"The Lazarus Effect" won't exactly have to rise from the dead in order to succeed at the box office. Director David Gelb's horror-thriller will, however, have to overcome largely negative reviews.
As of Friday morning (Feb. 26), Gelb's film - which stars New Orleanian Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde as two in group of med-school students who figure out a way to breathe life back into the deceased - boasted a lowly 18 percent approval rating on 41 reviews at the movie review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The outlook wasn't much better at MetaCritic, where "Lazarus" had a score of 33/100 based on 21 reviews.
A number of reviewers bellyached about the derivative plot, which audiences have seen in one form or another in everything from "Frankenstein" to "Flatliners" to "Pet Sematary." Beyond that, though, most said Gelb's film simply isn't scary - or smart -- enough.
"It's the cinematic equivalent of putting glasses and a white lab coat on the village idiot," wrote the AV Club's A.A. Dowd in his review, in which he gives the film a C-minus.
For his part, Duplass favored the review written by James Rocchi of The Wrap. Taking to his Twitter account Thursday, Duplass described Rocci's piece as "a smart, spoiler-free, fair review of #TheLazarusEffect ... warts and all. If u read any review, read this one." He then offered a link to Rocchi's review.
Of course, Duplass might be a bit of a prejudiced source on this one, given that his name is on the movie poster.
That being the case, below find a sampling of "Lazarus Effect" reviews from other critics. Gelb's film, rated PG-13 by MPAA for "intense sequences of horror violence, terror and some sexual references," opens today in wide release nationwide. Click here for New Orleans and Baton Rouge showtimes.
Mick LaSalle, The San Francisco Chronicle: " 'The Lazarus Effect' is not the usual mindless thriller, but it's as flat as an open soda from last week, with dull characters and virtually every scene taking place in a single location. It looks as if it cost about 12 bucks to make -- and somebody got robbed. (Read the full review.)
Peter Keough, The Boston Globe: "There are lessons to be learned from this minimalist thriller. The first is that scaring people requires more than just tossing furniture around, turning the lights off and on, and basically sneaking up from behind and shouting 'Boo!' On the more philosophical side, however, the film teaches us a) don't try to fool Mother Nature, and b) don't play with matches." (Read the full review.)
Gary Goldstein, The Los Angeles Times: "What this sci-fi tale lacks in characterization and resolution it makes up for in its provocative thoughts about life and death, brain power, the real-world chemical and hallucinogen DMT, religion, science and an alternative version of h**l." (Read the full review.)
Claudia Puig, USA Today: "'The Lazarus Effect' is not brain surgery -- oh wait, it kinda is -- but it's absorbing, well-crafted and appropriately tense, with a smart cast that raises it a notch above average." (Read the full review.)
Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter: "Becoming progressively less interesting as the body count rises and Zoe's eyes turn hellishly black, the film squanders whatever potential it had, not to mention the talents of such performers as Duplass and Wilde, who clearly deserve better." (Read the full review.)
Geoff Berkshire, Variety: "As zombie Zoe develops crazy powers (telekinesis, mind reading, the ability to fully dilate her pupils at will), everyone including Frank just sits around waiting to see what happens next.The answer turns out to be a whole slew of horror tropes (one half expects 'Flatliners'-era Kiefer Sutherland to show up ranting, 'Our sins have come back in a physical form!'), but no genuine scares, and certainly nothing visceral enough to threaten the bloodless PG-13 rating." (Read the full review.)
Source: http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2015/02/the_lazarus_effect_movie_revie.html
