GraveyardDisturbance

Graveyard Disturbance (1986)

The movie opens up with a group of “kids” up to no good. They are seen shoplifting some food from a store and get chased by the owner. While making their get away they crash thru a barrier and head down a road that they shouldn’t have. After running their van into a river they end up spending the night at a spooky monastery/cathedral. Oddly enough in the middle of the night they discover that their campsite is right above a strange bar. Before you know it they end up running around a maze underneath the bar with the promise that if they make it thru the night they will be rewarded with a fabulous treasure.

This is apparently a project that Lamberto Bava did for European television. Which makes a lot of sense because this movie has a definite low rent Demons vibe to it. Now I’m not saying that it comes anywhere near to that movie. But it did fell similar to me at times. The story starts off pretty straightforward, but gets more confusing and absurd as the movie goes along. By the time we get to the end what I guess is supposed to be a twist ending on top of a twist ending just gets really silly. I also found the characters to be kind of annoying as they spend most of the movie yelling at each other. But what really surprised me was Spoiler Alert that no one dies! Well I guess maybe they died, but then got better… Really you have to watch this movie to understand what I mean. Honestly in spite of these issues or maybe even because of them I kind of liked Graveyard Disturbance. It has that unique cheesy feel that I only seem to get from Italian flicks. And while you will spend part of the movie scratching your head at what is happening on screen, you might just find yourself enjoying it like I did.

Unlike some of Bava’s better flicks Graveyard Disturbance is very light on the gore. Most of the effects are very simple and consist of a few appliances on the “monsters” and a gross dinner scene involving some questionable menu choices. I did find the last villain to be really disappointing and is one of the worst effects in the movie. The camera work and lighting will be familiar to those who have watched other Lamberto Bava movies. Bava keeps the camera moving around and many of the scenes are light softly, which gives the movie that dreamlike look.

Graveyard Disturbance isn’t the greatest movie that I’ve ever seen and doesn’t come close to Bava’s better efforts. I would also imagine that if you aren’t into the goofiness that can be a Lamberto Bava flick you might want to skip this one. But I am a fan of the man and of Italian horror movies. So I was inclined to like this movie and actually found it to be a fun way to kill 90 or so minutes. Just don’t expect a classic.

2 ½ out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer