The Dead Pit

source: The Dead Pit

There were no happy times in here, there was no spectacular human emotions such as 1 can find in "On Golden Pond" no cheer, just gloom, depression, darkness, forboding evil, gore, the walking dead. & Colin Ramsy AAGGHHH!!!! Oh by the way I thourgholy enjoyed this one, its 1 of the better horror films in a while.

Mysterious amnesia victim Jane Doe (a game portrayal by luscious brunette stuntwoman Cheryl Lawson) gets sent to an asylum where twenty years ago the deranged Dr. Colin Ramzi (a pleasingly creepy Danny Gochnauer) was conducting sadistic brain experiments on the hapless inmates. A sudden earthquake resurrects Dr. Ramzi so he can embark on a new campaign of terror. Director/co-writer Brett Leonard and co-writer Gimel Everett do a bang-up job of creating and maintaining a grim, morbid and absolutely twisted brooding gloom-doom atmosphere: the dank and depressing tone rarely lets up for a minute, there's no goofy comic relief to speak of (however, this film does have a wickedly macabre sense of pitch-black gallows humor), Ramzi's lobotomized zombie victims are genuinely hideous and unsettling (the climactic lively zombie rampage seriously smokes, too), and we've got a handy helping of grisly gore (brains are scooped out, the tops of heads are cut off to expose peoples' glistening cerebrums, and long, sharp needles are thrust into several folks' skulls). The slick cinematography by Marty Collins makes neat use of shadowy lighting and gives the picture an attractive glossy look. Dan Wyman's spirited shivery'n'spooky score likewise does the skin-crawling trick. Moreover, the solid cast all play their parts with tremendous enthusiasm: Steffen Gregory Foster delivers an utterly engaging performance as charming explosives expert Christian Meyers, Joan Bechtel is deliciously hateful as the cruel and domineering Nurse Kygar, plus there's sturdy supporting work from Jeremy Slate as friendly head psychiatrist Dr. Gerald Swan, Geha Getz as unhinged nun Sister Clair, Mara Everett as the sweet Nurse Robbins, and Jack A. Sunseri as affable orderly Jimmy. As a yummy extra bonus, the gorgeously voluptuous Lawson spends a fair share of her screen time clad only in a tight tank top and skimpy panties (and she also even briefly bares her beautifully bountiful breasts as well!). All in all, this fright feature sizes up as a great deal of good'n'ghastly ghoulish fun.

*SPOILER ALERT* *SPOILER ALERT* I bought this video. A disturbed woman gets thrown into an insane asylum where she belongs. She insists she's not crazy. It's hard to believe her when she spends half her time screaming and wailing at whomever is around. This all becomes meaningless when zombies start charging out of the cellar. They were stashed in the pit. The Dead Pit. They want their asylum back and their head zombie won't take no for an answer. This was OK. There are a few gory spots once the zombies start chugging along. We get to see brains, delicious brains, and lots of them. The movie doesn't really get going until about the halfway point. The first half of the movie we get to see the heroine cry her eyes out at being declared insane as she's foaming at the mouth. "I didn't lose my memory! It was taken from me!" Hmmmm. Same difference? Look babe, you're a loon. Deal with it. As zombie flicks go, this was decent. It's worth a look.

"The Dead Pit" is one of the most depressing horror films I have ever seen.They don't show even a single moment of humour during the movie.Just gloom,darkness,pain,depression and gory violence!"The Dead Pit" is very creepy and atmospheric,but simply unenjoyable for some horror fans.The acting is pretty good and believable,the zombies look terrific and the gore is well-one(for example there's brain eating,eyeball violence etc.)So if you're a real zombie fanatic,then enjoy this morbid movie!

Hell.. I have watched scores of horror films of all genres, liked many and trashed quite a few, in this very portal. All said and done, this too is a '80s style horror film, with gore, campy effects, shambling zombies, evil doctors, half-naked females, scary hospitals and whatnot. There are loopholes aplenty, but can we really expect logic in a horror film? They are there for our entertainment - love them or leave them. In this film, the hospital scenes are satisfyingly eerie, the nurses and orderlies expectedly intimidating, and the lead female, Cheryl Lawson, attractive enough. Amazingly, in the apparently high security asylum, male and female patients freely intermingle, and even visit each others rooms. Wow.. now that creates certain possibilities :) Cheryl is endowed with a delicious figure and attractive good looks.. plus she runs around the corridors at night, wearing bikini-cut panties and a short slip. Yummy! Amazingly, neither IMDb nor Wikipedia have any info on Cheryl till date. Seems a pity, considering that she carried the entire film on her.. umm.. shoulders?(I am kidding). Watchable for the antics of Cheryl, the evil doctor and the creepy hospital building, if nothing else. The idea of drenching zombies with holy water seems to be a novel one. Usually, they appear to be indestructible.. Post-script: Can anybody explain to me why Hollywood zombies always want to attack and eat living humans? I mean, whats the logic behind it? Oh Jesus.. again I am searching for logic.. how stupid of me :)

