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	The Lost Skeleton Of Cadavra
	Larry Blamire Fay Masterson, Andrew Parks, Susan McConnell, Brian Howe, Jennifer Blaire, Larry Blamire, Dan Conroy, Robert Deveau, Darren Reed 2002		Parody is easy. Funny parody is hard. Made on a frayed shoestring, "The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra" is an effective, borderline-uproarious spoof of the sci-fi and horror B-movies of the 1950s, and a self-conscious tribute to the acting and production values of that era's cheesiest films. Ed Wood's unintentionally hilarious "Plan 9 from Outer Space" is just one of the relics that influenced this send-up by writer/director Larry Blamire. In the patently ridiculous "Cadavra," a noble scientist (Blamire) and his airheaded fiancée (Fay Masterson) have a woodland encounter with a supernatural, ambulatory skeleton that's bent on world domination (and moves via very visible wires), a cackling lunatic (Brian Howe) who facilitates the skeleton's resurrection, a sexy, gyrating beatnik girl (Jennifer Blaire) created out of forest creatures exposed to the rare element "atmospherium," a naïve alien couple (Andrew Parks, Susan McConnell) who crash-landed their spaceship on Earth, and a "deadly" foam-rubber mutant set loose by the crash. Although the film loses momentum, its first hour is laugh-out-loud material, especially for anyone familiar with the genres being lampooned. The skewering is accurate, and, despite some moments when the performers stop just short of winking at the audience, the terrible, over-exaggerated acting is dead-on.


	Wednesday, December 18, 2024





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