Dead Heat (1988)

Roger Mortis and Doug Bigelow are cops that are chasing crooks that are dead serious about crime. Or should I say they are chasing dead crooks perpetrating serious crimes? Seems some ... See full summary »

Director:

Mark Goldblatt

Writer:

Terry Black

Stars:

Treat Williams, Joe Piscopo, Lindsay Frost

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Treat Williams	...	Det. Roger Mortis
Joe Piscopo	...	Det. Doug Bigelow
Lindsay Frost	...	Randi James
Darren McGavin	...	Dr. Ernest McNab
Vincent Price	...	Arthur P. Loudermilk
Clare Kirkconnell	...	Dr. Rebecca Smythers
Keye Luke	...	Mr. Thule
Robert Picardo	...	Lieutenant Herzog
Mel Stewart	...	Captain Mayberry
Professor Toru Tanaka	...	Butcher
Martha Quinn	...	Newscaster
Ben Mittleman	...	Bob
Peter Kent	...	Smitty
Cate Caplin	...	Saleswoman
Monica Lewis	...	Mrs. Von Heisenberg

Storyline

Roger Mortis and Doug Bigelow are cops that are chasing crooks that are dead serious about crime. Or should I say they are chasing dead crooks perpetrating serious crimes? Seems some nutcase has learned how to bring back the dead and is sending them on crime sprees. Now these indestructable goons are in the way of officers Mortis and Bigelow. To even things up, when Mortis is killed (in the line of duty, of course) he gets a jump start from the Resurrection machine and takes the fight to the zombie bad guys.

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Plot Keywords:

zombie | opening action scene | police officer shot | splatter | science | 

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Taglines:

You can't keep a good cop dead.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 May 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Flic ou zombie

Filming Locations:

Japanese Garden, Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant - 6100 Woodley Avenue, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$3,588,626 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Helpern / Meltzer

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The lead character is Roger Mortis. Mortis is the Latin word for "death".

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Goofs

Roger copies down the number found inside the lampshade at Loudermilk's crypt. This number is 2639362867. He later deduces that this number was used as code to spell out "BODYDOC", Dr. McNab's license plate. While the first 7 numbers could spell that out, what about the last 3 numbers at the end? All 10 together could spell out "BodyDoctor", leading to the deduction of the plate number.

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Quotes

Det. Doug Bigelow: [to a dead body] You are under arrest. You have the right to remain disgusting.

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Connections

Spoofs Casablanca (1942)

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Soundtracks

"Dead Heat"
Written by John Huckert (as John W. Huckert Jr.), Patrick Read Johnson & Phil Settle (as Philip J. Settle)
Performed by Phil Settle
Copyright © 1987 by: Sarah Beth Songs BMI

User Reviews

Fast-paced, Fun Horror-Action Film

Perhaps the only time zombies, cops, and a generous dose of humour have been infused together on film. Dead Heat is a fun, drive-in type feature with Treat William and Joe Piscapo starring as two cops in the style of something seen in Lethal Weapon. These cops have not done everything by the book and are in the middle of a crime wave where a different pair of armed thugs have been robbing jewelry stores and banks in broad daylight with no fear of being shot down(or having the weakness of being killed with any ease at all). Well, through some investigation, our two protagonists discover that a machine exists that can bring back the dead for twelve hours - and one of the cops gets his and is placed on the machine. Now, we have zombie cop against zombie criminals and one silly, fun, action-packed film on hand. Director Mark Goldblatt never tries to make this film anything more than what it is supposed to be. The actors don't try either, which is good when you have a script that only has so much elasticity. Williams is good in his role, and Piscapo definitely has limited range, but I really thought he did a much better job than his lack of acting gigs since would suggest. One major plus is the core of veteran screen actors with Darren Mcgavin, venerable Keye Luke, and the elder statesman of horror Vincent Price in attendance. Price has a small role but is still able to keep your attention. This was one of his last films. The same for Luke who I always felt was very underrated. Lindsay Frost is aboard as major eye candy. The special effects are interesting to say the least. The make-up used on the criminal zombies has a fake feel like big puppets at some points and at others is pretty good. The scene in a Chinese restaurant is a hoot - a very ridiculous hoot. Dead Heat again is nothing grand or thought-provoking or even scary, but it is a very fun film and should illicit a few laughs.