Review: I'll Take Your Dead

Director: Chad Archibald

Screenplay: Jayme Laforest y Chad Archibald

Year: 2018

Synopsis: William’s work is to make bodies from gang-related murders disappear. One of the bodies delivered to him is that of a woman that ended up not being dead. William heals her and keeps her confined while he figures out what to do with her. But the people that wanted her dead get the news that she is still alive and want to finish what they started.

“I’ll Take Your Dead” is a well-assembled amalgam of genres in a single story. In the horror part, the one that interests us the most in these waters, we have the protagonist William, who disposed of the corpses of mobsters by dismembering them and dissolving them in acid in a very professional way, if it can be put like that. Because of this work he has earned the nickname “The Candy Butcher”. On the other hand, we have his daughter Gloria, a preteen that has been exposed to death for a good amount of her life and who can see the ghosts of the people his father has disposed of in their home in a “The Sixth Sense” style. Even in the first minutes, they use a variation of the mythical phrase “I see dead people”; a clear wink to this classic.

As we get deeper into the home of the butcher, we leave behind the horror, as paradoxical as it may seem, to give way to a family drama. The butcher becomes simply Willian, who lately suffered the loss of his wife in the hands of leukemia. Now he sees himself in the need to raise and support their daughter on his own, something that grows more difficult every time because of his work and his daughters' age, who is entering adolescence. These family ties between father, the defunct mother, and daughter is key to the development of the plot, as many events turn around this.

Since the first minutes “I’ll Take Your Dead” prepares you for what will be the style and topics of the movie. In the first scenes, we see a montage that puts everything in perspective: William doing his job presented explicitly, Gloria imitating his dad’s work with a teddy bear in a way that is as macabre as it is touching, and the ghost roaming around the house to settle an uncomfortable atmosphere.

While this mixture of genres (dismemberment, ghosts, gangs, and family drama) could have been a recipe for a disastrous movie, in this one is what makes it stand out. Much of the credit is thanks to the script, who manages to blend well all these genres and create an interesting and balanced story. The script from Jayme Laforest (“Bite”) and Chad Archibald (“The Heretics”), as well as the directions of the same Archibald,  has plenty of merit in creating a solid story, where every idea that is presented is developed and has an important role in the ending. My only critique is that the supernatural aspect could have been used better, but it is not something to take you out of the enjoyment of the movie.

Other elements important in making the story be so captivating is the acting and the ambiance. The plot is focused on three characters, William, interpreted by Aidan Devine (‘“A History of Violence”), Gloria interpreted by Ava Preston (“Odd Squad”), and Jackie, one of the bodies William had to dispose of but ended up not being dead, interpreted by Jess Salgueiro (“Orphan Black”). The interactions between these three characters are what gives us the background and personality of each and make us interested in them and the good job in the acting is key here. On the other hand, the type of job William does and the supernatural evens, combined with limited lightning keeps the ambient tense, even in the most emotive moments.

“I’ll Take Your Dead” is a well-balanced and very entertaining movie. I was pleasingly surprised by how the different topics are blended to create a well-crafted and interesting story. It is a movie worth watching.