The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Necrophilia isn't your standard issue subject matter for a comedy, or even a horror film, for that matter. Only a handful of pictures, like Jšrg Buttgereit's Nekromantik, have dared to go there at all. This surprising entry from schlock producer Dick Randall (in fact one of his last films) takes the theme and runs with it, making for a memorable and often darkly funny tale of obsession and desperate thwarted love.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Medical student Howard Adams (Mark Jax) works in the Metropolitan Hospital morgue in New York City, along with his wiseacre friend Jess (Gary Martin). Howie has a thing for attractive blonde Christine (Katie Orgill), who runs the flower shop at the hospital, but she doesn't know he's alive. One morning Howie is shocked to find that Christine is one of the new bodies in the morgue, having been killed in an accident by her jerkish boyfriend Steve (Marcel Grant). Howie decides that the best thing for all concerned is if he robs Christine's grave and takes her home, convinced that she's just cataleptic. Things go from bad to worse as she begins to decay, while in Howard's mind she is telling him she wants revenge on Steve.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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It's a completely insane story, and the lurid effects work on Christine's decaying corpse help magnify the insanity. Orgill doesn't do the best job of playing dead, often visibly breathing though there are some efforts to disguise it with modestly strobing lights. While the thematic material is certainly only for those with demented tastes, it's pulled off exceedingly well. The humor is unforced and flows naturally from the horrific aspects of the film, such as the men in moon suits brought in to investigate the smell in Howard's apartment. The aspect of Howard seeing Christine as she was instead of how she is (which screenwriter Paul Hart-Wilden acknowledges in the extras was a significant improvement over his version) keeps our sympathies with Howard, even when he's completely off the deep end. The weird obsessiveness is underlined by the theme song, Cliff Richard's twisted tune of manic love of the same name, performed by Martin.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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The casting makes this picture work, as Jax turns in a terrific performance as an obsessive who is at least clinging to outward signs of functioning in society. His interactions with his boss Ed (Freddie Earlle), the live Christine, and Steve all ring very true, although Jess seems to be a little too accommodating of his friend and going a bit too far to keep him out of trouble. One wild casting coup was bringing Eartha Kitt into the production, and she's very memorable as Howard's harridan of a landlady. She gives a snarling delivery to every line that is pretty frightening in and of itself.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, this was originally released direct to video. But despite its offbeat subject matter, it's head and shoulders in quality above your usual DTV material. Production values are excellent, the effects are convincing for the most part (most notably a particularly gruesome autopsy sequence that is very cringe-inducing) and the acting more than carries the weight that the film asks of it. Those with strong stomachs who enjoy dark and morbid comedies will find a lot to like here.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Though there's deep and enduring love, this probably doesn't rate as a good date movie. But it is a surprisingly entertaining and somewhat loopy look at a forbidden topic. The transfer is excellent, and the extras are voluminous.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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There’s a certain twisted sadness to Living Doll that makes this strange little romantic gore film work even when it probably shouldn’t. Everything is rather dream-like and while the story doesn’t necessarily go anywhere, it makes for an interesting character study. Add to that the fact that Katie Orgill is just about the prettiest corpse ever and you’ve got another reason to check this one out (either that or I’m very, very sick). Mondo Macabro’s DVD continues their commitment to releasing weird stuff in surprisingly excellent special editions.

Rock! Shock! Pop!

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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The acting in Living Doll is surprisingly well done. Mark Jax does a perfect job of depicting the socially stunted Howard, while Katie Orgill carries out most of her lines cheesily as Christine (though most of her dialogue is spoken in an almost trance-like tone of voice during hallucinatory sequences, so the cheesy aspect really doesn’t detract from the film as a whole at all). Gary Martin also does a superb acting job as Howard’s best friend/co-worker, successfully depicting the character as a sometimes-asshole-but-is-usually-there-for-his-friend kind of guy.

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Living Doll’s special effects are brilliant, to say the least. The viewer is subjected to seeing the many states of Christine’s decomposition (from the blue-skinned stage of rot right down to the exposed bone, practically fleshless, and maggot-infested state), all executed realistically with extreme attention to detail by Paul Catling (who also did the effects for a little movie called Hellraiser).

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Above all else, Living Doll is original and horrifying, and that’s the reason it works. Had the filmmakers chosen to take it down the Necromantik rip-off route, it definitely wouldn’t be as disturbing as it truly is. Thankfully, the filmmakers chose instead to put an original spin on corpse love that is as eerie as it is memorable, and we are left with a film that is truly unlike any other. Horror fans looking for a film that will really get under their skin don’t need not look any further than Living Doll.

The Horror Review

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The Living Doll (1990) [Mondo Macabro]

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Special Features:
- Brand new anamorphic digital transfer in original aspect ratio 1.78:1
- Interview with lead actor Mark Jax (15 mins)
-Interview with writer Paul Hart-Wilden (25 mins)
- Bonus documentary: Making of a Horror Film - Movie about the horror film career of producer Dick Randall (55 mins)
- Bonus featurette: David McGillivray's Diary (10 mins)
- Bonus short: Horrorshow - writer Paul Hart-Wilden's legendary short film (5 mins)
- Original Trailer
- Huge gallery of rare stills and posters
- Mondo Macabro preview trailer (15 mins)