The Glorious Undead
I really really love horror films. One of my favourite types of horror films are zombie flicks. Here's a brief appraisal of some of the classics:
1. Night of the Living Dead
Pioneering zombie flic, a classic of the genre. It starts with a lone zombie meandering around a graveyard. The young couple think the zombie is just a fellow mourner until he starts trying to eat them! Cue an excellent prolonged chase as gradually more and more zombies appear, trapping them in a farmhouse... strange end to it aswell. The zombies look great in black and white. I often wondered where the image of the zombie came from- the stagger, the disheveled appearance, the rigid outstretched arms.
2. Dawn of the Dead
Sequel to the original also directed by George Romero. This time in vivid colour, the zombies are green/blue/yellow. The four survivors escape a zombie-infested Philly slum to land their helicopter at an isolated mega-mall. After purging the mall of the undead they enjoy the conforts of consumerism- new outfits everyday, plush apartment, preserved luxery fruits. Kindof cheesy social 70s commentry but images of zombies staggering round a shopping mall still hilarious.
3. Bodyparts
Excellent film directed by Eric Red (also co-wrote Near Dark, one of my favourite vampire films). A criminal psychiatrist loses his arm in a car crash and recieves a grafted limb from a recently executed mass murderer. Naturally, the new arm takes on a violent life of its own. Brilliant shots of him packing a bag and his hands looking different.
4. Reanimator
Medical student experiments with a serum capable of bringing dead tissue back to life- with massive zombie consequences. Excellent gore and really brilliant zombies. I love the scenes in the hospital mortuary.
5. The Evil Dead (I,II and III)
Whatever happened to Bruce Campbell? Checkout Evil Dead II and try telling me that Bruce didnt deserve to be an all-conquering superstar. My favourite scene is when the evil force infects Bruce's hand, which proceeds to attack him- really superb slapstick. The scene just gets better when Bruce amputates the hand, which then runs away! Other highlights include Bruce putting his zombified girlfriend's head in a vice and applying a chainsaw; the excellent roving camera shots through the forest and any scene involving the cabin basement/trapdoor.
1. Night of the Living Dead
Pioneering zombie flic, a classic of the genre. It starts with a lone zombie meandering around a graveyard. The young couple think the zombie is just a fellow mourner until he starts trying to eat them! Cue an excellent prolonged chase as gradually more and more zombies appear, trapping them in a farmhouse... strange end to it aswell. The zombies look great in black and white. I often wondered where the image of the zombie came from- the stagger, the disheveled appearance, the rigid outstretched arms.
2. Dawn of the Dead
Sequel to the original also directed by George Romero. This time in vivid colour, the zombies are green/blue/yellow. The four survivors escape a zombie-infested Philly slum to land their helicopter at an isolated mega-mall. After purging the mall of the undead they enjoy the conforts of consumerism- new outfits everyday, plush apartment, preserved luxery fruits. Kindof cheesy social 70s commentry but images of zombies staggering round a shopping mall still hilarious.
3. Bodyparts
Excellent film directed by Eric Red (also co-wrote Near Dark, one of my favourite vampire films). A criminal psychiatrist loses his arm in a car crash and recieves a grafted limb from a recently executed mass murderer. Naturally, the new arm takes on a violent life of its own. Brilliant shots of him packing a bag and his hands looking different.
4. Reanimator
Medical student experiments with a serum capable of bringing dead tissue back to life- with massive zombie consequences. Excellent gore and really brilliant zombies. I love the scenes in the hospital mortuary.
5. The Evil Dead (I,II and III)
Whatever happened to Bruce Campbell? Checkout Evil Dead II and try telling me that Bruce didnt deserve to be an all-conquering superstar. My favourite scene is when the evil force infects Bruce's hand, which proceeds to attack him- really superb slapstick. The scene just gets better when Bruce amputates the hand, which then runs away! Other highlights include Bruce putting his zombified girlfriend's head in a vice and applying a chainsaw; the excellent roving camera shots through the forest and any scene involving the cabin basement/trapdoor.
posted by DrIRH at 8:06 PM
5 Comments:
dont forget the brit zombie flick renaissance: shaun of the dead and 28 days later jerk to the top of the twitching pile.
check out brit horror:
http://www.britishhorrorfilms.co.uk/date.shtml
check out 1971. britain was a terror factory...
Sunday, 3.45pm. Sounds harmless. But I'm a night creature, a terrorbrit. Its nearly midnight BST. Hunched over a flickering monitor in a dark dark room, in a dark dark house, in a dark....
Thanks for the link terrorbrit- excellent to see the full extent of our nation's terror heritage.
Did you ever listen to the Chris Morris BlueJam radio show? there's a great sketch with a baby zombie.
woke up in the middle of the night and thought i'd do some light reading to help me fall asleep. checked out your website, BIG MISTAKE. Nooooo! This is not what I need right now. Erase images from brain, retreat. irh, that post needs an escape link to photos of fluffy bunnies or sheep jumping over fences.
Escape link to cute bunny:
http://www.fleetie.demon.co.uk/images/cute_baby_bunny.jpg
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