Return of the Living Dead: Rave from the Grave
Encyclopedia
Return of the Living Dead: Rave from the Grave (also known as Return of the Living Dead 5: Rave To The Grave) is a 2005 zombie
horror film
directed by Ellory Elkayem
, starring Cory Hardrict
, John Keefe
, Jenny Mollen
, and Peter Coyote
. It is the fifth installment of the Return of the Living Dead
series. The film was released on .
) arriving at a mortuary with one of the canisters of Trioxin 5 that he salvaged from the previous movie where he is greeted by a team of Russian government officials whose goal is to destroy the last of the canisters to avoid another incident like that of what happened in Necropolis. However, one of them, rather stupidly, sprays three corpses with the gas, and revives three corpses, one of which is killed with a drill to the head by the owner of the mortuary, and the rest by gunshots to the head by two of officials. However, the second and third zombies that were killed, were able to kill Charles, the mortuary owner and one of the government officials.
Meanwhile, Jenny (Jenny Mollen
), Julian (John Keefe
), Cody (Cory Hardrict
) and Becky (Aimee-Lynn Chadwick
), who are in college as of this movie, receive notice of the “murder” of Charles. Julian and Jenny go to search for and possibly sell what belonged to Charles, and they find the last two barrels of Trioxin 5 (the third having been destroyed by the survivors from the beginning already), and one of them is taken to Cody, who tests the chemical inside it. Jeremy, Jenny’s brother, foolishly tastes the chemical when he thinks that it is a drug similar to Ecstasy, and he goes into a spasm, which ends with him foaming at the mouth, and describing what it was like. The chemical is named “Z” for its “zombie-like” effect on the living.
When Jenny and Julian leave the lab, Cody, Jeremy and Shelby extract the chemical from the canister and they put the liquid extract into pills which the sell to Skeet (Catalin Paraschiv), so he can sell the drug around the school. While Skeet informs every to only take one pill at a time for health reasons, most that go to the school take more than one pill at a time (which speeds up the process that causes humans to reanimate as zombies), starting with Chuckey’s two dorm mates to reanimate, and to chase after him. He manages to escape, but begins to reanimate. However, one of the zombies manages to scratch Becky on the shoulder, not known to her that she was infected by the scratch, and then continuing after Chuckey. In another part of the college, the zombies kill a band member, and are killed by a drummer and Chuckey.
While this is going on, Becky slowly reanimates while she is on a date with her boyfriend Artie; and when she is fully re-animated, she bites and infects him. The next day a clean up crew, accompanied by Gino (Sorin Cocis) and Aldo Serra (Claudiu Bleonţ
), the only survivors from the beginning of the movie, who recognize what is going on when they are shown the severed head of one of the zombies, and they go to question Julian, knowing that he is familiar with Trioxin 5 due to the events of the previous movie, but he doesn’t tell them anything of the canisters that he and Jenny discovered.
The next day when Julian and his friends are preparing for the rave
when Jeremy starts to show the symptoms of the Trioxin gas, including coughing and weakness, while the reanimated Becky and Artie attack Skeet, but are tied up by Julian, Cody and Jeremy. Two of their friends volunteer to take them to the hospital, but Becky and Artie escape from their restraints, and kill them. Aldo and Gino arrive just in time to destroy the car (killing the zombies in the process) with a grenade launcher. During all this, Jenny feeds several lab rats the Trioxin chemical (by putting it in their water) to the anger of Brett, who is bitten by one of the rats, and soon re-animated as a zombie, killing and infecting Dartagnan (Sebastian Marina) and Rainbow (Violeta Aldea).
Soon after this, the reanimated Dartagnan, Rainbow and Brett give chase to Coach Savini (Ricky Dandel), who escapes, but several cheerleaders are killed between the zombies attacking, and gunfire from Aldo and Gino, who shoot all infected in the area before they leave.
