Bringing the dead back to life and regretting your decision shortly after is a concept often portrayed in horror films. Blumhouse’s take on this idea is their 2015 horror sci-fi film called “The Lazarus Effect.” A group of scientists conduct an illegal lab experiment and try to revive animals and later humans by injecting them with a serum they created called “The Lazarus Serum.” However, the back from the dead soon establishes that they are no longer meant for the human world. Even though it failed to satisfy the audience with a few plot holes in its storyline, the movie is applauded for Olivia Wilde’s convincing acting and a series of jumpscares thanks to its excellent cinematography. Alongside Olivia Wilde, the film stars Mark Duplass, Donald Glover, Evan Peters, and Sarah Bolger as Wilde’s colleagues who join her in the absurd lab experiment.
“The Lazarus Effect” is often compared to the 90s epic horror flick “Flatliners”. Based on resurrection and themes of scientific experiments turning into something sinister, it delves deep into the traditional blend of the two ever-friendly genres of horror and science fiction. Keeping up with its track of producing horror films, Blumhouse added another interesting concept to its wide range of horror film productions. Known for getting new and fresh talent onboard, Jason Blum trusted director David Gelb with this project. Despite having a background in making documentaries, Gelb nailed his first narrative film. The careful light and angle adjustments brought out the horror elements with admirable perfection in terms of visuals and cinematography.
Another notable achievement of the movie is its box office success. Being a low-budget horror movie comes with great challenges of its own, especially with a newbie director who is working and learning simultaneously. However, the film proved how horror caters to an audience that is loyal to the genre and grossed $38 million at the box office. Despite not being critically acclaimed, the movie carried profound themes and horrific details, like Olivia Wilde’s dark round eyes, which are nightmarishly creepy.
The Lazarus Effect (2015) Plot Summary and Movie Synopsis:
The movie begins with a pig being studied and injected with chemicals under operation lights. The group of scientists includes Dr. Frank Walton (Mark Duplass), his fianceé Dr. Zoe McConnell (Olivia Wilde), their assistants Niko (Donald Glover) and Clay (Evan Peters), and a friend who is documenting their experiment named Eva (Sarah Bolger). After an unsuccessful attempt, the team gathers and comes up with an alteration in the formula that may work and give them the desired results. It might help them create a serum that will bring the dead back to the living world and will be helpful to science.
The Lazarus Serum
Clay, who often smokes in the laboratory and is rebuked by Zoe, suggests certain changes in the formula, which his colleagues appreciate. They all try this new formula on a dog and try to bring it back to life. The experiment turns out to be successful, and the dog wakes up. They find his cataracts completely dissolved in his eyes, which they find bizarre. They later observe that the dog is showing usual behavior as well.
Then, Rocky (the dog) shows signs of extreme aggression, loses his appetite, and then attacks Clay after escaping from his cage. Clay reports it to his friends and says something is wrong with the animal. After careful inspection, they find the serum concentrated in Rocky’s brain, forming new synapses. This puts them in a state of worry as they conclude that the serum they have created so far is not as effective and needs further testing and improvement.
A Forbidden Experiment
While this group of scientists is working on the serum, their university dean finds out that they are not true to their word and are using the serum to resurrect dead people instead of working on the coma patients’ brains. She calls Frank and tells him it is not okay for him to lie and cancel their funding. Later on, they are raided by officers who work for the pharmaceutical company that bought the company funding their experiment.
The officers enter their laboratory and confiscate everything. When they leave, Frank and his colleagues mourn the loss of their work and doubt Eva for having leaked their secret experiment. Worrying about the future of their created serum, they discuss how they have lost all kinds of rights and will be completely stripped of any discovery that will be made through their created serum. They eventually decided to replicate the experiment to have some proof of their property.
They sneak into the building through Ava’s card, who volunteers to help them with the new experiment. As they attempt to execute, Zoe forgets to take off her engagement ring, gets electrocuted, and dies instantly. Frank mourns the loss of his love and decides to conduct the same experiment on Zoe. All of his colleagues discourage his idea, but caught in the emotions they choose to back him up and prepare for another experiment. They inject the Lazarus serum into Zoe’s body and revive her.
