Main Cast: John Terry, Jane Sibbett, Chris Sarandon, Richard Romanus, Laurie Briscoe
Release Year: 1991
Country: US/UK
Run Time: 108 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
This low-budget film from Alien scriptwriter Dan O'Bannon (his first film since the 1985 zombie hit Return of the Living Dead) is one of the more loyal adaptations of fantasy author H.P. Lovecraft, taking as its source the short story The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. Set in Lovecraft's home town of Providence, Rhode Island, the story involves the investigations of hard-boiled private eye John Marsh (John Terry) into the mysterious activities of Charles Dexter Ward (Chris Sarandon). It seems that Ward is becoming increasingly obsessed with the occult practices of his distant ancestor Joseph Curwen (also played by Sarandon) who was reputed to have found the secret of resurrecting the dead. Much to the horror of his wife Claire (Jane Sibbett), Ward is slowly being possessed by Curwen's malevolent spirit, and he is compelled to perform horrible experiments on the locals in pursuit of his goal. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Review
Though this low-budget effort directed by Alien screenwriter Dan O'Bannon was released direct-to-video, it is actually an underrated horror gem that is arguably one of the best adaptations of an H.P. Lovecraft story. The Resurrected succeeds in large part because of its strong source material, but the grisly makeup effects from Todd Masters cannot be shortchanged. In fact, this film is a perfect example of one that might have failed had CGI effects been used. Based on Lovecraft's The Case of Charles Dexter Ward (filmed in 1963 by Roger Corman as The Haunted Palace), the film follows the book in a modern setting, but O'Bannon smartly leaves some of the author's macabre mayhem unseen. This was obviously due to budgetary restraints, but it works in favor of the picture since too many cheap monsters would have lessened the effects of the ones that are shown. If only there were special effects that could have been used to improve the performances. Chris Sarandon (Fright Night, The Sentinel) is the best of a bad batch giving Charles Dexter Ward (aka Joseph Curwen) the requisite madness his character requires. But Jane Sibbett and John Terry are both weak in underwhelming roles while Robert Romanus (Fast Times at Ridgemont High) doesn't have enough screen time to give his character any impact -- at least not until he gets devoured offscreen. Acting aside, The Resurrected is notable for its strong technical work with particular praise deserved for the ominous sets and lighting. One sequence in which the characters discover a catacomb-like underground lair in Ward's house is outstanding. ~ Patrick Legare, All Movie Guide
Ken Cameroux - Captain Ben Azandor; Patrick Pon - Raymond; Bernard Cuffling - Doctor Waite; Charles Kristian - Ezra Ward; Megan Leitch - Eliza; Deep Roy - Main Monster
Credit
Doug Byggdin - Art Director, Adrian Hughes - Co-producer, Tara Prem - Co-producer, Tudor George - Costume Designer, Dan O'Bannon - Director, Russell Livingstone - Editor, Dan Rae - Editor, Tony Scotti - Executive Producer, Tom Bradshaw - Executive Producer, Richard H. Band - Composer (Music Score), John Keane - Composer (Music Score), Kathy Ducker - Makeup, Chris Burke - Production Designer, Brent Thomas - Production Designer, Irv Goodnoff - Cinematographer, Ivan Strasburg - Cinematographer, Mark Borde - Producer, Kenneth M. Raich - Producer, Tony Scotti - Producer, Todd Masters - Special Effects, Roy Alon - Stunts, Martin Allen - Screenwriter, Brent V. Friedman - Screenwriter, H.P. Lovecraft - Short Story Author
Claire Ward (Sibbett) hires private investigator John Marsh (Terry) to look into the increasingly bizarre activities of her husband Charles Dexter Ward (Sarandon). Ward has become obsessed with the occult practices of raising the dead once practiced by his ancestor Joseph Curwen (Sarandon in a dual role). As the investigators dig deeper, they discover that Ward is performing a series of grisly experiments in an effort to actually resurrect his long-dead relative Curwen.
Production history
Director O'Bannon and screenwriter Brent V. Friedman had both developed the Lovecraft property over the years, independent of each other. While Friedman receives sole credit, O'Bannon did incorporate some of his own ideas into the project.
