The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2004)

Starring Fay Masterson, Andrew Parks, Susan McConnell, Brian Howe, Jennifer Blaire, Larry Blamire, Dan Conroy, Robert Deveau.
Written and directed by Larry Blamire.
Produced by F. Miguel Valenti.
Distributed by TriStar Pictures.
89 minutes.

LVJeff's Rating: 7/10

Laugh and the Skull Laughs with You

Going in with the wrong expectations is a surefire way to kill some joy before it even gets to begin. I believed The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra was made as a straight-up version of a bad '50's sci-fi B-movie, a film that could literally pass as fodder for Mystery Science Theater 3000. I thought it would be another addition to the Far from Heaven/Down with Love lineup of movies that are nearly pure re-creations of an old film style. And, I reasoned, as such a movie, we'd be invited to laugh at it the way we might laugh at an Ed Wood movie.

But while Lost Skeleton does accurately retain the aesthetics of the genre it's spoofing, it is clearly just that -- a spoof. It is well-aware of its comedic potential, playing up running gags and setting up deliberately silly situations. Yes, I was somehow mislead and, as a result, couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed. I thought the humor would be more incidental, as if the filmmakers actually made a B-movie and we were supposed to laugh at how insightfully they could reproduce the warped mindset and conditions under which such films got made.

I thought about this a little more and began to wonder, however, if such an endeavor would have even been possible or fulfilling. How could you make a silly old sci-fi movie and not let your awareness of the unintentional comedy slip in and reveal itself in the work? How do you make something that is normally meant to be serious, but known to be funny? And why bother, especially when you could just as well be watching an actual old B-movie or an episode of MST3K? The more I thought about it, the more I figured it couldn't -- and shouldn't -- be done. It's better just to have fun with it out in the open.

Within that spirit, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is pretty funny stuff. Actor/writer/director Larry Blamire and his team get the look and "production values" right, with lots of static shots, unnecessary close-ups, and cardboard props. The actors then do their best to deadpan their ridiculous lines, overacting all over the place. Really, the film is this close to becoming an actual retro-reproduction. It's mainly the writing that doesn't allow it to be, making the viewers aware that the people in the movie are in on the joke. Too much dialogue is conspicuously repetitive and redundant, and several scenes, like the aliens trying to learn human behavior at dinner, play as straightforward comedy (no way do they feel as if they were ever meant to be taken seriously).

Unfortunately, the audience is lost in the middle -- we know we should laugh, but we might not because we think we're supposed to be looking for things to laugh at instead of having things pointed out to us. The film loses its punch in its very concept -- it's a parody of the kind of movies we were already giggling at, which leaves no actual room for parody. Lost Skeleton works best when we just go along with the crew and delight at the goofy performances, costumes, and ideas, like the value of a substance called "atmosphereum," or a sensuous dancing woman created from four forest animals. And then there's the star, the Skeleton himself, who seems to know he's stuck in a B-movie and is annoyed by it.

So see it for its unspectacular forest locale. See it for its wonderful faux '50's sci-fi soundtrack. See it for "Skeleton Frolic," the feature-preceding 67-year-old cartoon by Ub Iwerks that is actually getting its first public presentation. See it for the guy in the mutant suit. Just expect to laugh with it, not at it.

©Jeffrey Chen, Jan. 29, 2004

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