What 1985 horror-comedy features a cemetery where zombies rise and eat brains?

What 1985 horror-comedy features a cemetery where zombies rise and eat brains? The answer is The Return of the Living Dead. Dan O’Bannon’s film follows warehouse workers and a group of punk teenagers after a toxic military chemical accidentally reanimates corpses in a nearby cemetery.

The movie helped establish several ideas that became standard in popular zombie fiction. Its zombies specifically crave human brains, explaining that eating them temporarily eases the pain of being dead. They are also unusually difficult to destroy: shooting them in the head does not reliably stop them, and even separated body parts remain active. These rules distinguish the film from George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead series.

The film combines gruesome horror with punk style and dark comedy. Its soundtrack features bands including The Cramps, 45 Grave, T.S.O.L., and The Damned. Although set in Louisville, Kentucky, much of it was filmed in California. The Return of the Living Dead became a cult classic and produced four sequels.