This 2008 release didn’t get much in the way of attention but it is actually a decent comedy horror. I Sell the Dead focuses on the career of a couple of resurrectionists, or bodysnatchers if you prefer. It kicks off with the decapitation of the elder partner and then his junior accomplice reveals what they’ve been up to via a series of flashbacks. It plays out like a series of disconnected scenes but the characterization is good, the cast is great and there are a few chuckles amidst the supernatural horror. The whole package is wrapped up in a cartoon style which gives it a comic book feel.

Willie Grimes and Arthur Blake are reminiscent of the infamous Burke and Hare. They visit graveyards in the dead of night, dig up corpses, steal anything worth stealing and then deliver the bodies to a local doctor so he can experiment on them. What begins as a macabre trade grounded in the real world soon takes on a supernatural hue as they begin to take special orders for better pay.

Their adventures are recounted by Blake as he sits in a cell awaiting his own execution. He is interviewed by a suspiciously curious priest and he decides to spill his guts on the whole sorry affair. It turns out the pair graduated from human cadavers to digging up supernatural beings like vampires and demons. After taking on a third partner, a vicious woman, they run up against a rival bodysnatching gang who don’t take kindly to newcomers and everything goes a bit wrong.

The writing is a strange blend of witty humour and scares. The film itself establishes a historical feel and then suddenly veers into the fantasy realm quite unexpectedly. The start or end of scenes is rendered in cartoon form as though they were lifted from a comic book but it is in fact just a stylish effect. There is no denying the action feels disjointed but each of the individual scenes is quite enjoyable and there is some slapstick humour as well.

The main reason it works is the cast. Willie Grimes is played Larry Fessenden who you may remember as the elder partner in the Return of the Living Dead duo. He has a great sense of comedy timing and he forms a good partnership here with Dominic Monaghan who plays Arthur Blake. Monaghan is the main narrator and he pulls off the role with skill. Ron Perlman pops up as Father Duffy, the priest who interviews Blake and he brings an edge to the proceedings. The rest of the cast are decent without any real stand out performances.

This is a stylish production. All too often the horror comedy blend is lazily done and serves as an excuse for the poor standard of the horror sequences. This genuinely creates the odd bit of tension but blends in some hilarity. It does have some weak moments but it is fresh and original which is a welcome rarity in the horror genre.