User reviews

It's an entertaining and enjoyable satire to western and zombies' movies, both. The plot is quite simple and it's about a small town, in the Old West, which was infected by a zombie plague (originated by a curse of JERONIMO - the Indian legend who died by U.S. army's hands – to the white people). As it spreads, two outlaw "amigos" try to run away from the evil sheriff and his men, which have become zombies too.

The movie is funny and have plenty of traditional jokes related to zombies' parodies, but also a novelty: a new scenario to a zombies' film! At least I don't remember to watch any other zombies' flick in the Old West!

Two men, forced to be partners due to an unusual set of circumstances (involving a sheriff and a prostitute), get captured by the niece of Geronimo, but end up on her side when the sheriff and his men acquire Geronimo's curse (making them a zombie-like creature). The men are now on the run, hoping to find either an escape or a cure.

One cannot comment on this film without comparing it to other zombie comedies. The closest is probably "The Quick and the Undead", which I haven't seen. The modern classic is "Shaun of the Dead", which may never be surpassed -- it certainly wasn't by this film. Another entry is "Dead and Deader", which doesn't seem to be popular amongst fans but I have to say is on par with this one -- DAD is heavier on the references (which I like) and UOA is heavier on the slapstick comedy. So, that might help you make your choice if you are going to watch one or the other.

The other deciding factor has to be Chris Kattan. He's less flamboyant here than usual ("Night at the Roxbury") but is still Kattan. If you have some sort of aversion to him, you may want to avoid this film. The other actors are all quite good, although I found it very difficult to believe that Geronimo's niece had any Native American blood in her. But I won't fault her for that.

The gore is decent. Early on the effects are cheesy, but they seem to get better as they go, or I just notice the poor quality less. Not sure which, but you'll get a good share of blood. The nudity, unfortunately, is limited almost entirely to the male bottom. I may be a regular subscriber to "Buns and Ammo" but sometimes I like to see women, too, which this film can't offer.

This film was an impulse rent (it was this or "Day Watch") and I don't regret it. Sure, the plot and acting and everything else is cheesy. But, this film served it's purpose: a light-hearted gore-splattered zombie comedy to watch with friends while drinking the cheapest beer known to man (Mountain Creek). Good times. I highly recommend you repeat the experience.

Synopsis: Army deserter Elmer Winslow (James Denton) and loser cowboy Luke Budd (Chris Kattan) flee town after robbing the evil Sheriff Claypool (Matt Besser). With the Sheriff's posse hot on their trail, Elmer and Luke (oddly) join up with Sue (Navi Rawat), the hot niece of Geronimo with the promise that they'll show her the way to the nearest Army Outpost. Sue wants to take vengeance upon those (the entire Army, apparently) who wronged her people and killed her uncle. Unfortunately for our small band of misfits. . . everyone in the area has turned into ravenous zombies.

Review: Since I went in thinking this was a real zombie western, I was surprised (and annoyed) to find a cheesy comedy. Or, 'Western Zombedy' as the director called it. Breaking down the 'horror-comedy' of the film. . . there's very little horror. Sure, there's a bit of gore and zombie violence, but most of it is done out of humour and, even still, not funny. The attempted comedy does get a couple laughs, mostly from Chris Kattan and his usual idiot behaviour and Brian Posehn as the first zombie. On the positive side, the soundtrack is pretty good. Not good, just pretty good. There were a couple tunes in there I'll actually seek out. . . but, the music doesn't make up for a badly acted, written, and directed film with a strange habit of forgetting exactly what time period they're in (which is one of the worst things a film can do for me). Overall, if you're willing to waste an hour and a half on some mindless crap and you have nothing at all else to watch, give it a look. . . but it's not worth much.

Final Rating: 4/10

-AP3-

This zombie comedy was actually quite nice. It had potential to go somewhere near "Shaun of the Dead", but there was just something missing to make it go that extra mile.

Now, the story is pretty straight forward and easy to follow. The curse of Geronimo had been inflicted upon the white people, and they are now turning up as flesh-hungry zombies. And you have people running away from an ever-growing posse of zombies. There, enough said about the story.

