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They Came Back (2004)

They Came Back (2004)
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The recently dead return to life in They Came Back, but they are surprisingly uninterested in feasting on the living. Many of them are, naturally enough, elderly, and they seem content merely to go back to their former lives, but their return causes a myriad of complications. Robin Campillo, making his feature directorial debut, co-wrote the script to Laurent Cantet's Time Out, and his "zombie" movie quietly examines the individual and societal impact the dead have on the small French city -- just one of many similarly afflicted throughout the world -- to which they return. Isham (Djemel Barek) and Véronique (Marie Matheron) have their trepidations, but they're generally happy, at first, to see their little boy Sylvain (Saady Delas), and the town's elderly mayor (Victor Garrivier) welcomes home his wife, Martha (Catherine Samie). But Rachel (Géraldine Pailhas of 5x2), a government health official, cannot bring herself to visit her newly returned husband, Mathieu (Jonathan Zaccaï of Seaside), at the ad-hoc shelter where the government houses the "zombies" like refugees. Eventually, she relents, and Mathieu returns home, but the living find that their loved ones are not exactly as they remember them. Studies soon reveal that the dead suffer from a form of aphasia. They cannot create new memories, and they cannot be trusted to perform any but the most menial tasks. Perhaps sensing the discomfort they cause the living, the dead gather together at night, and seem to be formulating some kind of secret plan. They Came Back was selected by the Museum of Modern Art and the Film Society of Lincoln Center for inclusion in the 2005 edition of New Directors/New Films. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

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Starring:
Géraldine PailhasJonathan Zaccaï, (more)
Director(s):
Robin Campillo
Format(s):
DVD
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Synopsis of They Came Back

The recently dead return to life in They Came Back, but they are surprisingly uninterested in feasting on the living. Many of them are, naturally enough, elderly, and they seem content merely to go back to their former lives, but their return causes a myriad of complications. Robin Campillo, making his feature directorial debut, co-wrote the script to Laurent Cantet's Time Out, and his "zombie" movie quietly examines the individual and societal impact the dead have on the small French city -- just one of many similarly afflicted throughout the world -- to which they return. Isham (Djemel Barek) and Véronique (Marie Matheron) have their trepidations, but they're generally happy, at first, to see their little boy Sylvain (Saady Delas), and the town's elderly mayor (Victor Garrivier) welcomes home his wife, Martha (Catherine Samie). But Rachel (Géraldine Pailhas of 5x2), a government health official, cannot bring herself to visit her newly returned husband, Mathieu (Jonathan Zaccaï of Seaside), at the ad-hoc shelter where the government houses the "zombies" like refugees. Eventually, she relents, and Mathieu returns home, but the living find that their loved ones are not exactly as they remember them. Studies soon reveal that the dead suffer from a form of aphasia. They cannot create new memories, and they cannot be trusted to perform any but the most menial tasks. Perhaps sensing the discomfort they cause the living, the dead gather together at night, and seem to be formulating some kind of secret plan. They Came Back was selected by the Museum of Modern Art and the Film Society of Lincoln Center for inclusion in the 2005 edition of New Directors/New Films. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Theatrical Feature Running Time:
103 mins

Complete Cast of They Came Back


Director(s):
Robin Campillo
Writer(s):
Robin CampilloBrigitte Tijou
Producer(s):
Carole ScottaCaroline Benjo
Categories:
HorrorIndependent Films
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Member Reviews
 
Alan G.

First, I really-really enjoyed this movie. Second, it is a mistake to classify this as a "Horror" movie. It is a very quiet film loaded with layers focusing on society and death. It is not a plausible "zombie" movie, they do not crawl out of graves and eat people. The acting is intensly unnerving, and the depth of the plot left me critically thinking through the subjects. If you want gore, rent Dawn of the Dead. If you want to use your brain on the subject of society and death, this is a MUST SEE.

Yes   |   No

 
Christina P.

A refreshingly different take on the zombie theme. A bit slow, and my mind wandered in the second half. There are also some plot holes that you have to overlook. But it was interesting to see such a calm reaction to such a huge event.

Yes   |   No

 
Dorrelle S.

Very philosphical, done as high art. Executed with a calm that I've never seen in any American film. Director obviously not afraid of long pauses and lack of movement. Thought it offered realism. An overwhleming situation doesn't always cause scurrying, sometimes it results in dumbfounded shock. That was new, liked experiencing that. Does beg the freakin question "What did they come back for??!" and yr not gonna get much. But it was done very well and at the end felt a little slighted but still fulfilled taking the ride. Really liked this new take on "horror" idea. Jonathan Zaccai's big pretty eyes made me so sad, but kept me glued.

Yes   |   No

 
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