With the recent confirmation of the first Irish case of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), the release of Dead Meat is a little unfortunate since it focuses on a particularly virulent strain of the disease which turns normal Leitrim folks into bloodthirsty zombies. At the heart of the slight script is Helena (Araujo), a woman whose boyfriend becomes a member of the undead after being bitten by a man he ran over on a back road. Helena quickly realises that her partner's conversion isn't a one-off as a stream of zombies are populating the Leitrim countryside and out for blood. Local shovel-welding gravedigger Desmond (Mallard) becomes an ally as does Cathal (Whelan), a surly native who puts his hurling skills to good use when it comes to the undead.
Billed as Ireland's first ever horror movie (a claim which conveniently ignores the existence of Far & Away), Dead Meat is Conor McMahon's debut feature after his hotly tipped short, Braineater. Yet by its very definition, the zombie movie is borne of very limited parameters, and it's one that depends greatly on a knowing sense of humour to prevail. That McMahon's movie is at least making the effort to be different deserves praise, but once the basic premise is established, the script becomes crushingly repetitious and the uneven comedy-serious tone means that Dead Meat promises much more than it delivers.