The setting of "Undead or Alive" is actually a good take on the zombie genre. Nice to see a zombie movie set in the old west. And the scenery, staging, costumes and such was very nice to look at and had a good deal of detail to it. And the zombies were actually nice to look at as well, though I am not too fond of the movies where they put zombie make-up on the face, and then leave the neck bared so you can see pink, non-decaying skin there. That is just too cheesy.

The acting in the movie was alright as well, though at times cheesy and you were kind of sitting wondering to yourself about the dialogue. But all in all, it was an average experience. James Denton, as Elmer Winslow, was actually doing a really nice job in the movie. And Chris Kattan, as the funny sidekick Luke Rudd, brought along a good portion of humor to the movie. However, Navi Rawat (playing Sue) actually carried the movie - and not just because she is an attractive woman. But she was the one who carried the heaviest load of acting in the movie, and she made the movie work.

The movie is a welcomed addition to the zombie genre, though it is not the type of movie that really has enough weight in it for additional viewings. Once you've seen it, I doubt you will be going back to it again. The movie had the potential to be an instant 'classic' like "Shaun of the Dead", but there was a crucial ingredient missing from the movie. I can't say what it was, but something was missing.

One thing that didn't work for me at all in this movie was the use of the "F"-word. It was used a couple of times throughout the movie, and that really didn't go well with me. Now, I am not narrow-minded or sensitive about such, I just don't think that word was being used back in the 1860s or thereabouts?! And that took away some of the enjoyment for my part.

In overall, "Undead or Alive" is good for an evening worth of zombies and comedy.

The worst thing about Undead or Alive: A Zombedy is not necessarily the film itself--and it's bad--but all the interviews and marketing plugs I've read or seen with the director, Glasgow Phillips. He continually plugs the film by saying things like "If you're not sold at 'Zombie Western,' then I don't think you're one of our customers" (from an eFilmCritic interview). That's basically a cutesy way of saying the film has nothing of value other than the fact that it happens to be an amalgam of two genres of film.

The wannabe campy slasher film reminds me more of a drunken high school attempt at slurred comedy and oozing gore than an actual feature film of any substance (and b-movies have some sort of substance!). The plot's typical of any zombie film--and that's not necessarily a bad thing. But the delivery is what's really lacking. Chris Kattan (Saturday Night Live) and James Denton (Desperate Housewives) play washed-out characters who don't take their situation, or each other, seriously. The entire film is reminiscent of a bad comedian laughing at his own bad jokes.

After the film, during the Q&A session (SXSW), someone described the film as Blazing Saddles meets Shaun of the Dead. But Blazing Saddles was funny and Shaun of the Dead was decent camp. This film is neither.

I've seen bad films, and I mean BAD films. I fully expected this movie to suck like an event horizon, but... It really wasn't as bad as all that.

It's a zombie flick, set out west with supernatural zombies. Geronimo puts a curse on the white man, and when they're bitten by the undead, they too become zombified.

The acting is good in this, nobody's phoning it in, and the only thing that was kind of iffy on this thing was the story itself. Had they played this as either serious, or as a straight comedy, it would have been good. I think they were trying for a balance of both, but that's the only thing that kind of suffers. Chris Kattan is a funny guy, and has some good lines in this, as well as James Denton, and the female lead. There are some plot holes that are small, but when you pare it all away, it's still better than Diary Of The Dead, and well worth a rental.

It wasn't very good. The cinematography, story line, makeup, costumes, and gross-out factor were okay for a cowboy/zombie/comedy movie. The horses and scenery were filmed well. The concept should have been acceptable to build a comedy around, but the attempt failed. The story line includes saloon girls, the town priest, the sheriff, graveyards, and various and sundry shots of zombie slaughtering. Nevertheless, the script, direction, and acting were poor. Actually, Leslie Jordan was okay and James Denton was not too awful, but Chris Kattan (of Saturday Night Live) and Navi Rawat are really, really poor. No one seemed to realize that for this kind of film to work the characters must take themselves and each other seriously. Perhaps the makers envisioned something like "Blazing Saddles" with zombies, but it just didn't work out. It felt like an idea conceived at a fraternity reunion booze-fest, and carried out the next afternoon with hangovers and regrets. Even for the hardened zombie fans, this one is hardly worth a visit.

