Dead in Tombstone
Dead in Tombstone is a 2013 American direct-to-video action-horror Western film produced by Universal 1440 Entertainment. It was directed by Roel Reiné and written by Shane Kuhn and Brendan Cowles. The film stars Danny Trejo as Guerrero, a gang leader who gets double-crossed by his fellow gang members. Striking a pact with the Devil after entering Hell, he resurfaces to the earthly world to avenge his own death by killing the men who murdered him. The film was released in home media on October 22, 2013 and was followed by a sequel, Dead Again in Tombstone (2017).
Dead in Tombstone | |
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DVD cover | |
Directed by | Roel Reiné |
Produced by | Mike Elliott |
Written by | Shane Kuhn Brendan Cowles |
Starring | |
Music by | Hybrid |
Cinematography | Roel Reiné |
Edited by | Radu Ion |
Production company | Universal 1440 Entertainment |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 100 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Plot
In the Frontier of the Wild West, Red Cavanaugh is to be hanged for his crimes. Calm, he says that every man at the gallows will be dead before sunrise. Moments later, the Blackwater Gang – Baptiste, Darko, Ramos, Snake, and Washington – arrive led by his half-brother Guerrero De La Cruz. After slaughtering everyone and freeing Red, they retreat. The next morning, Red tells them about Edendale, Colorado, where gold ore is being stored in a bank until a mineral dispute can be settled. Guerrero agrees to steal it, so long as they avoid unnecessary deaths. After the seven rob the bank, Red betrays Guerrero, as he had acquired the deed to the mine and desires to take over the town. He shoots Guerrero, and despite Guerrero's orders, Red convinces the rest of the gang to turn on him; they all shoot Guerrero to death.
Finding himself in Hell, Guerrero meets Lucifer, whom he had seen recently in his dreams. Guerrero bargains with him, to allow him to return to Earth and to kill his former gang, so that the fires of Hell can grow hotter than he alone can stoke with his flesh. Intrigued by this, Lucifer grants Guerrero 24 hours to slay all six of his betrayers or his soul will remain damned to Hell; Satan tells him that only Guerrero can kill the six, dissuading him from asking for help. Guerrero wakens one year to the day of his death and makes his way back to town now called "Tombstone" in his memory.
Ramos, shaken by an omen earlier, returns to his home and witnesses two of his farmhands killed before confronting Guerrero, whom he does not immediately recognize. After Guerrero puts together his guns, a feat only he and Red could accomplish, Ramos recognizes him, and he is shot to death. Taking his clothes, Guerrero has the local pastor set up six pine boxes as coffins and stations Ramos in one of them. The following morning, Baptiste and Darko discover Ramos and invade a nearby slaughterhouse. After a stand-off with Baptiste and his men, Guerrero kills Baptiste but realizes that he still bleeds like a mortal. Darko tells Red about the stranger killing them off, and he sends Washington to the mine to insure that the man protecting them from the law is paid off in full. The gang goes to the saloon where Guerrero is and a firefight ensues. After defeating them, Guerrero sees the former sheriff's widow, Calathea, about to kill Red and stops her, but he is trampled by Red's horse as he flees town. Waking sometime later, he explains to her and Father Paul about his situation. Showing him Darko's dead body, whom he'd killed during the saloon brawl, Calathea agrees to help him, and the two make their way to the mine.
In the mine, it is revealed that Judah Clark, a Marshall, is aiding Red and protecting Red for access to the gold. They leave Washington and Snake to finish off Guerrero, but he turns the tables and kills Washington as he and Calathea escape back to town with his body. After an intense chase, they return to town. In a stand-off, Guerrero kills Snake with a gunshot to the eye, but he is quickly shot down and Calathea is captured. Lucifer, still intrigued by Guerrero's tenacity returns him to life with one hour remaining on his deadline. After a mob tries to kill Red, he takes Calathea captive and confronts his brother, who convinces him to a fair duel. Lucifer cheats with seconds remaining on the clock, and Red and Guerrero instead battle by hand. Guerrero gains the upper hand and kills Red, but two minutes after his time is up.
Entering the church, Lucifer informs Guerrero of his failure, but does not want to condemn him to Hell. Instead, he forces Guerrero to kill outlaws to pay off his debt. Now, with Edendale out of danger, Guerrero rides off into the countryside, looking for his next bounty to collect for Hell.
Cast
- Danny Trejo as Guerrero De La Cruz, the betrayed and fallen leader of the Blackwater Gang. He has been resurrected by Lucifer as an undead vigilante in order to find and kill the members of Blackwater, so that Lucifer can collect their souls.[2]
- Anthony Michael Hall as Red "Rojo" Cavanaugh, De La Cruz's half-brother.[3]
- Mickey Rourke as Lucifer, a proud, fallen archangel of rebellion and one of the seven princes of Hell, known among mortals as the Devil or Satan. Lucifer offers Guerrero a chance at redemption by sending him back to Earth and giving him a mission to hunt down his old gang so that he can collect their souls.[4]
- Ronan Summers as Ramos, gang-member.
- Emil Hostina as Baptiste, gang-member.
- Ovidiu Niculescu as Darko, gang-member.