Julian, Cody and Jenny return to Brett’s lab the next day to find it a mess, the re-animated rats escaped and missing, and the Trioxin tank with the lid wide open. Upon searching for the rats, they are attacked by two zombies, which are killed simply. But Tarman, who returns from the first and second movies, attacks them, but is shot by Aldo and Gino, but some how manages to survive, and then hitch hikes on a busy road. The three inform Aldo and Gino of what has happened with the “Z” pills, and the five, armed with guns from Aldo’s car, head to the rave to find all the pills and kill any re-animated.
Between the attacks of students who re-animated during the rave, including Skeet, and gunfire, many students are killed. The now zombified Skeet attacks Cody, pinning him to the ground while Shelby is held against the wall by a zombified partier. Cody realizes that he only has one bullet left in his gun, and he uses it to kill the zombie that was attacking Shelby. She is saved, but he is bitten on the neck and killed by Skeet, both of whom are shot by Aldo soon after.
Seeing no other option, Aldo calls in military assistance, but he is told that an American bomber plane is already on the way to the stadium, where a sniper opens fire with an AK-47, gunning down zombies and humans, including Shelby. Julian and Jenny manage to get into the way that was set up at the beginning just as a bomb is dropped from the plane, killing all outside. However, Aldo is revealed to be alive, leaving him, Julian and Jenny as the only known survivors.
The movie closes with Tarman still on the road with his “Rave or Bust” sign, but finally gives up due to the screams of a woman at the sight of him, and he decides to walk, shouting “brains!” all the way.
using the same locations in Romania
and Ukraine
. Peter Coyote
, Aimee-Lynn Chadwick, Cory Hardrict
and John Keefe return from the previous installment.
An edited version of the film aired along with Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis on the Sci-Fi Channel
on . As was the case with Return of the Living Dead 4: Necropolis switching to Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave was advertised as Return of the Living Dead 5: Rave from the Grave before removing the number 5 from the title. The R-rated version of the film was released on DVD on by Lionsgate
.
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Ellory Elkayem
Ellory Elkayem
Ellory Elkayem is a New Zealand film director.Born in Christchurch, Ellory Elkayem began making films at a young age. He later attended a film school designed to give students practical experience and preparation for a career in the film business...
, starring Cory Hardrict
Cory Hardrict
Cory D. Hardrict is an American actor and film producer.-Life and career:Born in Chicago, Illinios, Hardrict began his career on television during the late 1990s, with appearances in weekly prime-time programs including Smart Guy, Felicity, Once and Again and ER...
, John Keefe
John Keefe (actor)
John Keefe is an American film and television actor, best known for playing Julian Garrison in Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, and its following sequel, Return of the Living Dead: Rave from the Grave. He also played the main character in "Not Another High School Show" . He played as "Brad...
, Jenny Mollen
Jenny Mollen
Jenny Mollen is an American actress known for her portrayal of Nina Ash on the television series Angel.-Personal life:Mollen was born in Phoenix, Arizona...
, and Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
. It is the fifth installment of the Return of the Living Dead
Return of the Living Dead (film series)
Return of the Living Dead is a series of five films beginning with the 1985 film The Return of the Living Dead.- History :The series came about as a dispute between John A. Russo and George A. Romero over how to handle sequels to their 1968 film, Night of the Living Dead...
series. The film was released on .
Plot
The film opens a year after the previous film with Charles Garrison (Peter CoyotePeter Coyote
Peter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
) arriving at a mortuary with one of the canisters of Trioxin 5 that he salvaged from the previous movie where he is greeted by a team of Russian government officials whose goal is to destroy the last of the canisters to avoid another incident like that of what happened in Necropolis. However, one of them, rather stupidly, sprays three corpses with the gas, and revives three corpses, one of which is killed with a drill to the head by the owner of the mortuary, and the rest by gunshots to the head by two of officials. However, the second and third zombies that were killed, were able to kill Charles, the mortuary owner and one of the government officials.
Meanwhile, Jenny (Jenny Mollen
Jenny Mollen
Jenny Mollen is an American actress known for her portrayal of Nina Ash on the television series Angel.-Personal life:Mollen was born in Phoenix, Arizona...
), Julian (John Keefe
John Keefe (actor)
John Keefe is an American film and television actor, best known for playing Julian Garrison in Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, and its following sequel, Return of the Living Dead: Rave from the Grave. He also played the main character in "Not Another High School Show" . He played as "Brad...