Zoe wakes up scared and confused, but Frank calms her down. Zoe tells them when she died, she relived the core memory of her childhood that she gets nightmares about in which Zoe is standing in a building that is on fire. Furthermore, Zoe explains that it was hell where you get to live your worst memory over and over again. Frank thinks Zoe had a near-death experience and does not believe her. She then begins to manifest psychic abilities as Zoe starts completing Frank’s unfinished sentences, which means she can read minds. Zoe also moves a pen by staring at it. Frank discovers that Zoe’s brain has rapidly evolved due to the experiment, and she now possesses telekinesis and telepathy.
The Lurking Evil
After discovering her supernatural abilities, Zoe finds her skin color changing and also sees an evil reflection of herself in the mirror. Her body goes through changes pretty fast, and Zoe begins losing her mind. As she rests on the couch, Ava reaches close to her and touches her elbow, which transports her into a dark corridor. Ava finds herself trapped in Zoe’s nightmare and spots a little girl standing. Ava asks her who she is, and she runs away. After waking up, she runs away and explains what happened to Frank. Upon describing the dream, he is shocked to hear that it is the same nightmare that Zoe often has.
Zoe tries to seduce Nick, but he refuses to comply. Zoe gets mad and uses her telekinetic abilities to throw him into a locker, crushing it just by looking at it. Blood starts dripping out of its cracks, and Nick dies inside. Zoe also tells Eva that she does not belong in this place and is not meant for great things, but as soon as Frank enters, she switches her face and acts innocent.
As Clay starts questioning her about Nick, Zoe cuts off the electricity in the entire lab and stares at him. She pushes the e-cigarette he is holding into his throat through telekinesis. When Eva and Frank try to get it out of her body, they find it gone, and Clay dies. Zoe’s eyes turn black, and she looks like she is pure evil. Eva and Frank figure out that Zoe is possessed, and they will have to kill her.
The Lazarus Effect (2015) Movie Ending Explained:
What Happened To Zoe McConnell?
Eva and Frank decide to kill Zoe and inject her with poison. Frank tells Eva to hold a syringe and not let her escape if he doesn’t come back. Frank finds Zoe in the corridor and tells her how he is trying to save her. She starts crying and seems convinced, but as soon as she touches Frank, she reads his mind and figures out he’s lying. She kills him on the spot.
Eva, with another syringe, is trying to locate Zoe when she catches herself in the middle of Zoe’s nightmare. She spots a little girl and runs to her. Eva asks her what’s in her fist and finds a matchbox, discovering that Zoe started the fire and locked her neighbors. It was her guilt that became her hell. The adult Zoe, who has injected herself with more Lazarus serum, moves towards her, but the girl opens the door, and a light takes over the scene. Zoe apologizes and dies when some firefighters enter the building and comfort Eva. She suddenly sees his face, and it is Zoe who snaps her neck and kills her. She then injects the serum into Frank’s dead body, and he revives.
Why Did Zoe Resurrect Frank?
Zoe is seen lining up dead bodies and reviving Frank and possibly all the other bodies present there. Even though there wasn’t any explanation given about this in the movie, it is clear that Zoe wanted to create an army of evil beings like hers. The obscure ending of the film seems intentional for fans to anticipate a sequel where they get to see an army of re-animated beings with wicked capabilities. Another reason for her reviving Frank could be her need to have the Lazarus Serum. It could be witnessed how she keeps injecting it into her body to attain strength and gain more and more of it. Due to the limited amount of serum created for the testing, she will eventually run out of it and would need Frank to create it for her, all while becoming her literal ‘partner in crime.’
The Lazarus Effect (2015) Movie Themes Analysed:
Desperation
This film shows the ultimate drive to do the unthinkable out of desperation. When the project is canceled, the scientists know what they are risking, yet in their desperation to prove themselves, they end up taking an illegal route to perform the forbidden experiment. Similarly, when Zoe dies, Frank, out of love, feels helpless and, out of desperation, decides to perform a flawed experiment, knowing it may not be for the best.
Humans Playing God
The theme of ‘trying to play God’ profoundly exists in the movie. When humans try to take unnatural means to fulfill their selfish desires, it always ends badly. Frank and Zoe take the grant to help coma patients but end up trying to bring the dead back to life. Even though they intend to do well, they go too far. Frank throws away his moral codes when he decides to do a defective experiment on his wife. Even though his colleagues warn him, he chooses to play God and revive Zoe.
Shadows Of the Past
The movie highlights how a painful past scars a person. The traumatic events of Zoe’s childhood never leave her, and she always feels trapped. It becomes her hell, and before turning downright evil, she relives the guilt of the fire she started. Her dark memories are part of the reason she is driven mad by the end of the movie.