- Radu Andrei Micu as Washington, gang-member.
- Edward Akrout as Snake, gang-member.
- Colin Mace as Marshall Judah Clark.
- James Carroll Jordan as Father Paul, Edendale's pastor.
- Dina Meyer as Calathea "Cal" Massey, wife of Edendale's sheriff.[5]
- Daniel Lapaine as Sheriff Bob Massey.
Production
Danny Trejo signed on as Guerrero, leader of the Blackwater Gang. Anthony Michael Hall played Guerrero's traitorous half-brother Red. Mickey Rourke was cast as The Devil.[6] The film was directed by Roel Reine and written by Shane Kuhn and Brendan Cowles.[7] Filming commenced in around April 2012. Filming locations included Bucharest, Romania.[6]
Soundtrack
Dead in Tombstone (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ||||
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Soundtrack album by Hybrid | ||||
Released | October 15, 2013 | |||
Producer | Mike Truman, Chris Healings, Charlotte James | |||
Hybrid soundtrack chronology | ||||
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For the film's music, director Reine wanted "a contemporary score for a traditional film with a unique twist". The music was composed by the British electronic music group Hybrid, comprising Michael Truman, Chris Healings and Charlotte James. The soundtrack was released on October 15, 2013, by Back Lot Records.[1][8]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Meet The Blacksmith" | 1:18 |
2. | "Beat The Devil’s Tattoo" | 3:31 |
3. | "The River To Edendale" | 2:05 |
4. | "Gunfighters Are In Town" | 1:49 |
5. | "No Need To Be A Hero" | 2:45 |
6. | "I Shot The Sheriff" | 3:01 |
7. | "Deal With The Devil" | 2:44 |
8. | "Guerrero Is Back" | 2:48 |
9. | "Clock Starts Ticking" | 2:14 |
10. | "The Meat Market" | 4:40 |
11. | "They Killed My Husband" | 2:09 |
12. | "Blackwater Siege" | 2:07 |
13. | "It's Been A While" | 4:00 |
14. | "Stay Sharp Guerrero" | 3:15 |
15. | "Odds Favour House" | 2:00 |
16. | "He’s My Brother" | 6:09 |
17. | "Washington" | 2:14 |
18. | "The Chase" | 2:32 |
19. | "This Is The West" | 4:14 |
20. | "Six Feet Under" | 2:54 |
Total length: | 58:38 |
Release
Earlier reports stated that the film would be released in December 2012.[9] This proved to be untrue. Dead in Tombstone was first released on digital download platforms on October 8, 2013.[6] It was released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 22, 2013.[1]
Reception
Scott Weinberg of Fearnet called it "visually amusing, but narratively arid".[10] Tyler Foster of DVD Talk rated it 2/5 stars and wrote that the film wastes a great idea with inept directing.[11] Patrick Naugle of DVD Verdict wrote that the execution does not live up to the "fascinating concept".[12] David Maine of Pop Matters rated it 6/10 stars and called it enjoyable for what it is.[13]
Sequel
In 2017, Danny Trejo reprised his role for Dead Again in Tombstone, also directed by Roel Reiné.
References
- Abraham, Anthony (October 9, 2013). "'Dead in Tombstone' Soundtrack Sets Release Date (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- Keyes, Rob (12 September 2017). "Dead Again in Tombstone EXCLUSIVE: Cowboy Town With Danny Trejo". Screen Rant. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- Weintraub, Steve Frosty (22 October 2013). "Anthony Michael Hall Talks DEAD IN TOMBSTONE, What It's Like to Play a Badass Western Villain, THE DEAD ZONE, Working with Christopher Nolan on THE DARK KNIGHT, and More". Collider. Complex Media, Inc. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- Gallagher, Brian (16 March 2012). "Mickey Rourke, Danny Trejo, and Anthony Michael Hall Are Dead in Tombstone". MovieWeb. Watchr Media. Cassius Network. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- B., Brian (15 October 2013). "Danny Trejo, Anthony Michael Hall and Dina Meyer Talk Dead in Tombstone". MovieWeb. Watchr Media. Cassius Network. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- "From the Set of Dead in Tombstone, Starring Danny Trejo". ComingSoon.net. October 4, 2013. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- Fleming, Jr. (March 15, 2012). "Anthony Michael Hall, Danny Trejo, Mickey Rourke Set For 'Dead In Tombstone'". Deadline. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- "'Dead in Tombstone' Soundtrack Announced". Film Music Reporter. October 9, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- Chitwood, Adam. "First Trailer for Western DEAD IN TOMBSTONE Starring Danny Trejo, Anthony Michael Hall, and Mickey Rourke". Collider. Missing or empty
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(help) - Weinberg, Scott (October 28, 2013). "FEARNET Movie Review: 'Dead in Tombstone'". Fearnet. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- Foster, Tyler (October 13, 2013). "Dead in Tombstone [Unrated] (Blu-ray)". DVD Talk. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- Naugle, Patrick (October 29, 2013). "Dead in Tombstone (Blu-ray)". DVD Verdict. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- Maine, David. "Dead in Tombstone". Pop Matters. Retrieved July 27, 2014.