Generally mash-ups of different genres tend to not work too well. There might be a few exceptions here and there but for the most part it's usually not a good idea to bump two different types of movies together and hope for the best. This is probably why Glasgow Phillip's directorial debut, Undead Or Alive: A Zombedy, and its mix of Western with zombie movies isn't able to sustain itself for a full ninety minutes. Another problem is that Phillips doesn't seem sure if he wants to play this for broad laughs (courtesy of some slapstick moments and co-star Chris Kattan's dumb-as-dirt character) or for scares - he just doesn't seem able to balance it in such a way that the viewer is able to find a happy median.

Now, don't get me wrong here, I love some chuckles with my gut munching as much as the next guy, but when the movie you're watching feels more like it belongs on some watered-down television network like Comedy Central (but just so happens to have a little bit of swears and body parts) it left me a little bit perplexed.

Things even start on a "boy, is this going to be goofy!" note as a housewife and her daughter await the return of her husband only for him to turn out to be a zombie. As if it wasn't enough they're trapped in their house, Phillips decides it would be amusing to us to have the typical slapstick things happen to our newly undead daddy as he gets his foot stuck in a bucket and even steps on a rake slamming it into his melon. Hilarious, I tell you!

Into the picture comes the gruff cowboy Elmer (James Denton) who ends-up grudgingly befriending Luke (Chris Kattan) when they both end-up in the middle of a bar fight. Turns out Elmer is a Union solider on the lam and Luke is just a heartbroken, inept cowboy who was dense enough to fall for a local prostitute. But things are just beginning for the pair as they decide to rob the local sheriff Claypool (Matt Besser) while an outbreak of "Geronimo's Curse" (or, as it's more commonly known, "White Man's Curse") is spreading throughout the town turning people into zombies.

The rest of Undead Or Alive has Elmer and Luke becoming companions to a tough, New York educated Native woman named Sue (Navi Rawat, who gives us some eye candy and has to try and convince us that her character would be interested romantically with Kattan's) while trying to avoid the now undead Claypool, various Union soldiers, and a whole bunch of other zombie baddies.

While sporting make-up effects by Robert Kurtzman and getting by on okay chemistry between Denton's straight-man to Kattan's inherent goofball-ism, Phillips' decision to play this more for laughs than scares for the first half before shifting gears to mild gore in the second just doesn't play out too well. Also the addition of modern bands on the soundtrack and usage of curse words I doubt existed in the 1800's (such as "f*cktard", for example) just manages to drag the viewer out of the movie's timeframe and remind them they're watching a mildly entertaining spoof. Mel Brooks might have been able to pull off this mix in Blazing Saddles, but Phillips is definitely no Brooks.

However, I can't deny the fact that a few of the numerous effects gags work pretty well and the moment with the zombie shopkeeper is pretty damn decent, but at the same time there's a weakly edited moment where Claypool, his deputy and posse attack our heroes that unnecessarily cuts in scenes of Geronimo chanting around a fire as well as a "bleh" of a finale that feels like Phillips just didn't know how to end the movie. (Chris Hartley, 1/23/08)

Directed By: Glasgow Phillips.
Written By: Glasgow Phillips.

Starring: Chris Kattan, James Denton, Navi Rawat, Matt Besser.

Picture Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen.

Picture Quality: The transfer here does get a bit soft at times but for the most part is pretty clean looking and fairly sharp considering that a lot of the movie is made up of scenes of the desert and bright yellow mountain sides.

Extras: The main thing I noticed about the special features included on Undead Or Alive is that we're beaten over the head by the fact that Phillips once wrote for South Park (he was a staff writer during the sixth season). In fact, the making of featurette is even entitled "From South Park To The Wild Wild West" and Phillips even name drops co-creator Trey Parker early on.

Apart from this apparent piggy-backing on a popular television show, the making of really offers up not much of interest and plays like your standard EPK behind-the-scenes program. Also on the disc is the movie's trailer, a featurette on the zombie effects (which, I'm proud to report, were mostly practical ones), and a commentary track by Phillips with co-stars Denton and Nawat which is a pretty breezy listen, if mostly throwaway.

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