The Boneyard, Starring Norman Fell and Phyllis Diller

The 1991 horror movie The Boneyard has that rare quality that makes it better than good. It's unique. You haven't seen a movie like this. I like it quite a bit. I'm actually watching it right now. Here's some of the elements that make it off beat and original...

The "star" of this movie is Deborah Rose, a schlumpy, overweight Columbo female counterpart who plays the role of an empath who is hiding away so she doesn't have to face the police inspector who continually drags her into grisly investigations.It's an interesting choice in a lead role and one that starts the movie off on a path in the right direction. Then there's...

Norman Fell as the Coroner. Paired with his appearance in CHUD 2: Bud the CHUD, these are two of Fell's more fun movie roles. Norman Fell was a tailgunner in WW II. And a member of the Rat Pack. Heavy creds for a man in two dippy horror movies. Not enough to convince you this is one strange brew of a movie. 

Oh my god, it's a Phyllis Diller. When Phyllis Diller read the script for The Boneyard and discovered she was reading for the role of Mrs. Poopinplatz, she didn't complain, she embraced it. Besides...

They let her bring along her poodle Fifi and even wrote her into the movie...

As a demon poodle monster. Listen, a lot of stuff happens in this movie. It's a standard deviation or two above bad, and if you're a genre fan this is about as good as it gets for re-discovering underappreciated gems. The action eventually takes place in a morgue, and is adroitly done. Demon zombie children, all that. I forgot how it ends.

February 21, 2013 update: Nothing new to add I just wanted to restate that I really like this movie. 

January 27, 2018: Still like it. Norman Fell is still in it.

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