RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD: PART II (1988)
Tagline: Just when you thought it was safe to be dead.
(Horror, Comedy, More Brains) [R]
I remember seeing this movie when I was younger and not being impressed with it at all. First off I think I was kind of confused as to why Thom Mathews and James Karen were back in the same roles from the first one after both died? Then I realized, they were not the same characters, but were basically playing the same roles doing the same thing. This one felt the fast-tracked, “we couldn’t think of anything” stepchild of the original. The producers were aware of this issue because Thom’s character even says “I feel like we’ve done all this before.”
Over time this movie became a cult hit of sorts and started getting the attention of horror fans, even recently. So I decided to give it a chance and actually bought it. In 2020 it was part of the horror movie Halloween lineup and actually enjoyed it quite a bit.
The story revolves around the same type of container full of a gas toxin that we find in RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD. This time kids find it and can’t leave it alone. The gas escapes in a graveyard and once again we’ve got un-dying zombies taking over the city. In this one rather than working at a medical parts facility, “Joey”, played by Thom Mathews, and “Ed”, played by James Karen are both grave diggers. So of course they are caught up in this thing right away, along with Joey’s girlfriend played by Suzanne Snyder who is also in WEIRD SCIENCE and KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE. A lot of this movie happens with the military already there dealing with zombie containment. This is made more difficult because of the fact that you can't just shoot these zombies in the brain to kill them. Every part of them stays alive (smart parts).
There are some pretty fantastic moments in this movie, one involving Joey’s girlfriend punching a zombie in the face. We also find out that the zombies do have a weakness. I am fine with this part of the movie because it was never brought up or tried in the first movie. There are also some really laugh-out-loud moments with this film overall taking an even more comedic approach to the material than its predecessor. I really liked most of the performances in this but Dana Ashbrook who played the cable installer Tom and Marsha Dietlein as Lucy Wilson had the best chemistry making the fact that it looks like they are going to be a couple now (in the movies reality) even better.
RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD: PART II does have a few rough spots and is not a perfect film by any means. While most of the characters are likable, some of their decisions are unrealistic even in a crazy out-of-control flick like this. I am also pretty sure we see the same zombie get killed or deeply maimed at least 3 times. Perhaps this was due to budget, but it was sloppier to me than acceptable or funny.
I have to give this movie a 5 out of 7. It is very funny, but misses some of the great points of the original, and actually isn't going to meet horror movie standards for a lot of people regarding "terror". It does however also have an amazing final song, that by itself is almost worth watching this movie several times. If you get a chance it’s worth picking up the soundtrack or the movie just for Joe Lamont’s son “Flesh To Flesh”.
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