I'll Bury You Tomorrow

An unrated gem of a B-flick, I'LL BURY YOU TOMORROW (a catchy title, don't you think? And fans HAVE to love an unrated horror movie) carries the viewer through an entertaining couple of hours delivering the shocks and fun of a 1970's drive-in movie. This flick has it all---extreme violence, nudity, black market donor organs, attractive actresses, necrophilia and enough twisted characters to headline two or three films.

The story, written and directed by Alan Rowe Kelly, centers on odd behaving, eyeglass wearing, fingernail biting Dolores Finley, who arrives in the small town of Port Oram to apply for an open position at the Beech Funeral Home. Overprotective of a mysterious trunk and see-sawing between timid behavior, mental wandering and sudden bursts of rage, the medication popping Dolores lands the job, partially because of her uncanny likeness to the dead daughter of the family business. Once there, Dolores amazes Mr. Beech with her knowledge and all around mortuary skills, but drags her feet when it comes to her references. She says she is from a family who also owed a funeral home, though her home life was far from Six Feet Under territory. As the story unfolds we learn the extreme extent to Dolores' troubles, including the secret contents of her trunk and the twisted appetite she harbors. We're also witness to a startling transformation as Dolores evolves from tentative, soft-spoken wallflower to violent, easy on the eye psychopath. The journey the audience goes on during Dolores' time at the Beech Funeral Home is one of madness and mayhem, sprinkled with doses of sick humor. By the time the end credits roll, not only is satisfaction guaranteed, the legend of Dolores Finley has only just begun.

Solid throughout, the dialogue is the stuff of B-film classics, but the acting is a positive step beyond for the genre, spearheaded by its star. Portrayed with zest and surprising range by Zoe Daelman Chlanda, the talented actress makes Dolores into as real a horror film lead as there has been, with a range of emotions that is rarely seen in wide release horror titles. Chlanda takes the well-written part and runs cackling in the night with it, a potent combination of good looks, twisted personality and surprising evil. Her portrayal is the centerpiece of the film, and her excellent performance is just one of many. Jerry Murdock does quite well in double duty as Mitch Geraldi, the broad shouldered, no-nonsense local sheriff and his twisted David Hess-like brother, Jake, the scary funeral home jack-of-all-trades who is as gnarly as he looks. A walking collection of the seven deadly sins, what Jake lacks in brains he more than makes up for by keeping his eyes open and making the most of, and creating opportunities to supplement his day job salary. Once he gets the goods on Dolores, the pair reluctantly becomes the Bonnie and Clyde of horror, wreaking havoc and spilling blood with venomous glee.

Owners of the local mortuary, the Beechs are also well cast. Bill Corry plays Percival Beech with a perfectly dry, dead pan persona, while Katherine O'Sullivan portrays his religiously fanatical wife Nettie, whose fragile emotional and mental state adds additional spice to the mix of oddball characters. Nettie, who is teetering on the brink of insanity, is the perfect counterpoint to Dolores. While Nettie has turned to religion for protection and guidance, Dolore's mind and heart have fractured into absolutes that only knows violence and death as solace. Renee West, Kristen Overdurf, P.J. Mehaffey and Alan Rowe Kelly fill out the able ensemble.

Production value is superior throughout. Locations, music, photography, make-up and gore effects are all top notch. Gary & Jack Malick & Ton Cadawas's camera, lighting and sound work are very good, while Jack Malick and Harry Douglas lend a fine editing effort. Art Director Sandra Schaller also does a great job of setting the picture's mood, and Tom Burns ices the cake with the film's musical score. The only very small knock on the film is that is that it could have been edited down from it's near 2 hour running time, but the extra time is far from torture, trust me.

I'LL BURY YOU TOMORROW is one of the best independent horror films I have seen in quite some time. If Alan Rowe Kelly chooses to stay in the genre, lovers of horror will have another potential source of great entertainment. I look forward to his next project.