So here you are - a secure job as the caretaker of a graveyard (because you know they'll always be clients) complete with a place to stay and money for food and leisure. Oh yeah, and corpses that keep returning to life that you have to shoot in the head to make them finally stay in their graves. And no overtime. Welcome to the bizarre world of Michele Soavi's CEMETERY MAN.

Caretaker Francesco Dellamorte answers his phone as knocking is heard at the door of his somber hovel. It's his only friend Franco on the line - and a freshly risen zombie at the door! Francesco dispatches his uninvited undead with a shot to the head as he chats with Franco - just another routine night at the graveyard... It seems the recently deceased rise again after seven days, and it's up to Francesco and his dim assistant Gnaghi to put them back down and rebury them, as not to cause panic in the town. Plus, who'd believe them anyway?

The situation has turned Francesco into a somber man, indifferent to his job of death and cynical about his life. That is until a beautiful widow buries her aged husband in the bone yard. Smitten with her beauty, Francesco can't get her out of his mind. After a slight faux pas angers the lady in black, Francesco is determined to make amends next time she visits. She willfully ignores him, but when Francesco mentions the cemetery's mausoleum, she asks to see it. Inside the gloomy structure, the piles of bones and decay fascinate her so much it turns her on. Before they can do anything more than kiss, she rushes out, leaving a perplexed Francesco alone again. That night, however, she returns and declares her love for the caretaker. They do the nasty on her husbands' grave. Well, he's not too happy about that and claws his way to the surface. The jealous corpse bites his widow before Francesco can slam a crucifix through its maggoty skull. Gnaghi rushes to get a doctor but its too late - she dies in Francesco's arms, her final words declaring her love to beyond the grave.

As Francesco sits with his love's body in the mausoleum, the girl begins to rise under her shroud! Francesco forces himself to shoot his love and return her to her eternal rest, though it breaks his heart. Francesco tries to go about his normal business, but now he's even more the town outcast, suffering the unkind words of the locals. At a meeting with the mayor, Gnaghi gets too excited by the mayor's daughter (who finds him "cute") and makes a scene. The girl - Valentina - leaves with her biker friends as Francesco tries to consol his depressed assistant, but his words about 'someone for everyone' ring hollow. Back at the graveyard, Francesco and Gnaghi prepare for a mass funeral. It seems Valentina and her friends wound up crashing en mass into a bus, killing them all. Francesco tells Gnaghi to stock up on the bullets... From here on, things just get worse and worse for poor Francesco. He thinks his love returns, only is she alive, dead, or another person entirely? Will the ennui of his situation drive Francesco to the brink of madness? Will his distain for the living drive him to murder? Will Francesco ever know what the rest of the world outside the graveyard is like?

Based on the hero of an Italian comic book series, CEMETERY MAN seamlessly blends drama, comedy and horror in an entertaining stew that can't be overlooked. The visuals are extremely well crafted - Soavi did work as Dario Argento's assistant - but the multilayered writing really gives this film its unique power as it flows from romance to terror, reality to surrealism. The movie gets more and more complex as it goes forward, but the audience is never left in the dark. As mentioned, the sets are richly textured to maximize every nuance on screen. Many of the scenes are shot to resemble the original graphic novel panels, especially transitions and the finale (which I won't give away...); Soavi's direction considers the set as a character working in concert with the other actors. As such, the acting is very well done. Rupert Everett is so strong as the film's nucleus Francesco that while he may seem cynical and stoic he really makes the connection to the audience who discover he's far far more than he appears. The supporting characters are given this depth as well; Anna Felchi portrays 'The Girl' in three distinctive roles that drive Francesco further to the brink after each encounter, and dimwitted comedy relief Gnaghi is a perfect counter to Francesco.

Picture quality is very good; the 'graphic' look translates well onto DVD. The tricky night scenes are lit well so the audience has no difficulty seeing what unfolds. Audio is clean and clear; the film was shot mainly in English, with some minor overdubbing that is nearly spot on. Another lesson Soavi learned form Argento was the powerful use of music - CEMETERY MAN has an excellent soundtrack that is a perfect match to the visuals. The special effects are bloody good fun and clever; zombies aren't dispatched just with bullets. Mmm mmm gore....

CEMETERY MAN has been released on DVD with several nice extras. Foremost is a featurette entitled "Death is Beautiful," where Soavi talks about his career in cinema and his artistic vision, then members of the cast and crew reminisce about the making of CEMETERY MAN. Watch after the film, because it has 'spoilers'. There is an Italian language trailer as well as the requisite previews. The DVD also has a short text bio of Soavi, and includes an informative booklet, too.

CEMETERY MAN may not have the reputation as other films in the history of Italian horror cinema, but should not be overlooked. A complex film melding romantic drama, gory terror, comedy and surrealism it connects to the audience on each level; a rare film that's visually fun to watch yet is thoroughly thought provoking. CEMETERY MAN is an engrossing film that should appeal to fans of any genre - so check it before those pesky corpses start rising again!