Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things

As the theatre troupe sets sail for the mysterious island, their director Alan (Alan Ormsby) weaves a web of intrigue, regaling his "children" with spine-tingling tales of the island's dark past. The group's excitement is palpable as they disembark and make their way to a rustic cottage, where they're promised a night of revelry and merriment.

However, Alan's true intentions are far more sinister than a simple game or two. As the sun dips below the horizon, he dons a mystical robe and unfurls a grimoire, setting the stage for a Satanic ritual that promises to raise the dead. The troupe is initially skeptical, but as midnight approaches, they're treated to a spectacle of morbid fascination as Alan digs up the grave of Orville Dunworth (Seth Sklarey) and begins the incantation.

The outcome is far from what anyone had anticipated. Though Alan's original intention may have been nothing more than a twisted joke, his "children" are left feeling uneasy and unfulfilled. The director's disappointment is palpable, but it's short-lived, as the night takes a dark turn. Alan's sadistic streak is on full display as he uses Orville's lifeless body to regale the troupe with grotesque jokes.

But just as things can't get any worse, they take a macabre turn for the better. The dead begin to stir, their reanimated bodies shambling towards the group with an unnatural hunger. Panic sets in as the troupe realizes they're trapped in the old house, forced to come up with a plan to outsmart their undead pursuers.

Desperation gives way to determination as the group concocts a strategy to lure the zombies to the front of the house while one of their own, Paul, makes a break for it through the back door. But fate has other plans. Paul is ambushed by a relentless horde, his screams echoing through the night as he's consumed by the very evil they'd hoped to outrun. The troupe is left to face the music, trapped and helpless in the midst of a living nightmare.

As desperation sets in, the group makes a final plea to the ancient tome, hoping to conjure a spell that will banish the undead back to their eternal slumber. Miraculously, it seems to work, and the zombies begin to disintegrate into the forest, their lifeless bodies dissolving like mist in the morning sun. However, the group's haste proves their undoing as they forget to honor the sacred rule of reburial for Orville's corpse, leaving his restless spirit to stir once more.

The consequences are swift and brutal: Jeff and Val fall victim to the relentless horde, while Alan and Anya flee back to the relative safety of the house. But even that haven proves fleeting as the undead breach the door, pursuing them up the stairs with unrelenting ferocity. In a last-ditch effort to save his own skin, Alan sacrifices Anya to the ravenous hordes, only to find himself stalked by the zombies who continue to fixate on him.

With no escape in sight, Alan retreats to the bedroom where he had left Orville's lifeless form, hoping to find solace in the familiar surroundings. But his respite is short-lived as Orville's corpse animates into a grotesque mockery of life, its malevolent spirit now consumed by a hunger for vengeance. With a swift and merciless attack, Orville brings Alan crashing down, before being joined by the rest of the undead horde that bursts through the bedroom door.

As the credits roll, the camera pans out to reveal the zombies swarming onto Alan's boat, their mindless moans carried on the Miami breeze as the city lights twinkle like diamonds in the darkness.