I liked this movie. I say it was typically good because it satisfied any expectations I had. I don't get the bad reviews posted. It says in the beginning it's a "Zombedy" and it stars Chris Kattan...and Brian Posehn is in it too. I really don't need to say anything else after that. That's like a "get out of jail free" card. Instead it's a "if you take yourself too seriously and try to seriously critique this type of film, you're a fool" card. I've never seen a "Zombie" movie that didn't have some camp or dark humor. This is obviously more the traditional camp, but if you can't find the little things funny then you'll probably need to go out a get a new sense of humor. You're taking yourself too seriously, especially when it comes to reviewing a "Zombie Western". See it kids! It's definitely worth watching.

This movie starts with the worst zombie attack ever filmed, then proceeds to give us the worst bar fight ever filmed, then keeps it up for another 80 minutes with the worst genre mish-mash ever conceived. Chris Kattan is funny, but sadly, that's the only good thing to be said about this movie. What kind of a hell do we live in where Chris Kattan is the high point of a film?

This movie takes a bad western, injects it with zombies, and attempts to make it all funny. Kattan is a wannabe cowboy who finds himself jailed with an Army deserter when a zombie outbreak hits town. They hightail it, but are followed by the now zombified sheriff and his idiotic deputy. Then the movie makes a really stupid mistake by ignoring the rules that define every genre being parodied. The zombies are not mindless brain-eaters like in every other decent zombie movie, they hang onto pieces of their former personalities. For instance, the zombie sheriff still wants to get the money our heroes stole at the beginning. An even simpler rule is thrown out the window when it is explained that gunshots to the head don't kill zombies. Now it requires complete decapitation. It could work in a different movie, but not in a comedy co-starring Chris Kattan. I'll say it again: he's funny, but not funny enough to justify sitting through this mess.

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Two men on the lam. One an Army deserter (James Denton - "Desperate Housewives") and the other a dumb as dirt wanna be cowboy (Chris Kattan - Santa's Slay). They are being chased by the posse which is slowly becoming zombified.

They join with Geronimo's niece (Navi Rawat - Feast, "Numb3rs") as they fight off the posse.

There is a lot of zombie gore, and some nasty decapitations, but it comes in a comedy, so you really don't focus on it.

It's kinda hard not to focus on Geronimo's niece as she runs around in a sleeveless top that is really low cut! Nice skintastic moment from Elizabeth Slagsvol after she becomes a zombie and gets the preacher (Leslie Jordan - "Will & Grace", Sordid Lives)

I bought this in the discount bin for 5.00 bucks. It was worth that just for the extras and gag reel. This is not a great movie but western zombie movie hybrids rarely are meant to be. They are meant to entertain. This one does that on all levels.

The two lead actors are very good, funny at times, playing it straight at others. The written material is pretty good, a few good chuckles and a couple of laughs throughout the movie.

The special effects are generally low budget but still very watchable, and they never pull you out of the movie.

The story is simple and moves along very briskly as a "B" movie like this should.

For a "B" Zombie movie this was a good one. Fun and entertaining, if you like well done lower end movies, you can do a lot worse then this.

There are a few things I have to admit in this review before beginning.

1. I am watching a film Starring Chris Kattan in 2019 that isn't Undercover Brother. 2. I have seen this film more than once.

Well, those are the only two things, but still, they are pretty unlikely. I mean a western with zombies in it, that's a low budget comedy...with Chris Kattan. The odds were not in favor of this watch.

Joking aside, I actually don't mind this film. There are some actual funny parts, and Chris Kattan doesn't bother me for the whole film. Mind you he is basically playing the spastic down on his luck weirdo that he does in every movie, but it still kind of worked. Now, when I say worked, I mean in a b-movie low budget way. Undead or Alive is a far reach from being a good film. Entertaining for what it is...Yes, I'll go with that.

The movie follows two cowboys and a Native woman, who just happens to Geronimo's niece as they try to escape an evil man in black style killer they stole from. The thing is, he was bitten by a zombie and for some reason, he and his zombie posse have kept most of their minds intact. As villains go the zombie man in black was pretty fun, as he can be shot and basically killed over and over without actually dying, leading to some fun banter later in the film. I do question what Geronimo would think about using the memory of his life to make of plot of a zombie film made with a low budget though. See, it's Geronimo's curse that has made all the zombies in the west. So it was obviously based on real movie facts.

