The Gravedancers is part
of the AfterDark Horrorfest
The Gravedancers should by only
be watched by those that MUST see every film in the series. Otherwise,
save yourself the trouble.
Written by BHM Contributor
Michael Saunier May 16, 2007
DVD
Release: March 2007 Directed by: Mike Mendez Written by: Brad Keene and Chris Skinner
Starring:
Dominic Purcell as Harris McKay Josie Maran as Kira Hastings Clare Kramer as Allison Marcus Thomas as Sid Vance Tcheky Karyo as Vincent Megahn Perry as Culpepper
If you have not yet seen The Gravedancers,
you are in luck. I watched this movie so that you don’t have
to subject yourself to its dismal performance. If this causes you to be
overcome with thankfulness then you can make out checks or money orders
of gratitude to Michael Saunier and send in care of Best-Horror-Movies.com.
The Gravedancers is another movie from the AfterDark
Horrorfest, a series similar to the Masters of Horror collection except
these movies had limited, short runs in actual movie theatres and were
not created by well-known writers and directors. The plot of The
Gravedancers concerns three college friends, Sid, Harris and
Kira, who are brought back together when their fourth cohort dies.
After the funeral reception the remaining friends convene in the
graveyard for a long night of reminiscing and binge drinking.
During
their night in the graveyard, Sid finds a note hidden in the flowers on
their friend’s tomb which explains how there are two separate
worlds, the living and the dead, and that those who are living should
rejoice in being alive and dance on the graves of those who are dead,
not in disrespect but in celebration. During the reading of this note
by Sid, Harris (who is married and trying to have a baby with his wife
Allison) is making out with Kira, who used to stalk him and still loves
him. This love triangle does not much affect the plot or have any
further ramifications.
Later, the three friends experience specific hauntings relating to the
graves that they danced on. We find out that the graves housed
“undesirables” who were people such as mental
health patients, evil killers, and notorious townsfolk.
Sid is haunted by a child who was a pyromaniac that burned down his
house and ended up killing himself, and his family, in the process.
Kira is haunted by a respected judge who, upon his death, is found to
have been an S&M enthusiast, kidnapper, and murder of women.
And finally, Harris and his wife Allison are haunted by a woman who was
having an affair with a married man who, when the tryst was called off,
planted an axe in her ex-lover and his wife. This last haunting
parallels Harris’ current semi-affair with Kira, but the
story never goes any further.
The three friends then link up with Vincent (Tcheky Karyo, the best
actor in The Gravedancers by leaps and bounds) and
Culpepper (Megahn Perry), who are the local ghost busters. They reveal
the story of the three ghosts and propose the solution of digging up
the three danced-upon graves and reburying the bodies to make their
ghosts rest in peace. They perform this grisly task, but the fix
doesn’t take. Why? Because Culpepper decided behind
everyone’s back to keep out the three skulls so when the
ghosts converged on their house, which also acts as their headquarters
and is wired for sound and video, they can capture the activity on
camera and have proof that ghosts exist. The ghosts chase those
responsible, yada, yada, yada; some live in the nick of time, the end.
The Gravedancers is poor and I mean that in every
aspect. The acting is horrible, especially from Dominic Purcell who
plays Harris. Purcell is so robotic that I do not believe the casting
director was in his/her right mind. The dialog is weak with cheesy clichés
and poor emotion. You never for one iota care about the characters in The
Gravedancers or feel what they are going through, which is a
huge no-no in my book when it comes to making a good horror
movie. The Gravedancers story is of little interest
and uses boring horror movie staples such as “girl searching
the eerily quiet house is startled by the phone”, and fails
to add anything new or innovative to balance out the tried-and-true
approaches.
The effects are really tired
and dated. The monster effects are 30 years too late, and the climax
features a tornado-like swirling skull that made me laugh in disbelief.
The Gravedancers is bad and I beg
you not to waste
your precious time watching it, especially since the AfterDark
Horrorfest series offers much better films.
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Later, the three friends experience specific hauntings relating to the
graves that they danced on. We find out that the graves housed
“undesirables” who were people such as mental
health patients, evil killers, and notorious townsfolk. 
The three friends then link up with Vincent (Tcheky Karyo, the best
actor in The Gravedancers by leaps and bounds) and
Culpepper (Megahn Perry), who are the local ghost busters. They reveal
the story of the three ghosts and propose the solution of digging up
the three danced-upon graves and reburying the bodies to make their
ghosts rest in peace. They perform this grisly task, but the fix
doesn’t take. Why? Because Culpepper decided behind
everyone’s back to keep out the three skulls so when the
ghosts converged on their house, which also acts as their headquarters
and is wired for sound and video, they can capture the activity on
camera and have proof that ghosts exist. The ghosts chase those
responsible, yada, yada, yada; some live in the nick of time, the end. 
clichés
and poor emotion. You never for one iota care about the characters in The
Gravedancers or feel what they are going through, which is a
huge no-no in my book when it comes to making a good horror
movie. The Gravedancers story is of little interest
and uses boring horror movie staples such as “girl searching
the eerily quiet house is startled by the phone”, and fails
to add anything new or innovative to balance out the tried-and-true
approaches. 
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