I saw "The Dead Pit" first time some 15 years ago and since late at night on television. I couldn't remember the title until few years ago, and recently I manage to find it on DVD. Surprisingly magic is still there. Without getting too much into plot, movie is about doctor who performs illegal brain surgeries until his college kills him for moral reasons, sealing him into his "Dead Pit". Twenty years after, Jane Doe (girl who lost her memories) comes into the very same hospital. Soon after, earthquake crack the wall of "Dead Pit" and good old doctor comes back to life, unleashing his horde of undead. I don't know why many people complain about this movie, seems they are forgetting that this is '80 low budget movie (times when literally everything you thought of could be put on screen). It's a descent '80 zombie flick, bit unusual because of it's narrative style and nightmarish atmosphere it has. It was a first feature of now well known director Brett Leonard, who manage to capture otherworldly atmosphere in what is now considered cult classic. His obvious influences are Wes Craven and his Elm Street (director acknowledged this in audio commentary for Dead Pit DVD). Story gets bit spread here and there, but it never gets too confusing nor it tries to be more then it actually is - a low budget horror flick. Altho movie starts bit slow (but it has some nice scenes to keep you interested for the first half of the movie), it really comes to life in second half when all hell breaks lose and zombies start to rampage through asylum. Characters aren't deeply developed, but they are interesting enough to keep you watching at screen (good looking Cheryl Lawson helps in that department. Did I mention she walks around in her underwear most of the time?) SF goes from terrific to silly, but most of the time, they are looking quite good, especially when it comes to gore scenes. It's bloody and will satisfy every zombie fan, because FX here have all the necessary requirement for good zombie gorefest. Highlight of this little flick are cinematography, which was really well done and music score, which goes from moody to creepy. (Cheryl Lawson looks are also big highlight of this movie.) Bad: Some scenes are bit longer then they should be, some plot elements that aren't really needed and bit corny ending, and "innovative" way of killing zombies that might cause laugh for hardcore zombie fans. Overall, it's a descent flick, worth checking out if you are fan of horror movies and for some reason you haven't seen it already.

Brett Leonard (Lawnmower Man, Hideaway) gives us in his directorial debut a pastiche of De Moro's HELLHOLE and Fulci's CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD, and it holds it's own with those two heavy-weights from opposite poles of the extreme-film spectrum. This movie has raving mental patients, psychotic doctors, people being buried alive, ritual murders in boiler rooms, flesh-hungry zombies, high-quality gore effects, and hot women. Very atmospheric for taking place in a clichéd setting = a mental asylum. Probably the creepiest one caught on film. There are dead bodies all over this movie. Amazing dialog like this doesn't hurt either: -"My God! You're a Doctor! You're supposed to be saving lives!" -"I've done life. Now I'm doing death." Not a disappointment for zombie fans looking for something different, or slasher fans doing the same. Solid. A must see.

I like the scenes of female lead running around with tank top and underpants, one additional star for this merit.

This movie deserves a negative 10 score. HORRIBLE acting, zero budget effects and just plain stupid. I suspect the others that gave it rave reviews must have been people that were involved in making this piece of trash movie. It was just plain stupid, not stupid fun it was just stupid. DO not waste your time watching this piece of trash. ............ This movie deserves a negative 10 score. HORRIBLE acting, zero budget effects and just plain stupid. I suspect the others that gave it rave reviews must have been people that were involved in making this piece of trash movie. It was just plain stupid, not stupid fun it was just stupid. DO not waste your time watching this piece of trash. .......... This movie deserves a negative 10 score. HORRIBLE acting, zero budget effects and just plain stupid. I suspect the others that gave it rave reviews must have been people that were involved in making this piece of trash movie. It was just plain stupid, not stupid fun it was just stupid. DO not waste your time watching this piece of trash.