(dir. David Gelb)
 |
| Relativity Media |
*First time viewing
The Lazarus Effect
centers on a team of scientists who discover a serum to bring the dead back to
life. When one of the scientists, Zoe, is killed by a freak lab accident, her
husband resurrects her. The only problem is that Zoe’s soul has been left in
hell and her body is left a violent killing machine.
There are a number of people who claim that good horror
movies simply aren’t made anymore. This of course is bullshit, and anyone with
a modicum of cinematic awareness knows this. Unfortunately for the people whose
only knowledge in horror comes from bad studio-released star vehicles, The Lazarus Effect will only add further
fuel to the ‘modern horror movies suck’ pyre. Without reservation, I can tell you that
The Lazarus Effect is one of the
worst, wide-released horror films of the modern era. Beyond just the laziness
of its lame jump scares and lack of stakes, The
Lazarus Effect is flat-out boring, completely devoid of personality in
every aspect from the cast to the filmmaking. The cast, consisting of talented
familiar faces given nothing to do, simply sit around and wait to be killed in
the dull gray corridors of their locked lab. No one looks like they’re having
any fun in this movie and it comes through in every frame.
It’s not so much the use of clichés that sink the film (even
those can prove fun and effective with right creators and actors), it’s that
every cliché feels like an afterthought. The dream sequences, power blackouts,
soulless black eyes, and demonic voices are all seemingly used because it’s
what other horror movies have done, not because it actually fits with the
narrative setup or enhances the film. In theory, The Lazarus Effect could have at least been entertaining and
stylish in its efforts to follow in the footsteps of Frankenstein and Re-Animator.
Instead, we’re left with a bloodless, uneventful film that contributes nothing
to the genre.
Scare Factor: 0/5 Simply awful all around. Its brisk 83
minute runtime is the film’s only positive attribute.
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