From Beyond

6.3

A far cry from director Stuart Gordon's previous film, Re-animator, From Beyond features the same two leads but lacks the magic that propelled the previous film into cult status. The concept of an invisible dimension in between our own makes an interesting premise that could easily deliver on the low budget gore Gordon's films are known for. Instead the film feels like a rather wasted effort, glossing over its detailed characters and straight-forward plot. The film strays in many different directions over its 85 minute runtime, never sure what story to follow. Character motivations are uneven and change at a moment's notice.

The low-budget passion of its predecessor remains, vicariously delivered through Jeffery Combs film-anchoring performance. Co-star Barbara Crampton is an enjoyable female lead, even if her character arc is terribly uneven. But the main pull of the film, the gore, is impressive even if it is in short bursts. With such an open premise, the gore is imaginative and comparable to horror heavyweight The Thing. Problem is, there just isn't a lot of it. There are worse ways to pass 80 minutes but the film is an overall disappointment, especially following the impeccable Re-animator.