GENRE: Horror
YEAR: 1985
RATED: R

      This movie will either scare you, or cause you to laugh your ass off. I’ve seen both reactions to this odd but cool 80’s horror movie, directed by Dan O’Bannon (writer of ALIEN). RETURN is a descendant of sorts to George Romero’s zombie films, but isn’t directly related. Instead, this movie tries to tell us that what happened in Romero’s NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD actually occurred. Okay, just ignore the stupid warning in the beginning that says RETURN is based on actual events. I don’t think the makers expected anyone to take it seriously anyway.

      The movie opens up in Louisville, Kentucky at the “Uneeda Medical Supply” warehouse. As new employee Freddy receives his orientation, he’s told a strange tale by his boss, Frank, of how the army accidentally delivered dead bodies to their facility. Bodies that were once brought back to life by a secret government chemical some years before. When Frank decides to show Freddy the canisters, the two unwittingly break one open releasing the chemical into the air. Before long, certain dead things in the warehouse begin coming back to life, including a deceased cadaver. In order to avoid public inquiry into his business, the owner decides to take the cadaver to a nearby morgue and burn it, which seems to be the only way to kill it. But when they do, the chemical seeps into the storm clouds above and begins to rain down on a nearby graveyard. What happens…you guessed it! The entire graveyard comes to life and preys not only on those in the morgue, but some wily teenagers hanging out there as well. It soon becomes a life and death struggle for all.

      Once again, you have just another fun movie. Although this is a horror, this one has a certain amount of comedic undertones that really lighten the mood. Basically, the makers are not taking themselves too seriously, which is good.