All Souls Day: Dia de los Muertos (DVD)

Anything with Danny Trejo in it, and I am there. Anything with zombies in it… not so much. So what did I get when I got the two together in All Souls Day? A reasonably watchable flick with some gore and mildly enjoyable unintentional humor.

The story begins in 1892, when Vargas Diaz (Trejo), a greedy and ruthless tomb-raider robs the wrong resting place — it’s the eternal digs for the Aztec Goddess of Death, and she’s none too pleased about the theft. But she’s willing to make a deal: If Diaz brings her the blood of the local townspeople, she will not only spare his life but she will grant him immortality. He makes his move during the Dia de los Muertos celebration, and in a cruel twist of fate the locals who died at Diaz’s hands cannot rest in peace. For all time, they will demand human sacrifices, preying on anyone who ventures into Santa Bonita.

The curse continues in present day when an unsuspecting young couple (Travis Wester, Alicia Barena) out for fun South of the Border decide to go exploring in the lonely ghost town of Santa Bonita. Only, they are not alone. The town is populated by some very odd folk; some living, some not.

The cast includes genre notables such as Jeffrey Combs, Laura Harring, David Keith, and Camden Toy (as a zombie), so it’s fun to watch if you’re in the know or if you just like zombie flicks. However, without being able to say it’s not bad “for a zombie movie,” or “for a Sci-Fi TV movie,” there’s not much to crow about. Most of the characters are grating, the acting is uneven, and there’s more splatter than scares.

Overall, I appreciated the voodoo/ghost story angle infused with Mexican mysticism, and Trejo, though underused, was great fun to watch. Don’t expect the next horror classic when you rent All Souls Day, and you just might be able to put your heart into it for the 88 minute running time.

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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson