Let Sleeping Corpses Lie (1974)

A cop chases two hippies suspected of a series of Manson family-like murders; unbeknownst to him, the real culprits are the living dead, brought to life with a thirst for human flesh by chemical pesticides being used by area farmers.

Director:

Jorge Grau

Writers:

Sandro Continenza, Marcello Coscia

Stars:

Cristina Galbó, Ray Lovelock, Arthur Kennedy

4 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cristina Galbó	...	Edna Simmonds (as Christine Galbo)
Ray Lovelock	...	George Meaning
Arthur Kennedy	...	The Inspector
Aldo Massasso	...	Detective Sgt. Kinsey
Giorgio Trestini	...	PC Craig
Roberto Posse	...	Benson
José Lifante	...	Martin West (as Jose Ruiz Lifante)
Jeannine Mestre	...	Katie West
Gengher Gatti	...	Keith
Fernando Hilbeck	...	Guthrie Wilson
Vera Drudi	...	Mary
Vicente Vega	...	Dr. Duffield
Francisco Sanz	...	Perkins
Paul Benson	...	Wood
Anita Colby	...	Nurse

Storyline

A cop chases two young people visiting the English countryside, suspecting them of a local murder; unbeknownst to him, the real culprits are the living dead, brought to life with a thirst for human flesh by radiation being used by area farmers as a pesticide alternative.

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Plot Keywords:

radiation | rural setting | riding a motorcycle | 1970s | zombie violence | 

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Taglines:

What ever's out there will wait!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Spain Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 June 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue

Filming Locations:

Barnes Hospital, Cheadle, Cheshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Star Films S.A., Flaminia Produzioni Cinematografiche

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min (R-rated) 93 min (unrated)

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's strange music score is partially made of moaning and breathing noises. It was director Jorge Grau who made these eerie sounds, as well as those for the zombies.

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Goofs

If you look at the lettering on the door while the police and George are at the Old Owl, you can see that owl is mistakenly spelled "Olw".

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Quotes

The Inspector: I wish the dead could come back to life, you bastard, so then I could kill you again.

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Alternate Versions

Japanese Laserdisc version contains a very bright, fully uncut, english dubbed version of the movie in its original aspect ratio

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Connections

Referenced in There's Nothing Out There (1991)

User Reviews

Well-made video nasty

On the video nasties list as simply The Living Dead (it has several other titles), I watched a version called Let Sleeping Corpses Lie, it is pretty difficult to see why this was on the list to begin with. Yes it has some gory moments, but nothing that is close to the opening of people as, say, The Boogeyman (1980), which was dropped from the DPP's (Director of Public Prosecution) list of films that were prosecuted and eventually banned. But then again, there are many strange entries on the list, as we will discover over this project.

The Living Dead begins with the serendipitous meeting of George (Ray Lovelock) and Edna (Christina Galbo) at an isolated garage. Two individuals traveling up north from "that London". Already condemned when they arrive in a small village, what with their hippie looks, they would most certainly be crazy drug-addled satanists. But something more sinister is occurring, as the living come back from the dead to eat the living.

Well, of course it's a zombie flick! It's implied in the title! It's not the greatest of films by a long shot. But it is a well-made film. The "message" is ecological; the culprit behind this macabre situation is an experimental machine from the department of agriculture, that emits radiation to combat insects etc for crops. Damn you government, with your ill-conceived ideas of progression!! The film does also produce a pretty amusing line from 'The Inspector', Arthur Kennedy; "I wish the dead could come back to life. Because then I could kill you again".

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