Let's talk vampire flicks from Pakistan, shall we? Leave it to the brave folks at Mondo Macabro to risk rescuing this little gem of a horror flick from obscurity. Apparently this minor masterpiece was thought to be lost to the ages, go figure. Zinda Laash AKA The Living Corpse has been given the 5 star treatment by Mondo Macabro, and I ask you; Could we have expected any less? I'm telling you right now, this is going to be one hell of an acid trip, so if there's a drug test in your immediate future, you may want to sit this one out, cause this flick will definitely be detected in your urine the morning after.

Our story opens as a young doctor (or mad scientist, you be the judge) frantically tests out a brand new youth serum of some sort, that he believes he has just successfully(?) concocted. Unfortunately, the drink just causes him to drop dead right on the spot. He's found by his sexilicious assistant who promptly lays him in the coffin in the cellar (his last wish apparently). Prof. Tabini (as he likes to be called) quickly transforms into a suave and bloodthirsty vampire. In the mean time young Dr. Aqil's travels lead him to the mysterious castle, fully aware that the townsfolk have been talking. Of course Aqil is welcomed for the night, but ulterior motives abound, as everyone seems to have them. That night, Tabini's assistant (now a vampire herself) lures Aqil with her seductive dance of the nightie. Just when you think the dance has ended (cued by the fact that the music has stopped) it starts right back up again. That night, Aqil is bitten himself, and needless to say doesn't take it very well. It's at this point that Aqil's brother realizes that his bro has been nowhere to be found and heads to the castle to find him. Aquil's friends and family don't take the spooky story too well, but something needs to be done, before Tabini decides to wreak even more havoc in the town square.

Certainly not an example of high art, and not necessarily groundbreaking in any way, The Living Corpse is still a wholly satisfying and unique viewing experience. Obviously aimed after the American Universal vampire flicks, The Living Corpse is just another fascinating cinematic attempt at cashing in on that crazy vampire craze that the kids love so much. At times spooky and other times silly, The Living Corpse may be a lot of things, but remains consistently unique and without a doubt, like no other to come before or after it throughout.

Between the wooden performances (which are oddly effective), impromptu musical numbers, gothic castle sets and crazy over the top characters, The Living Corpse stands in a class all its own. Easily recommendable to all types of horror fanatics as a curiosity piece, I could even go one further and recommend it on its own as an interesting if not all to bizarre horror outing that never fails to entertain.

Mondo Macabro strikes gold again with another transfer that makes me exclaim in girlish glee "How did they do that?" While there is a "print quality" disclaimer at the start of the feature, there's really no need to apologize. Mondo Macabro is said to have unearthed the only known negative to exist and performed a fairly extensive cleanup job. There are a few rough edges and a moment or two in which the frame gets a bit "jittery" but overall, this is an extremely satisfying transfer. For the most part the B&W image looks as solid as can be with deep blacks and appropriate shades of gray. The mono audio track sounds just fine with nice and readable (and optional) English subtitles. There is some slight evidence of background noise and a bit of that snap, crackle and pop, but still remains overall, quite pleasing.

As expected, Mondo Macabro doesn't skimp on the fixin's this go round either, and we can all thank the cult movie gods for that. First up is a feature length commentary with Mondo Macabro frontman Pete Tombs and Film Critic Omar Khan which is extremely informative. Next is a Mondo Macabro episode on South Asian Horror (24 minutes) and enhanced for 16X9 TV's. This piece is really worth thr price of admission on its own. Dracula in Pakistan (12 minutes) follows which includes a recent chat with star/producer Habib and director Sarfaraz. A trailer, still gallery and text essay (which features an audio clip of a missing song) round out this imressive package.

As expected, Mondo Macabro does cult fans right with another impressive release of a cinematic gem that's been hiding from us for far too long. Highly recommended. Visit Mondo Macabro USA online here!