BEYOND THE DARKNESS: Not bad Joe D'Amato flick, but still a lousy director

[Chris K.]

If their has been a movie that I have read about over and over again, it would be Joe D'Amato's 1979 horror film BEYOND THE DARKNESS (Italian Title: BUIO OMEGA). Even after seeing the very graphic International trailer for the film various times on the Shriek Show DVD releases, for some reason I have always been putting off seeing the film. I guess it was due to D'Amato's film genre choice as he has made more adult and XXX flicks in his filmography list. And so, considering his choice genre I was quite uninterested in BEYOND THE DARKNESS. That is until today when I just broke down and rented it to see if D'Amato could live to his standards.

The plot basically involves a man whose fiance dies in the hospital and he enbalms her corpse so she can be with him, even in death. The man then goes around and murders some young girls, along with a crazy shocking ending that will have you by the throat.  

D'Amato shows that he is capable to direct a competant horror film and his camerawork is nicely done. The gore effects during the dissection scene are truely gross that it was believed that D'Amato actually used a real corpse to do the grisly scene. Yet D'Amato does show his flaws. One is that he goes back to his XXX roots. While this is a horror film and some nudity is required, it works when it is done in the confines of the script and story. Yet their are times when D'Amato throws in the nudity just fo the hell of it, and that just doesn't work. It shows that D'Amato couldn't keep the film's pace together, so he takes the "easy" way out. Sadly, it doesn't work.

When released in the United States by Terry Levine's Aquarius Releasing as BURIAL GROUND, the original title sequence was changed and only two scenes involivng dialouge were removed. Yet the graphic gore remained intact and the film was released with no rating. And considering how the gore is really stomach-turning, why the MPAA oversaw this is truely a head scratcher. But what really got me was that when Aquarius released Lucio Fulci's THE BEYOND as THE SEVEN DOORS OF DEATH the American distributor removed all of the gore! So a D'Amato film get's away with the red stuff, but Fulci's far superior film goes through the re-editing machine. What was Terry Levine thinking!

In the end, BEYOND THE DARKNESS has some good D'Amato photography and direction, as well as a memorable score by Goblin. Yet D'Amato doesn't impress me with his overuse of nudity and so he doesn't go in my book as best Italian director. However, with the upcoming DVD release of D'Amato's KILLING BIRDS (1987), I might just give him another chance.

Coming up next is my review of CANNIBAL FEROX. Is this cannibal flick worthwhile, or am I just going to waste more of my precious time? Time will tell.

[Steven Millan]

                "Beyond The Darkness"/"Burial Ground" is an absolute cringe/gross-out classic,which was released unrated in N.Y. theaters(courtesy of that Aquarius Pictures scumbag Terry Levine,who reportedly enjoys his job as head mop-boy at a N.Y. theater),and has left truckloads of disgustedly grossed-out viewers(including my iron-stomached brother and his No. Cali buddies,who have all experienced every goss-out movie on the entire planet,and are all  very big "Cannibal Ferox"  fans).
             Otherwise,peace to (the much-missed) Joe D'Amato (even his porns were decent celluloid outings).

[Chopper]

yeah i haven't seem a whole lot of D'amato's work. however i have Troll 2 waiting for me which i will probably give a spin 2nite. i've been told by many it's the worst film created, lol.

[The Burgomaster]

Chris K wrote:

"Coming up next is my review of CANNIBAL FEROX. Is this cannibal flick worthwhile, or am I just going to waste more of my precious time? Time will tell."

CANNIBAL FEROX is my favorite cannibal movie. I even like it more than CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.

[Brother Ragnarok]

Cannibal Ferox/Make Them Die Slowly rocks.  Beyond the Darkness/Buried Alive is poop.  Reviews for both at good ol' bbm.monoperative.net (our domain name expired, renewal very soon).

Brother R