), Cody (Cory Hardrict
Cory Hardrict
Cory D. Hardrict is an American actor and film producer.-Life and career:Born in Chicago, Illinios, Hardrict began his career on television during the late 1990s, with appearances in weekly prime-time programs including Smart Guy, Felicity, Once and Again and ER...
) and Becky (Aimee-Lynn Chadwick
Aimee-Lynn Chadwick
Aimee-Lynn Chadwick is an American actress from Sandwich, Massachusetts.-Acting career:Chadwick attended the Capachione School of Performing Arts...
), who are in college as of this movie, receive notice of the “murder” of Charles. Julian and Jenny go to search for and possibly sell what belonged to Charles, and they find the last two barrels of Trioxin 5 (the third having been destroyed by the survivors from the beginning already), and one of them is taken to Cody, who tests the chemical inside it. Jeremy, Jenny’s brother, foolishly tastes the chemical when he thinks that it is a drug similar to Ecstasy, and he goes into a spasm, which ends with him foaming at the mouth, and describing what it was like. The chemical is named “Z” for its “zombie-like” effect on the living.
When Jenny and Julian leave the lab, Cody, Jeremy and Shelby extract the chemical from the canister and they put the liquid extract into pills which the sell to Skeet (Catalin Paraschiv), so he can sell the drug around the school. While Skeet informs every to only take one pill at a time for health reasons, most that go to the school take more than one pill at a time (which speeds up the process that causes humans to reanimate as zombies), starting with Chuckey’s two dorm mates to reanimate, and to chase after him. He manages to escape, but begins to reanimate. However, one of the zombies manages to scratch Becky on the shoulder, not known to her that she was infected by the scratch, and then continuing after Chuckey. In another part of the college, the zombies kill a band member, and are killed by a drummer and Chuckey.
While this is going on, Becky slowly reanimates while she is on a date with her boyfriend Artie; and when she is fully re-animated, she bites and infects him. The next day a clean up crew, accompanied by Gino (Sorin Cocis) and Aldo Serra (Claudiu Bleonţ
Claudiu Bleont
Claudiu Bleonţ is a Romanian film and theatre actor. He is known in Romania not only by his acting ability, but also for his improvisational talent.-Life & career:...
), the only survivors from the beginning of the movie, who recognize what is going on when they are shown the severed head of one of the zombies, and they go to question Julian, knowing that he is familiar with Trioxin 5 due to the events of the previous movie, but he doesn’t tell them anything of the canisters that he and Jenny discovered.
The next day when Julian and his friends are preparing for the rave
Rave
Rave, rave dance, and rave party are parties that originated mostly from acid house parties, which featured fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties people dance and socialize to dance music played by disc jockeys and occasionally live performers...
when Jeremy starts to show the symptoms of the Trioxin gas, including coughing and weakness, while the reanimated Becky and Artie attack Skeet, but are tied up by Julian, Cody and Jeremy. Two of their friends volunteer to take them to the hospital, but Becky and Artie escape from their restraints, and kill them. Aldo and Gino arrive just in time to destroy the car (killing the zombies in the process) with a grenade launcher. During all this, Jenny feeds several lab rats the Trioxin chemical (by putting it in their water) to the anger of Brett, who is bitten by one of the rats, and soon re-animated as a zombie, killing and infecting Dartagnan (Sebastian Marina) and Rainbow (Violeta Aldea).
Soon after this, the reanimated Dartagnan, Rainbow and Brett give chase to Coach Savini (Ricky Dandel), who escapes, but several cheerleaders are killed between the zombies attacking, and gunfire from Aldo and Gino, who shoot all infected in the area before they leave.
Julian, Cody and Jenny return to Brett’s lab the next day to find it a mess, the re-animated rats escaped and missing, and the Trioxin tank with the lid wide open. Upon searching for the rats, they are attacked by two zombies, which are killed simply. But Tarman, who returns from the first and second movies, attacks them, but is shot by Aldo and Gino, but some how manages to survive, and then hitch hikes on a busy road. The three inform Aldo and Gino of what has happened with the “Z” pills, and the five, armed with guns from Aldo’s car, head to the rave to find all the pills and kill any re-animated.
