Line #7 Film/TheDeadMatter


1	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ever1_1710.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:250:Yes, they do.]]
3	->''Why rule the living, when you can control the dead?''
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5	''The Dead Matter'' is a horror movie originally made by Edward Douglas of Music/MidnightSyndicate in 1995. But at that time, it was filmed with a few friends, one camera, and $2000. Fast forward twelve years, and while Syndicate were writing the soundtrack for Robert Kurtzman's ''The Rage'', Douglas proposed the script for the movie to Kurtzman. Soon, an all new Dead Matter was coming to life.
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7	The movie starts off in Germany, where a horde of [[OurZombiesAreDifferent zombies]] flock toward a man holding an ancient Egyptian scarab, which appears to be controlling them. The man ([[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampire]] Vellich, played by Creator/AndrewDivoff) is stopped when [[HeWhoFightsMonsters hunter]] Ian [=McAllister=] (Jason Carter) steals the scarab away. After a chase ending with Vellich killing Ian's assistant Mark, the story moves to Gretchen Bennington (Sean Serino), a young woman still in mourning over her brother Sean's death. She leads her friends into the woods to conduct a seance in an attempt to bring Sean back, where she finds the scarab. As they happened not to notice Mark's corpse lying close by, all hell breaks loose when Gretchen finds herself in complete control of any dead matter. Several other important subplots are woven throughout - Vellich's vampiric rival Sebed ([[Film/FromDuskTillDawn Tom Savini]]) also wants the scarab, and is running an underground drug-dealing business. Gretchen's friend Frank's diet pill business has just launched.
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9	Reminiscent of many old-school zombie and vampire films, the movie's visual effects are the result of being shot completely on film instead of digitally. The soundtrack is, naturally, all by Music/MidnightSyndicate. Even though the movie went straight to DVD, it received incredible reception from horror magazines and websites everywhere.
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11	One important detail - the title, while it is referring to 'matter that is dead', is also a statement - those who are dead matter. And in this movie, they definitely do.
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13	----
14	!!Tropes in The Dead Matter:
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16	* ActorAllusion: Creator/TomSavini as a vampire.
17	* AllJustADream...OrWasItADream: After the seance, it initially appears that Mark's rising from the dead was just a dream, but that's quickly disproved.
18	* ArtifactOfDoom: The scarab. Supposedly it was made by [[Myth/EgyptianMythology Osiris]], which would explain a few things.
19	* BadassLongcoat: Vellich is wearing one at a few points in the movie.
20	* CanisLatinicus: Gretchen's recitation during the seance ''is'' technically actual Latin - but her pronunciation is nothing short of abominable.
21	* CreepyChild: All the children in Gretchen's first NightmareSequence.
22	* DullSurprise: Although in Serino's case it's more like "dull unhappiness".
23	* EvilIsNotAToy: Gretchen will not understand this, even when Jill is doing her best to convince her.
24	* {{Fingore}}: Involving the nails - [[spoiler: Gretchen]] rips off ''every single one'' of Mark's fingernails at once.
25	* {{Gorn}}: Averted for the most part, as there's surprisingly little gore for a zombie movie, but there are a couple times - most obviously when Vellich ''rips off the entire bottom half of a guard's face'' and hands it to him.
26	* HeWhoFightsMonsters: Ian [=McAllister=].
27	* HilariousOuttakes: Fun With Mark The Zombie.
28	* HolyBurnsEvil: Vellich gets a particularly nasty taste of this when [[spoiler: he dies by shoving a cross down his throat]].
29	* ImAHumanitarian: The children in Gretchen's first dream.
30	--->'''Teacher''':You may eat him, children.
31	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Mark, by Vellich. Sort of a turn-around of the usual roles of vampire and human, isn't it?
32	* IntercontinuityCrossover: The film appears to have a slight continuity cross with the worlds in Syndicate's [[ConceptAlbum Concept Albums]], given that there's mentions of a "Haverghast Asylum".
33	* IronicNurseryTune: "Sean is in the ground, Sean is in the ground..." Sung to the classic "na-na na-na naa na!" tune.
34	* JumpScare: Mark's appearance in Gretchen's room.
35	* LesbianVampire: [[spoiler: Rebecca and Angie]].
36	* LoveMakesYouEvil: None of this would have happened if Gretchen wasn't so desperate to bring back her brother. This is played with in the second-to-last scene, where [[spoiler: Sean ''begins'' to rise up as a zombie, but Gretchen can't handle seeing what she's done anymore]].
37	* MadnessMantra: ''Theanswerisdeaththeanswerisdeaththeanswerisdeaththeanswer...''
38	* MindScrew: The second NightmareSequence is Gretchen's own personal MindScrew. And for the viewers, Vellich's visions at the beginning - they're obviously supposed to hint at something in his past, but we never get to learn about said past.
39	* MoodWhiplash: The [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments hilarity]] of the meat and eggs in Gretchen's fridge coming to life is ruined by images of actual, human zombies rising from the morgue.
40	* {{Necromancer}}: Whoever holds the scarab instantly becomes a Necromancer.
41	* NightmareSequence: Gretchen has two, and Frank has one.
42	* OhCrap: [[spoiler: "Luxnul isn't a diet pill, is it?"]]
43	* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Vellich, for the most part, is an old-fashioned vamp - burned by sunlight, hurt by crosses and holy symbols, doesn't appear in mirrors. However, the vampires that have been taking the drug [[spoiler: are immune to all of those things, and can appear completely human]].
44	* OurZombiesAreDifferent: They have a few traits of Type V, given that they're completely at the will of anyone who holds the scarab, but there's also some completely new elements.
45	* PerkyGoth: Jill.
46	* ProductPlacement: Product placement for Midnight Syndicate itself, with T-shirts, [=CDs=], and actually saying the band title out loud at times.
47	* SarcasticConfession:
48	--->So, what were you doing last night?
49	--->I was fighting a vampire.
50	* SurrealHorror
51	* ThrowTheBookAtThem

Context Film / TheDeadMatter