Anyways, Undead or Alive isn't a great film, or really even a good film. But I was entertained on more than one occasion, so I would recommend it for those looking for a tamer bad movie night.

Call me crazy, but I didn't expect this Western/Zombie/Comedy film to be a cinematic masterpiece. Maybe that is why I didn't take this film too seriously. Go figure. My only hope going into this movie was that I might have a few laughs, and I did. More than a few, actually. The movie managed to keep me pretty well amused throughout, and I'm not easily amused. More than once, I found myself laughing in one scene and grossed-out in the next. At times, I was even laughing and grossed-out at the same time. Perhaps these abrupt changes of emotion are part of what made the movie so entertaining to me. Or, maybe it was the clever writing and the great casting. As expected, Kattan was funny and Denton was good. However, the supporting cast in this movie definitely held their own. Kudos to the casting director.

So, basically, if you can keep from taking this movie too seriously and you're in the mood for a few laughs, I think you'll be pleased.

(2007) Undead or Alive WESTERN COMEDY HORROR

Straight-to-rental low budget flick which can be excruciatingly painful to watch co-written and directed by Glasgow Phillips stars James Denton as Elmer and Chris Kattan as Luke who break out of jail taking the Sheriff's money, meanwhile a curse is spreading throughout the town regarding an old folk tale about Geronimo passing a zombie hex towards the Western front. And the two stars coming across one of Geronimo's granddaughter's with several infected zombies coming after them. There's a lot of things that didn't make any sense upon watching this film such as how come there was only one horse in the cavalry and that was Luke's and since when did Zombies able to think for themselves if they're supposed to be dead- the film never answers! The comedy is lousy, the horror stuff is unconvincing since it went from zombies riding the horses to eating them and the female star is annoying making this experience to be meant for pot heads who don't need a lot of logic. Bomb.

What a surprisingly great gem of a movie this is.

I expected nothing and what I got was a fabulous little comedy/zombie/film that had me and my husband chuckling no end and me - a giggling girl in our relationship - found, myself, jumping out of my skin.

A perfect combination of wit, horror and giggles.

Recommended to anyone who loved "My Name Is Bruce".

Terrific entertainment.

And it is gory as hell, which makes for the most romantic viewing!

SEE IT. JUMP AND LAUGH.

It is a terrific piece of film-making!

Brian

It's unfortunate that in order to get modern audiences to watch a western, you got to put zombies in it. Even worse, you have to turn it into as comedy in order to have any credibility left.

Undead Or Alive is entertaining on a no-brainer level, though one wishes that the filmmakers would have watched a ton of straight westerns before making an attempt to spoof the genre. Come to think of it, the zombie genre doesn't fare much better in the parody department.

Instead, we're treated to a handful of clichés about as deep as a Looney Tunes short, mixed with a pinch of political correctness, and an ending that rips off A Boy And His Dog.

Still, it moves fast enough. Chris Kattan and James Denton are personable enough. Leslie Jordan is fun to watch too.

OK this movie is a mostly a horror comedy with zombies. I believe they called it a zombedy or something weird like that. When I first saw the movie start, I thought I might hate it. But surprisingly it was not that bad. It was good enough for me to want to finish it. The main characters are played by James Denton and Chris Kattan. Denton was more of the mean cool cowboy where Kattan was just a cowboy wannabe who couldn't even shoot a gun. They are met later by an Indian girl played by Navi Rawat. I actually liked the characters played by Denton and Kattan, but Rawat seemed a little off. There are a couple fun characters in the film that I enjoyed more who were side people. One would be the first zombie to appear in the film. It was Brian Posehn. It was interesting to see him in make up. Then there was the priest, played by Leslie Gordon. He has an older style of comedy that it fun to watch. Now the story line of the film was not that good. They really proved this at the ending. But the fun they have throughout the film is what keeps you interested. Another surprise was the make up used for the zombies. Some movies like this will just make the skin pale and the eyes colorless and that is it. The zombies in this film were rotting like normal zombies. So overall, it was not that bad to watch.