The Boneyard

Last updated
The Boneyard
The Boneyard.jpg
Directed byJames Cummins
Written byJames Cummins
Produced byRichard F. Brophy
Starring
CinematographyIrl Dixon
Music by
  • Katherine Anne Porter
  • John Lee Whitener
Distributed byZia Film Distribution
Release date
  • June 12, 1991 (June 12, 1991)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget<$5 million [1]

The Boneyard is a 1991 American direct-to-video horror film directed by James Cummins and starring Ed Nelson, Deborah Rose, Norman Fell, James Eustermann, and Phyllis Diller.

Contents

Plot

The film plunges into the nightmarish experiences of a depressed psychic named Alley Oates (Deborah Rose), whose involvement in a grisly child-murder case leads her and her detective partner, Jersey Callum (Ed Nelson), to an imposing, fortress-like mortuary. Chen (Robert Yun Ju Ahn), the owner of the funeral home and prime suspect in the case, claims the three mummified corpses in question are not children but ancient demons known as "kyoshi". It seems the little monsters have been around for centuries as a result of an age-old curse and can only be placated with offerings of human flesh — with which the mortician has been supplying them his entire life. When Chen is jailed on murder charges, the under-fed ghouls awaken in search of dinner, trapping the staff inside the mortuary walls and devouring them. The survivors, including Oates and Callum, use every means at their disposal to combat the demons, which have possessed the bodies of morgue attendant Mrs. Poopinplatz (Phyllis Diller) and her poodle, mutating them into hideous monsters.

Cast

Production

The Boneyard marked the directorial debut of James Cummins who had previously worked under the likes of Chris Walas and Stan Winston [1] When Phyllis Diller was trying out different looks for the character of Miss Poopinplatz, Diller's wig fell off by accident and with Cummins encouragement Diller did the role without a wig and later incorporated the lack of a wig into her stand-up. [1] Shooting took place in Statesville, North Carolina, in 1989 over the course of five weeks. [1] In December 1989, a botched special effect caused a fire. [2] The film also marked the first work of makeup artist Bill Corso. [1]

Reception

Patrick Naugle of DVD Verdict called it "good, goofy fun." [3] Steve Simels of Entertainment Weekly rated the film B− and described it as a film destined to be a cult classic. [4] In a negative review, Lawrence Cohn of Variety stated that, instead of being funny, the film "comes off as merely silly". [5] Adam Tyner of DVD Talk rated it 2.5/5 stars and said that the film wastes too much time on setup rather than the campy monsters that have brought it a cult following. [6] Writing in The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia, academic Peter Dendle called it an "energetic but directionless fiend-fest". Dendle praised the acting and serious nature of the first hour but said later scenes cause the tone to "just get silly". [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Wood</span> American filmmaker, actor and author (1924–1978)

Edward Davis Wood Jr. was an American filmmaker, actor, and pulp novelist.

<i>Scooby-Doo</i> American animated media franchise

Scooby-Doo is an American media franchise owned by Warner Bros. Entertainment and created in 1969 by writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears through their animated series, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, for Hanna-Barbera. The series features four teenagers: Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Shaggy Rogers, and their talking Great Dane named Scooby-Doo, who solve mysteries involving supposedly supernatural creatures through a series of antics and missteps, while traveling using a brightly colored van called the "Mystery Machine". The franchise has several live-action films and shows.

<i>The Muppet Show</i> Variety television show (1976–81)

The Muppet Show is a variety sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and starring the Muppets. It is presented as a variety show, featuring recurring sketches and musical numbers interspersed with ongoing plot-lines with running gags taking place backstage and in other areas of the venue.

<i>The Thin Man</i> (film) 1934 film by W. S. Van Dyke

The Thin Man is a 1934 American pre-Code comedy-mystery film directed by W. S. Van Dyke and based on the 1934 novel by Dashiell Hammett. The film stars William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles, a leisure-class couple who enjoy copious drinking and flirtatious banter. Nick is a retired private detective who left his very successful career when he married Nora, a wealthy heiress accustomed to high society. Their wire-haired fox terrier Asta was played by canine actor Skippy. In 1997, the film was added to the United States National Film Registry having been deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

<i>The Wild Thornberrys</i> American animated series

The Wild Thornberrys is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, Steve Pepoon, David Silverman, and Stephen Sustarsic for Nickelodeon. The series portrays the zany hijinks of a family of nomadic wildlife documentary filmmakers known as the Thornberrys, which consist of the nature documentary television host Nigel, his wife and camera operator Marianne, their 16-year-old daughter Debbie, their younger daughter Eliza, their adopted son Donnie, and a chimpanzee named Darwin. The series focuses in particular on Eliza, who has a magical ability to communicate with animals. The Thornberry family travels to every continent and wildlife environment in the ComVee, a recreational vehicle equipped with safety mechanisms to handle any terrain or body of water, to document their journeys in detail, with typical episodes involving Eliza befriending an animal and subsequently finding herself in peril.

