#fall down dead

Awkward detective, awkward love interest, awkward group.

My Thoughts: If you remember what I said in my Shiver review (something I also mentioned in my last review), you know that I love movies with plots like this. Unfortunately, this is one of those movies where the concept is great, but is executed horribly. The writing is not good, and this is how: The characters. Are literally. THE worst survival group I have ever seen, especially the detectives (how'd they even get on the force?). Virtually none of them are likable (except perhaps Christie and the maid), and most of the movie is just arguing and incredibly dumb decisions. And the filler scenes. THE FILLER SCENES! One "suspense" sequence goes on for minutes, only to climax with...a mouse (if I recall correctly; it's been a few weeks since I watched the movie). Why not have more interactions with the actual killer, since the movie is largely about him?

It's a bad idea to lock a woman into a room for her safety when there's a serial killer in the building. It's even worse when said serial killer STILL MANAGES TO GET INSIDE THE ROOM!

The Picasso Killer (played by the aforementioned horror icon, Udo Kier) is really the only high point of the movie. He turns his victims into "works of art" (like some Hannibal-level thing), and the reason he's so bent on getting to Christie is, not only has she seen his face and lived, but she looks exactly like the woman in a sketch he drew, apparently (I've read that the human brain cannot create a face. Suspension of disbelief, here). But you never really find out too much about him from what I've already mentioned.

Just your average one-person chess game nbd

Now I'm just going to mention a few more things about Udo Kier: He was the star of a lot of controversial '70s films, most of which fall into the horror genre somewhere (I actually plan on watching some of them this summer; I think they look neat). He's played Dr. (Baron, rather) Frankenstein, Count Dracula, AND Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde - all within the span of a few years. Not only that, but in one of his upcoming films he plays Bela Lugosi (the movie in question is sort of about Ed Wood). He's also starring in not one, but TWO movies with The Human Centipede II star Laurence R. Harvey:  the extreme horror anthology The Profane Exhibit and the giallo throwback horror comedy The Editor (I only know Udo Kier is in The Profane Exhibit from this obviously-very-NSFW trailer here, and I only know Laurence R. Harvey is in The Editor from things Mr. Harvey has tweeted), with the latter film also starring Mr. Harvey's Call Girl co-star, Tristan Risk.

But this movie, Fall Down Dead, was NOT a good introduction to Mr. Kier, regardless of how cool his character was.