Between the attacks of students who re-animated during the rave, including Skeet, and gunfire, many students are killed. The now zombified Skeet attacks Cody, pinning him to the ground while Shelby is held against the wall by a zombified partier. Cody realizes that he only has one bullet left in his gun, and he uses it to kill the zombie that was attacking Shelby. She is saved, but he is bitten on the neck and killed by Skeet, both of whom are shot by Aldo soon after.
Seeing no other option, Aldo calls in military assistance, but he is told that an American bomber plane is already on the way to the stadium, where a sniper opens fire with an AK-47, gunning down zombies and humans, including Shelby. Julian and Jenny manage to get into the way that was set up at the beginning just as a bomb is dropped from the plane, killing all outside. However, Aldo is revealed to be alive, leaving him, Julian and Jenny as the only known survivors.
The movie closes with Tarman still on the road with his “Rave or Bust” sign, but finally gives up due to the screams of a woman at the sight of him, and he decides to walk, shouting “brains!” all the way.
Cast
- Cory HardrictCory HardrictCory D. Hardrict is an American actor and film producer.-Life and career:Born in Chicago, Illinios, Hardrict began his career on television during the late 1990s, with appearances in weekly prime-time programs including Smart Guy, Felicity, Once and Again and ER...
as Cody - John KeefeJohn Keefe (actor)John Keefe is an American film and television actor, best known for playing Julian Garrison in Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, and its following sequel, Return of the Living Dead: Rave from the Grave. He also played the main character in "Not Another High School Show" . He played as "Brad...
as Julian Garrison - Jenny MollenJenny MollenJenny Mollen is an American actress known for her portrayal of Nina Ash on the television series Angel.-Personal life:Mollen was born in Phoenix, Arizona...
as Jenny - Peter CoyotePeter CoyotePeter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
as Uncle Charles - Claudiu BleonţClaudiu BleontClaudiu Bleonţ is a Romanian film and theatre actor. He is known in Romania not only by his acting ability, but also for his improvisational talent.-Life & career:...
as Aldo Serra - Sorin Cocis as Gino
- Cain Mihnea Manoliu as Jeremy
- George Dumitrescu as Artie
- Maria DinulescuMaria Dinulescu-Early life:She graduated from the I.L. Caragiale National University of Theatrical Arts and Cinematography in Bucharest, Romania.-Acting career:She is best known as the lead actress in the 2007 film California Dreamin...
as Shelby - Catalin Paraschiv as Skeet
- Aimee-Lynn ChadwickAimee-Lynn ChadwickAimee-Lynn Chadwick is an American actress from Sandwich, Massachusetts.-Acting career:Chadwick attended the Capachione School of Performing Arts...
as Becky - Radu Romaniuc as Brett
- Sebastian Marina as Dartagnan
- Violeta Aldea as Rainbow
- Ricky Dandel as Coach Savini
Production
The movie was filmed immediately after Return of the Living Dead: NecropolisReturn of the Living Dead: Necropolis
Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis , is a 2005 zombie television horror film directed by Ellory Elkayem, starring Aimee Lynn Chadwick, Cory Hardrict, John Keefe, Jana Kramer, and Peter Coyote. The plot revolves around a group of teenagers attempting to rescue their friend from an evil corporation...
using the same locations in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
, Aimee-Lynn Chadwick, Cory Hardrict
Cory Hardrict
Cory D. Hardrict is an American actor and film producer.-Life and career:Born in Chicago, Illinios, Hardrict began his career on television during the late 1990s, with appearances in weekly prime-time programs including Smart Guy, Felicity, Once and Again and ER...
and John Keefe return from the previous installment.
An edited version of the film aired along with Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis on the Sci-Fi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
on . As was the case with Return of the Living Dead 4: Necropolis switching to Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis, Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave was advertised as Return of the Living Dead 5: Rave from the Grave before removing the number 5 from the title. The R-rated version of the film was released on DVD on by Lionsgate
Lions Gate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation is a North American entertainment company. The company was formed in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1997, and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California...
.