Kung Fu is an American action-adventure martial arts Western drama television series starring David Carradine. The series follows the adventures of Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin monk who travels through the American Old West, armed only with his spiritual training and his skill in martial arts, as he seeks Danny Caine, his half-brother.

<i>Better Off Dead</i> (film) 1985 American black comedy film

Better Off Dead is a 1985 American teen black comedy film written and directed by Savage Steve Holland. It stars John Cusack, David Ogden Stiers, Diane Franklin and Kim Darby. The film was released in August 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rip Taylor</span> American actor and comedian (1931–2019)

Charles Elmer "Rip" Taylor Jr. was an American actor and comedian, known for his exuberance and flamboyant personality, including his wild moustache, toupee, and his habit of showering himself with confetti. The Hollywood Reporter called him "a television and nightclub mainstay for more than six decades" who made thousands of nightclub and television appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beach party film</span> Film genre

The beach party film is an American film genre of feature films which were produced and released between 1963 and 1968, created by American International Pictures (AIP), beginning with their surprise hit, Beach Party, in July 1963. With this film, AIP is credited with creating the genre. In addition to the AIP films, several contributions to the genre were produced and released by major and independent studios alike. According to various sources, the genre comprises over 30 films, with the lower-budget AIP films being the most profitable.

<i>The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini</i> 1966 film by Don Weis

Ghost in the Invisible Bikini is a 1966 American fantasy comedy film. It is the seventh and last of American International Pictures' beach party films. The film features the cast cavorting in and around a haunted house and the adjacent swimming pool.

<i>Hedwig and the Angry Inch</i> (film) 2001 American musical film by John Cameron Mitchell

Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a 2001 American musical comedy-drama film written for the screen and directed by John Cameron Mitchell. Based on Mitchell's and Stephen Trask's 1998 stage musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch, it accompanies Hedwig Robinson, a gay East German rock singer. Hedwig subsequently develops a relationship with a younger man, Tommy, becoming his mentor and musical collaborator, only to have Tommy steal her music and become a rock star. The film follows Hedwig and her backing band, the Angry Inch, as they shadow Tommy's tour, while exploring Hedwig's past and her forced sex reassignment surgery. Mitchell reprises his role as Hedwig from the original production.

<i>Plan 9 from Outer Space</i> 1957 US film by Ed Wood

Plan 9 from Outer Space is a 1957 American independent science fiction-horror film produced, written, directed, and edited by Ed Wood. The film was shot in black-and-white in November 1956 and had a preview screening on March 15, 1957, at the Carlton Theatre in Los Angeles under the title Grave Robbers from Outer Space. Retitled Plan 9 from Outer Space, it went into general release in July 1958 in Virginia, Texas and several other Southern states, before being sold to television in 1961.

<i>Invisible Invaders</i> 1959 film by Edward L. Cahn

Invisible Invaders is a 1959 American science fiction film starring John Agar, Jean Byron, John Carradine and Philip Tonge. It was produced by Robert E. Kent, directed by Edward L. Cahn and written by Samuel Newman.

<i>Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright</i> 2013 film by Victor Cook

Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright is a 2013 direct-to-DVD animated musical comedy horror film, and the twenty-first entry in the direct-to-video series of Scooby-Doo films. It was released on August 20, 2013, by Warner Premiere, the last film to be released under this label due to its dissolution the previous year. The movie made its linear premiere on Cartoon Network in the United States on March 25, 2023.

Works of popular culture influenced by H. G. Wells' 1897 novel The Invisible Man include:

<i>The Mortuary Collection</i> 2019 film by Ryan Spindell

The Mortuary Collection is a 2019 American horror anthology film written and directed by Ryan Spindell. It stars Clancy Brown, Caitlin Custer, Christine Kilmer, Jacob Elordi, Barak Hardley, Sarah Hay, Mike C. Nelson, and V Nixie.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Vandehey, Tim (August 1991). "The Boneyard". Cinefantastique. Fourth Castle Micromedia. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Movie explosion goes awry". The Times-News . Hendersonville, North Carolina. 1989-12-22. p. 7.
  3. ↑ Naugle, Patrick (1990-03-29). "The Boneyard". DVD Verdict . Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  4. ↑ Simels, Steve (1991-06-14). "The Boneyard". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  5. ↑ Cohn, Lawrence (1994). "The Boneyard". Variety Television Reviews, 1991–1992. Taylor & Francis. ISBN   9780824037963.
  6. ↑ Tyner, Adam (2001-04-18). "The Boneyard". DVD Talk . Retrieved 2015-01-30.
  7. ↑ Dendle, Peter (2001). The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia. McFarland & Company. p. 26. ISBN   978-0-7864-9288-6.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.