Dead Lover

A lonely gravedigger reanimates her dead lover, a dandy-ish romantic poet, in Grace Glowicki’s hornily hilarious twist on Frankenstein. A delightfully grotesque genre mashup, complete with camp theatrics, retro style, sticky practical effects and a surprisingly romantic message about the all-conquering potential of love.

In a moonlit churchyard, a lonely gravedigger (Grace Glowicki) dreams of finding love, but fears that the omnipresent stench of death has doomed her to be forever alone. That’s until one day a funeral brings her into contact with a flamboyant romantic poet (Ben Petrie), who seems to find her morbid stink an irresistible turn on. The pair declare their undying love for one another, but their passionate relationship is cut short when then the poet dies suddenly at sea. With nothing left but a severed finger, the resourceful gravedigger hatches a plan to reanimate her lost lover, setting into motion a chaotic, sexually charged tale of body snatching, bad poetry and unholy desires.

Canadian writer, director and performer Glowicki, has carved out a niche for singular low budget filmmaking, particularly through a series of collaborations with her creative partner Petrie (including most recently The Heirloom, which premiered at IFFR in 2024). In Dead Lover, Glowicki channels the retro theatrics of Hammer Horror and the fearless camp of John Waters to create a wholly unique, delightfully fetid take on the Frankenstein story. A horny, hilarious and unapologetically disgusting tale of love conquering all.

– Rachel Pronger