did nothing to compensate for the poor script. At times the 
movie just seemed to be going to wherever it wanted. Odd camera angles and mobile
cameras did not help to bring any focus to the movie. These techniques only annoyed
me. The ending really bothered me. It gave the possibility that a sequel could be 
made. I would rather give up beer for six months then to watch a sequel to this 
dreadful production.
My advice on 'Children of the Living Dead', pass on it.

Reviewed By Scal Williams

Click here to read how this page is protected by copyright laws.