Ever wondered what happened to the twisted but brilliant filmmakers that brought us the inspired B-movie lunacy that was "H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator"? Well, if you're a regular connoisseur of direct-to-video horror movies you're probably aware that Stuart Gordon (director of the aforementioned 1984 horror flick) and Brian Yuzna (producer of the original "Re-Animator" and producer/director of the 1989 sequel "Bride of Re-Animator") relocated to Spain sometime in the 1990's. These men's partnership with Fantastic Factory, a Spanish production company, has resulted in a steady stream of low-budget horror flicks that take advantage of Spain's minimal production costs to give their movies a visual identity all its own. Chances are Blockbuster, Hollywood Video and the internet have been carrying Fantastic Factory movies near where you live and you didn't even notice them since these movies (a) are never advertised on TV, (b) never released theatrically and (c) tend to appeal to a small but loyal demographic that eats cheesy horror movies with delight. Not everyone is interested in a movie called "Arachnid" after all, you know what I'm saying?
While Brian Yuzna has kept the "Re-Animator" franchise alive with two direct-to-video sequel (the newest one of which, "Beyond Re-Animator," we review elsewhere on PSXNATION today) Stuart Gordon has kept doing what he and his screenwriting partner Dennis Paoli seem to do best: adapt H.P. Lovecraft material for the big screen. 2001's "Dagon," based on a couple of Lovecraft-authored short stories (including 'The Shadow Over Innsmouth'), was also produced by Brian Yuzna so this is one of the few post "Re-Animator" films besides "From Beyond" to feature the three filmmakers responsible for "Re-Animator" working on material that was also inspired from the literary works of the same author. The story of "Dagon" is simple, linear (no real surprises creep into the narrative until the very end) and reasonably well acted by a bunch of foreign actors with European accents thicker than France's attitude toward Iraq. Paul Marsh (Ezra Godden, a Jeffrey Combs look-alike) and his wife Barbara (Raquel Merono) try to help their friends Vicki and Howard (Birgit Bofarull and Brendan Price, respectively) by taking a boat to a mysterious island off the coast of Spain. Unfortunately for Paul, Barbara and the town's kindly old drunk Ezequiel (Francisco Rabal) the inhabitants of this island are possessed by an ancient spirit that has turned them into half-human half-fish creatures. One of these creatures, Uxia (the beautiful Macarena Gomez), may have an agenda that could be the salvation of either Paul or Barbara (but not both!).
Gore hounds expecting lightning to strike twice are in for a rude awakening. "Dagon" isn't as concerned with sick humor or gory deaths (though it has its fair share of both) as it is with nailing the desolate look and atmosphere of a Lovecraft-inspired world down pat. Though partially achieved by the Spanish locales in which Gordon and Yuzna have gotten a reasonable bang-for-the-buck cinematic look "Dagon" isn't violent enough to satisfy "Re-Animator" fans or high-brow enough to appeal to viewers outside of the direct-to-video horror market. It's a decent exercise in moodiness that separates it from most direct-to-video horror crap, but that's as far as "Dagon's" cinematic aspirations go. The acting is surprisingly good considering the European cast of actors (it's not as bad as, for example, a badly-dubbed Italian horror movie or Jackie Chan action flick) but Gordon, Yuzna and Paoli are capable of so much more than what they ultimately deliver with "Dagon." "Re-Animator" this definitely is not, and the fact that Ezra Godden's Paul Marsh character wears a Miskatonic shirt for half the running time of "Dagon" seems to add a layer of in-your-face cleverness to a movie in desperate need of a hook other than being a Lovecraft adaptation.
The Disc:
"Dagon's" Widescreen Anamorphic (1:85:1) Video Transfer is at its weakest whenever a CG intensive sequence comes up. The edges of the CG effects and the stilted animation, along with the low-contrast photography and cheap-looking film stock, go a long way toward giving this movie the hallmarks of direct-to-video appearance. The movie captures the atmosphere of dread and decay from the Lovecraft source material but it still looks average compared with most DVD's from its era (2001). The English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Track is low on technical proficiency (an odd panning or LFE speaker separation trick here and there) but it's clean and mostly distortion free.
Aside from English and Spanish Subtitles, Production Art Stills, Theatrical Trailers and Storyboards for Three Scenes "Dagon's" most significant extras are Two Commentary Tracks. Director Stuart Gordon appears on both of them; one he shares with "Dagon's" screenwriter Dennis Paoli (Gordon's friend since College and also the man behind "Re-Animator's" classic 'head giving head' scene) and the other one with actor Ezra Godden (Paul). Since there are no production featurettes or documentaries these men share your typical behind-the-scenes anecdotes, inspirations, personal observations, etc. about what it was like to work on the film. If you like "Dagon" you'll end up enjoying these commentary tracks a lot more than those that find the movie a little too cold and distant (like yours truly).
bottom line:
"Re-Animator" fans hoping for a repeat of Stuart Gordon's slapstick-meets-blood approach at H.P. Lovecraft movie adaptations will be disappointed with "Dagon." This is a moody, lyrical and often boring attempt at infusing mythical undertones on a production that was clearly shot on a shoestring budget (the CG work is particularly weak). A nice rental to see Gordon & Co. doing what they do best (adapting Lovecraft material to cinema) and failing, but doing so with class and a sense of dignity about the whole endeavor.
By - J.M. Vargas
