Dead Bodies

I won't give an exact number of how many people bite the dust, but, for some reason, I expected it to be more. However, that's just my minor gripe. I actually enjoyed this film immensely.

It's about a layabout boyfriend whose girlfriend shouts at him one too many times. A horrific accident later and he's left working out the best way of disposing of a body (and there may be one or two more bodies to follow after that).

Most reviews touch on Danny Boyle's classic 'Shallow Grave,' as there are a few comparisons, but Dead Bodies isn't simply Ireland's answer to Boyle's first classic. Also, as others have mentioned the film does start off quite cheeky, almost as if it's trying to set the tone as a comedy. However, the comic feel starts to slowly dwindle as the bodies start to pile up (in not a very big pile). Therefore some people seem to lament the lack of quick-fire humour that the opening half hour displays.

The humour is well-written, so I can understand people missing it. However, if you just let it go and accept that the film ventures into something much darker then you should get something out of it.

It's one for people who like 'whodunits' who know who did it from the off.

This one scores for plot alone. Although our hero is in a dead end job, he seems to have no problem pulling tasty girlfriends, but his current one has a fiery temper, and shortly after she turns up on his doorstep with her suitcase, they have a blazing row. He tells her to get out, but it is he who leaves, giving her a shove as he closes the front door. When he returns, she is lying dead on the carpet, having banged her head. What to do now? He summonses his faithful friend, borrows his car, and takes the body out in the sticks to bury it.

Nothing out of the ordinary so far, but as he is about to finish digging the grave, he has a big shock, there is another body in it already, a skeleton. He finishes what he started, recovers from the shock, and reports the dead girl missing. Then a woman is out walking her dog when...yeah, he should have dug deeper, but it's too late now. The other body is identified as the wife of a councillor who disappeared eight years previously. He is pulled in by the police but not as a suspect as he would have been only seventeen when the first murder was committed. The widower of the first victim is now running for high political office, and this is where it gets really complicated. A photograph of his wife is planted in our hero's apartment which is duly raided, so now he is the prime suspect in two murders, but guess what, it was the councillor who actually committed the first murder, as he finds out at the police station.

Next, he hits on a bizarre plan which sees him and his trusty helper break into the councillor's home, force him to drink a large quantity of alcohol, and ingest sleeping pills. The crazy idea is to fake a suicide attempt - complete with noose and suicide note typed on his computer - then he will presumably take the rap for both murders. But they are disturbed by the detective on the case, who seeing the councillor lying on the floor half dead, finishes the job.

As if that isn't enough, there are a couple of other twists. This film is described as black comedy; the script won't make you laugh, but you won't be sorry you watched it.

I saw Dead Bodies on BBC1 at the start of the week, it was on just past midnight (i could not sleep) so i thought i would be turning off the telly half way through, however it turned out to be an enjoyable grim little drama about a guy called Tommy who by accident causes his girlfriend (sexy Katy Davis) to fall and die and disposes of the body himself...then all sorts of paranoid things start to happen.

I don't want to give away the plot or any twists so check it out, because you get a great shot of Katy Davis's bum as shes having sex in this film and it rivals Nicole Kidman's butt shot in the much better thriller Malice.

I have seen Shallow Grave years ago, and *that* was one of those movies I kept in memory for a very long time. It was intense from beginning to end and with plenty of sudden twists. But all of these made sense.

I can't tell the same about Dead Bodies. Above the title is a subtitle that claims it to be "even better than Shallow Grave". This is a big lie.

Dead Bodies looses strength and gets far less convincing during the movie.

Two supporting characters for example, turn out to be a whole lot less innocent than they first appeared to be. That could work as a surprise, but it didn't surprise me. I could see it coming minutes before, and *that* is a big difference with Shallow Grave.

Another thing I have to mention is that characters in this movie often respond not very realistic. They behave like that more often when the movie gets to it's end.

I would have found it far more interesting if some of the characters would have stayed completely innocent, not knowing what is going on. It would have been better for the contrast with for example Tommy and his friend who have to carry a *huge* secret with them.

But no, for some stupid reason the makers of this movie decided that all characters should show their darkest sides. It does not work in a movie like this.

The end felt much like an open end. It left me with an unsatisfied feeling. I expected a whole lot more of it.

At first I would have given this movie six stars because it is not entirely a bad movie. I liked watching it. Most of the time.

But occasionally I saw some really poor acting and unrealistic scenes and because of the disappointing open end, I stick to four stars this time. And because it turned out to be a mistake that I have spend my time and money to it. Unlike Shallow Grave, I will probably forget Dead Bodies very soon. It is just not such a special movie.

The makers could have done a far better job with this movie. It is a shame that they did not.

The film is a nice little cleverly written film, but the direction adds a very strong amateur feel to it. If Hollywood got there hands on the idea it might have been a world wide success but alas the Irish critics, if they have the right to be even called that have rallied behind him, making him sound like a prodigy but they are very over rated judgements. Whether or not he'll get any better at directing than this is yet very uncertain.

Some of the cast are really good others are born stage actors and should remain so.... still though with the Irish film board pumping out these low budget films it's no wonder the Irish film industry is light years behind everyone else. Out with the old and in with the new I say.. But Robert Quinn is a start... so mixed views.