1428 Elm
Fansided

The Lazarus Effect Can’t Re-animate Its Dead Script

By Joey Click

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The Plot:

Frank and Zoe seemingly have it all. Both love science. Both love each other. Both love fighting death. Both love life. When an attempt to save their reanimation project from getting shutdown causes Frank to lose Zoe, Frank will stop at nothing to get her back. Zoe comes back; it’s not Zoe. With each passing moment, Frank and his team begin being picked off by what came from the other side. It increasingly becomes clear that some things should remain dead. Welcome to The Lazarus Effect.

The Review:

I had zero interest in the little studio picture. I liked some of the cast but I’ve been obsessed with film long enough to see bad studio movie coming miles away. Regardless, I wanted to see if it was worth you dead heads spending your hard earns or if it was in fact a dud. So let’s wake up the dead as I review the reanimated creature feature, David Gelb’s The Lazarus Effect.

The Direction:

David Gelb directs The Lazarus Effect with a surprisingly sharp eye. In fact, the first third of the film is quite accomplished in terms of direction. Shit for writing but let’s slow this 18-wheeler down and ask snowman how the direction is. We might have few payload beers with the bandit while we discuss.

What makes Gelb’s direction potent in the first act is some obvious mature choices in camera movement and shot length. Camera moments that emphasize character’s internal perception are seen, which is next level filmmaking. This shows a clear understanding as to how the camera will aid in the overall narrative’s successful.

The film is also a lot less choppy that I thought it was going to be. Studio films, more than any other, are strict about making the day and dailies. Simply put, studios features shoot a lot of coverage. Quick takes that will be pieced together to make the movie later. It’s lazy, but by the numbers filmmaking. The Lazarus Effect refreshingly doesn’t adhere to this discipline.

As for composition, I didn’t see much too specifically point out. The Lazarus Effect’s framing isn’t entirely simplistic, but nothing sticks out.

The Acting:

The acting situation in The Lazarus Effect is far from ideal, but I’ve seen a while lot worse from a studio horror flick. Sometimes you have to break it down. Let’s do that shall we.

First up are our two leads, played by Oliva Wilde and Mark Duplass. The two carry the film and do a fine job. They play lovers and the chemistry doesn’t feel forced at all. I easily believed the two were in love.

Wilde’s Zoe is a woman that loves her man, but also has a voice and a backbone . As the two are co-workers on the experiment, Wilde had to play that balance between being feminine but could also take charge. Duplass’ Frank is the leader of the operation. He’s very likable, constantly making friends with the crew trying to make his vision a reality, but also extremely focused on that vision. While I wasn’t completely sold on Duplass throughout the film, the crap script asks more of the actor late in the game. Surprisingly, he won me over with an accomplished scene towards the end.

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Other players in the film include Donald Glover, Evan Peters, and Sarah Bolger. Glover, while I love the guy’s flair for comedy and the one special I saw on Netflix is excellent, is not very good in the film. I’ll still give the guy a chance but here he comes off wooden and uncomfortable playing outside his comfort zone. Peters is probably the most talented guy in the whole movie and knocks it out of the park with what little he is given. I enjoyed his character’s authenticity and that authenticity attempting to pull me further into the celluloid illusion, though Evans character is still one dimensionally written. Bolger earns her paycheck but often comes of too much as such. There’s an air of autopilot to her performance that can be distracting. Good, just texted in. That’s for all the hip kids.

The Script:

The script for The Lazarus Effect can only described as garbage. Not that water bottle recyclable kind of garbage. I’m taking about nasty old maggot filled meat. There are so many problems with the script I’m sure I’m going to forget a few things but I’ll discuss some of the more rotten point.

To start, the film is confused as to who the main character actually is. I can’t stand when scripts are produced where those involved clearly cheated in script school to pass. There’s a complete lack of storytelling fundamentals. Without ruining the film, the feature tells us a particular person is the protagonist and then eventually makes then them the antagonist, while appointing a new protagonist. This is a major problem.

Stories are like Nascar races and main characters are the cars in which we experience the race, if you will. Without main characters, there are no stories with telling. It’s one of the many problems the Evil Dead reboot made.

Another problem with the film is convenient plot contrivances in order to execute particular plot points. One of those moments comes toward the first half and the film never recovers. While a small part of the film is focused in the beginning, there is a moment that is so absurd and out of left field that it’s embarrassing this wasn’t fixed in a rewrite before production started. It’s all in service to get the first protagonist to become the antagonist and it’s laughably bad. Though I will say that it involves a cameo by a beloved genre vet and I geeked out like a Trekkie at Roddenberry’s grave when he showed his glorious face.

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While there are many problems with the script, the characters are inviting even if slightly one dimensional. It’s just a silver lining at the bottom of the trash that is The Lazarus Effect.

The Verdict:

The Lazarus Effect boils down to a decently talented director directing an extremely underwhelming script with mostly mediocre performance. Simply put, the film isn’t worth your time or money. Go get yourself a copy of James Gardner’s The Battery instead. You can thank me later.

Grade: D

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