Living Doll
Living Doll
| 01 February 1990 (USA)
Living Doll Trailers

Howard, a shy morgue worker, falls in love with a girl who ends up in the morgue, but he doesn't let that stop him. Howard has a secret - he is in love with Christine. There's only one problem, Christine is DEAD! A grave was no place for Christine, the only place for her was at Howard's side. At last she was his, his to dress, his to feed and to care for.

Reviews
merklekranz

This British production is an intriguing entry in the rather small necrophilia category of horror films. Instead of a relentless assault of slice and dice, what we get is a somewhat playful script that handles the macabre topic quite well. Both Freddie Earlle as the morgue manager, and Ertha Kitt as a nosy landlady, provide some welcome dark humor. Mark Jax plays the medical student whose infatuation with a hospital flower girl goes way beyond normal. His obsession eventually leads to stalking, grave robbing, and murder. Kate Orgill is the lifeless and slowly decomposing corpse who speaks telepathically to Mark Jax, from beyond the grave. The catchy tune "Living Doll", and general lighthearted chemistry, make "Living Doll" one of the better films of it's type. - MERK

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reptilicus

Okay let me get this out of the way first thing. I know I come down hard on certain movies but to be fair I do try to find the good in just abot every movie I review. Well not this time! This movie deserves everything it gets! Why? Stick with me.Medical student Howard (Mark Jax) is one sick puppy. In fact he would make a good workmate with Bob from NEKROMANTIC. Howard is in love with Christine (Kate Orgill) who works in the flower shop of the hospital but he is too shy to even give her a flower. Christine also has an abusive boyfriend and you just know that Howard will do something about that . . . eventually; but I am getting ahead of myself.One night a cadaver comes into the morgue and it turns out to be . . . wait for it . . . Christine! He does not buy the boyfriend's story about Christine's drunk driving causing an accident. Well this pushes Bob, who was thirty cents short of a quarter to begin with, right over the edge. He steals her body from the grave and makes her his roommate; he buys her clothes, cooks her meals and so on. In his own sick mind she responds warmly but in real life she is slowly rotting into one very gross looking paperweight. It isn't long before she is talking to him and suggesting he do . . . well . . . certain things.So does he go on a killing spree? NO! It takes over an HOUR of screen time before he gets revenge for Christine's death. Does he bother to get even with his mean landlady (Eartha Kitt, who must have been starving at the time) or his sleazebag boss? NO! This is the sorriest example of a terror movie I have seen in many moons! Howard's boss dies but it's fron natural causes! No, that was not meant to be a sapoiler. This whole darn movie is a spoiler in itself!If you want an example of a scary movie involving corpses see Jorg Buttgereit's NEKROMANTIC. This British import will leave a bad taste in your mouth, sort of like rotten meat.

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pj75pj75

Infamous schlock producer Dick Randall's last film (or last released film, anyway) turns out to be a surprisingly good and grim little horror yarn.Medical student Howard falls in love with the girl who sells flowers at the hospital where he works. She barely knows he exists. Then one day a body is brought into the morgue and Howard has to assist in the autopsy. Only too late does he realize it's the lovely Christine herself laid out on the cold slab. How this shock affects his already delicate mental balance and what he does to deal with this terrible state of affairs makes this a highly diverting outing for fans of the macabre Mark Jax is great as the disturbed Howard. He never once camps it up and plays even the most ridiculous moments straight. The SFX and make up on the mouldering corpse are excellent,. The plot takes plenty of surprising turns and the final sick twist raised a smile or two.Great news that this will soon be out on DVD – and in an extras packed special edition.If you like big studio, star-filled extravaganzas, then this is not for you. But if you're looking for something out of the ordinary, you'll not be disappointed.

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DocEmmettBrown

Here's a premise for ya: A morgue attendant, who's obsessed by a beautiful girl, soon finds her on the slab after a car crash, he takes her home where he creates a fantasy world in which she is alive and co-habiting with him, eventually leading to his total mental breakdown and destruction. Sounds intriguing doesn't it? WRONG! This film is a perfect example of a fair premise let down by totally uninspired film making. Instead of an interesting character development plot, what we are presented with is a film based almost entirely on a man coming in and out of his apartment, making excuses to people, and occasionally talking to or hiding a phony corpse. But at least the performances carry it through right? WRONG! Some of the most mind numbingly poor performances by any actors I have ever seen (just check out the girls meathead boyfriend) and not even in a laughable way, just in a truly 'couldn't care less if they all died' kinda way. It says a lot when one of the stronger performances is from Eartha Kitt! If you really need to complete guy falls in love with corpse film collection then do yourself a favour and fast forward most of the middle of the film, only the mildly deranged ending is worth the entry fee. Though it does have a great closing line. File under: mild curiosity.

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