Deadgirl

After two alienated high-school kids find what appears to be the corpse of a naked woman in an abandoned building, they discover that she's not dead but “undead,” and proceed to make her their sex slave. Co-directed by Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel, Deadgirl is a pleasantly unpleasant film that doesn't ignore genre conventions, but uses them to spin a tale more about teen angst than simple shock effects. Shiloh Fernandez delivers an unexpectedly textured performance as Rickie, the more sensitive of the adolescent pair who venture into the basement of a deserted asylum, only to happen upon a woman in a plastic tarp, bound and apparently murdered. When she turns out to be a zombie, Rickie's outcast companion JT (Noah Segan) decides to take advantage of their find to meet his sexual needs, although Rickie demurs, becoming even more concerned after the increasingly out-of-control JT introduces another pal to their secret. Unfortunately, the latest addition to the group also leads to the involvement of the school bully, which sets off a disastrous chain of events. Deadgirl may be a gruesome and morbid black comedy, but it's also an acutely painful study of a hopeless kid still clinging to a frayed ethical sense. It's a pity that apart from Fernandez and Jenny Spain as the feral captive, the acting is amateurish. Even so, this surprisingly effective character study dressed up as a grisly horror movie is recommended for adventurous collections. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary (by directors Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel, composer Joseph Bauer, editor Phillip Blackford, cinematographer Harris Charalambous, screenwriter Trent Haaga, and costars Shiloh Fernandez and Noah Segan), a “making-of” featurette (7 min.), deleted scenes (8 min.), a makeup effects still gallery, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a disturbing film.] (F. Swietek)