IMDb RATING
5.4/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
A photographer on an archaeological expedition digging up Etruscan ruins in Italy begins to suspect that not all the Etruscans buried there are actually dead.A photographer on an archaeological expedition digging up Etruscan ruins in Italy begins to suspect that not all the Etruscans buried there are actually dead.A photographer on an archaeological expedition digging up Etruscan ruins in Italy begins to suspect that not all the Etruscans buried there are actually dead.
Vladan Holec
- Otello
- (as Vladan Milasinovic)
Christina von Blanc
- Velia
- (as Christiane Von Blank)
Pierluigi D'Orazio
- Minelli
- (as Pier Luigi D'Orazio)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe original Italian title translates as "The Etruscan Kills Again," but, thinking the Etruscans would be largely unknown outside of Italy, it was re-titled "The Dead are Alive!" to market it in America as a zombie movie, a la Night of the Living Dead (1968), to which it has no connection whatsoever, and in Germany as an Edgar Wallace movie, with the title translated as "Secrets of the Yellow Grave" ("yellow" as in "giallo"). However, the Bryan Edgar Wallace who wrote the story that the movie was based on, is not the renowned filmmaker so popular among Germans, Edgar Wallace.
- GoofsThe final images show a burning canvas with the image of the evil Etruscan god painted on it. For a movie that purports to be about Etruscology, someone should have known the Etruscans didn't paint on canvas.
- Quotes
Inspector Giuranna: i'm not particularly shocked by the ferocity of the crime. I've seen worse. It's the macabre touch, the way the bodies were laid out. Disturbing, don't you think? Like, uh...
Jason Porter: Like sculptures on a sarcophagus.
- Alternate versionsProduced in both Italian and German versions with partly different crews.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Cinemacabre TV Trailers (1993)
- SoundtracksRequiem
Written by Giuseppe Verdi
Featured review
Nice setting for an unusual giallo
Jason Porter (Alex Cord) is an alcoholic photographer working on an archaeological dig in an Etruscan tomb from the 5th century bc, he has a history of mental illness and violence which seen him locked up in a New York mental hospital, but now he's trying to get some normality back in his life, so when after a rainstorm at the dig he discovers the mutilated bodies of an amorous couple, the police naturally regard him as the main suspect. Some articles recently stolen from the site are found beside the bodies of the victims the only clue to who might be the killer. Porter has his suspicions as to who that might be, but the police interference is hampering his own investigation, added to that, Porter is also distracted by the fact that his former lover Myra Shelton (Samantha Eggar)is now married to a sadistic older man, Nikos, a sadistic old man and music conductor for a local theatre, where there are a number of suspicious characters.
Right from the start this plays like a horror film, we the viewer are led to believe that the killings are being done as an act of vengeance from a recently disturbed demon god with breathing difficulties, There is some great location work within the Etruscan tombs that adds to the atmosphere, the murals on the walls of the tombs showing the depictions of the actual murders before they happened, but Giallo experts will soon see that there are no supernatural forces behind these atrocities. The film also plays like a classic slasher in that sexual liaisons seem to herald the death of those involved, this is an unusual plot point for a giallo but then this is an unusual film. Riz ortolani provides a decent operatic score, the dubbing on the film is a real low point though, not the actual voices but the editing of them is beyond abysmal, this is still a film I believe would benefit immensely from an official release, considering the settings within the film a glossy new print would certainly bring this to a new audience
Right from the start this plays like a horror film, we the viewer are led to believe that the killings are being done as an act of vengeance from a recently disturbed demon god with breathing difficulties, There is some great location work within the Etruscan tombs that adds to the atmosphere, the murals on the walls of the tombs showing the depictions of the actual murders before they happened, but Giallo experts will soon see that there are no supernatural forces behind these atrocities. The film also plays like a classic slasher in that sexual liaisons seem to herald the death of those involved, this is an unusual plot point for a giallo but then this is an unusual film. Riz ortolani provides a decent operatic score, the dubbing on the film is a real low point though, not the actual voices but the editing of them is beyond abysmal, this is still a film I believe would benefit immensely from an official release, considering the settings within the film a glossy new print would certainly bring this to a new audience
helpful•135
- Prof-Hieronymos-Grost
- Jul 31, 2007
- How long is The Dead Are Alive!?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Etrurac jos ubija
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $110,000
- Runtime1 hour 45 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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