When it comes to comedy, New Zealand has its own distinctive brand of humour. No matter the genre hybrid: horror, crime thriller, drama, there is always the same quirky tone applied to the laughs. Films like What We Do in the Shadows, Come to Daddy, Black Sheep, The Hunt for the Wilderpeople, and Mega Time Squad, are several such examples; each of them are very different, but all keep that similar kooky vein of fun. Given their off-the-wall zany jokes, these films never fail to disappoint, and new FrightFest film, Dead, written and directed by Hayden J. Weal, is the latest addition to this growing list.
After the death of his father, stoner, Marbles (Thomas Sainsbury), stumbles across a cocktail of drugs that enables him to communicate with dead people. Despite having never been able to contact his dear dead dad, Marbles uses his acquired gift to help other people have one last goodbye with the recently departed, helping the ghosts passover at the same time. His easy existence gets problematic after being visited by recently deceased police officer, Tagg (Hayden J. Weal), who has a very specific task to complete before being able to move on: catch the person that killed him. It transpires that Tagg is the latest victim of a deadly serial killer that is murdering young men, one that Tagg has been hunting for years. The pair form an odd alliance, and with help from Tagg’s sister, Yana (Tomai Ihaia), set about stopping the killer once and for all.
A small budget film, Dead has a fairly modest cast size, with Weal himself appearing as the deceased Tagg. The limited cast means that Dead sticks to the idea that there are no small parts, with practically every character that we meet having a pivotal part to play in the story, so make sure you pay close attention. Marbles is a character who, on paper, is rather tragic and irritating. He’s the type of character we’ve seen before within the obnoxious comedy relief best friend role, but here is the lead. Fortunately, Thomas Sainsbury injects enough charm into Marbles to stop him from becoming the stock character that one would expect. Weal also does great things with Tagg, obviously helped by the fact that he wrote the part. As a duo, the pair are fantastically entertaining and play off of each other’s energy wonderfully.
There’s a strong queer component to Dead that offers a new slant on a familiar story. It’s a fresh and current approach to the material, but is also an important step forwards in terms of representation and inclusivity. Having not had many films approaching the topics covered from this angle means that there is plenty of material to be mined for laughs, and Weal successfully manages to generate plenty. It’s not quite a laugh a minute, but there are certainly several moments and set pieces that will tickle the funny bone.
Very much Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) filtered through some rather absurdist comedy, Dead also shares a lot in common with Irish supernatural comedy, Extra Ordinary (which is available on UK Netflix). There’s the fatherless protagonist who can commune with the dead, but both have this zany humour and upbeat warmth to them that makes them very entertaining watches. Dead isn’t quite as wacky in terms of plot or gore as Extra Ordinary, and as such is potentially the more accessible film of the two. It relies on a lot of light-hearted humour and does it’s best to charm the viewer, a feat it manages for most of the runtime. Things do get a little too silly towards the end, but Weal just about manages to keep the wheels from falling off.
Dead was reviewed at Arrow Video FrightFest 2020. Dead will be available on Digital Download from 27th October and can be pre-ordered here
Dead
Summary
Another solid entry that proves that New Zealand filmmakers may just be the funniest on the planet.
