Detention of the Dead (2012)

The Worst Film Ever

Lack of good storyline.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

An eclectic group of high-school teens in detention—cheerleader Janet (Christa B. Allen) and her boyfriend Brad (Jayson Blair), geek Eddie (Jacob Zachar), pretty goth Willow (Alexa Nikolas), jock Jimmy (Max Adler), and stoner Ash (Justin Chon)—find themselves trapped in the school library after a zombie outbreak turns all of their classmates into ravenous gutmunchers.Detention of the Dead is harmless enough fun, but in a world where a new zombie film seems to claw its way to the surface on a daily basis, it simply doesn't do enough to distinguish itself from the competition. The characters are all stereotypes—although that's forgivable given that the film is clearly inspired in part by The Breakfast Club—but for Detention of the Dead to have been really successful, it would have needed far better gags, a few genuine scares, and much more creative zombie mayhem. I'd liked to have seen director Alex Craig Mann really go to town with the splatter, but then again, maybe the budget for such carnage just wasn't available.I rate Detention of the Dead a passable 5 out of 10, although I was tempted to deduct a point for the obvious in-jokes, most notably the characters named after classics of the genre, something that has been done to death in comedy horror films over the years (the library is named after make-up legend Tom Savini; Brad, Janet and Eddie are all characters from The Rocky Horror Picture Show; Willow is from Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Ash is, of course, from The Evil Dead; admittedly, I haven't the foggiest who Jimmy is named after).

Well, there certainly are many zombie B-movies being made these days, and many of them are very bad. DETENTION OF THE DEAD isn't. Although it's yet another comic zombie horror set in a high school, the jokes aren't bad and there's plenty of fast-paced action to take your mind off the deficiencies of the script. Plus, the constant references to THE BREAKFAST CLUB are unexpected and a lot of fun too.DETENTION OF THE DEAD gets to the zombie action very quickly, while the laughs come thick and fast too. Some of the plot ingredients are over-laboured to the max - that running severed head joke for instance - but others are handled quite well. The zombies are effectively ferocious and the gore effects don't disappoint either.Mainly it's the characters that make this film work, with the actors putting plenty of enthusiasm into the performances. I found the main nerd character to be a bit dull, but the supporting players like Alexa Nikolas and Justin Chon have fun roles and do plenty with them. DETENTION OF THE DEAD isn't the best film in the world, but I found it to be an enjoyable time-waster.

It's a teen zombie movie. Think "Breakfast Club" plus zombies, less epic music (except for the Pixies' cover of "Where is My Mind?" by Nada Surf – Fight Club song for those of you who need a mental nudge). When I say it's "Breakfast Club" I mean just that: "Breakfast Club." It is heavy on the whole teen superficial archetypes thrust together serendipitously, and who must work together in order to get out of a predicament, all whilst learning about each other and themselves. This movie is similar, but instead of figuring out how to survive each other, they need to fight against a shambling horde of newly converted undead. This is the first movie review in RockRevolt Magazine. My reviews are more like a spanking, which sting at first, but when applied with appropriate follow-up, tend to be quite nice. I put everything I didn't like about the movie out there first, and then I soften that blow with what I did like. Let us proceed with that spanking now: Too Long. In this reviewer's opinion, the movie could have been shortened up. There were some brief moments that could have come out, that would have shaved off some minutes without having much impact on the overall delivery.Jimmy? There could have been more to him; a little more substance. He was practically a prop, right up until his demise.Holding the Head Effect. The effect was not as polished as I would have preferred. Since it was jarringly different from the other gory details, I would have done away with that particular scene, as it really didn't add a whole lot more, nor was it crucial to the story."I don't want to die a virgin?" Seriously? You are stuck in your school's library. The place is crawling with zombies, both inside and out, and all you can think of is…I take that back. If I were a teen in high school in a similar position, I would probably have the same mind-set. Move this to the plusses. Let us not die virgins.Let's work on removing that sting now, and talking about some of the things that did work for me: John Hughes. I really enjoy some John Hughes flicks, so any nod in the direction of his classic films just hits me where I like it, even with zombies running around.Visual Comedy. Call me immature, but I will laugh at the same thing a 13-14 year old boy will laugh at. The homo-erotic double entendre scene in which Ash and Eddie are trying to release the Kung-Fu grip a dismembered zombie arm had on Eddie's nether regions as they hump and thrust around just slays me. There were other instances that provoked the Beavis and Butthead giggling in me. I sported the "he he he he" quite frequently.Ash. By far my favorite character. I could see such a character go awry with the wrong actor, but as portrayed by Justin Chon, I found him to be incredibly charismatic. What I particularly enjoyed about this character was watching his antics become the catalysts that propelled the story forward.Classic Zombie Movie Salutes. Every once in a while, a reference to another zombie movie would pop-up and make me smile. There was no bigger smile on my lips than when the characters were huddled in front of a desk that had the sign "Savini Library."There were many other reasons to enjoy this movie. If you enjoy John Hughes flicks, and zombie flicks, you will absolutely want to see this one. If you are ambivalent about one or the other, you should still check this one out. It's a movie that has an amazingly relatable story. How many of you are a dweeb with a hard-on for the cheerleader, but learned that you could save the day and get a girl that is like-minded and just as hot in other ways? I mean, not everyone can be a cheerleader or the school jock, but everyone is somebody, and whether or not you are slaying homework, zombies, or your day to day cubicle farm job, there is something ultimately cool about watching the under-dog save the day, and anyone can walk a mile in those shoes of that average man.Off the soap box now. Detention of the Dead. Check it out. Take a date. If you get bored, you could always make-out, but I suspect you might actually want to watch this one.~Alice Roques

I caught an early screening of Detention of the Dead a few months ago in LA. This is a very funny and engaging take on the zombie-comedy genre by director Alex Craig Mann. I enjoyed the performances, mainly Jacob Zachar's as the nerdy guy fighting the zombie apocalypse and still finding time to win over the popular cheerleader's heart. Alexa Nicholas and Justin Chon also stand out among the cast members. The movie does not take itself too seriously but it's a great popcorn flick. This is the kind of movie that provides entertainment by following a simple but effective storyline (Breakfast Club meets Dawn of the Dead)and some memorable scenes. It only gets a 9 because I'd love to see more of that rat.