One of the Best Zombie Rises

Tonight’s post is more of a reflection than anything analytical, although I am sure that it will inevitably go that route but still. As many of you know I saw Zombie (aka Zombi 2) at the Music Box during a zombie film festival and I really enjoyed it. There were two aspects of the film that I enjoyed and they were the way things were executed and shot, and the brilliant score by Fabio Frizzi. Personally I think there is one scene, or sequences, that takes these two elements and throws them together flawlessly… and that scene was the rise of the zombies. It was so haunting and yet so epic, for lack of a better term.

Please watch the clip:

I guess what I love about these scenes is that the zombies rise out of the ground in the typical zombie nature: stiff, eyes closed, slow and drone-like but what I also like is the POV of the zombie rising out of the ground. I feel that it adds to the mysteriousness I guess. The close ups also a well done since it puts your right there and exposes you to the dirty grittiness of the film. The shot where the zombies are walking through the abandoned town gave me chills because it was so reminiscent of Night of the Living Dead but it had a touch of Western to it. It just felt right.

I don’t know, I think I am just rambling about nothing but I would argue that this is one of the best ‘zombies coming out of the ground’ scenes ever. I’m also sure that Carpenter was inspired by this when he filmed Vampires, when Valek and his minions rise from the ground.

Note: The clip was taken from YouTube so that's why the quality is so bad.

Terror in the Aisles 4: Undead By Dawn

This past Friday, Portage Theater hosted another Terror in the Aisles but this time it was aimed towards the zombie subculture, so naturally I had to tag along. This time around they were going to show Night of the Living Dead and Fulci’s Zombie on 35mm print and then they presented to us REC 2, the Midwest premiere. In between each break there would be ‘trailer trash’ and independent short zombie films. It’s also good to note that I finally realized who actually started the Terror in the Aisles film festival and it was none other than Chicago’s own… Rusty Nails.

The evening started off with 20 minutes of trailer trash that was somehow consolidated into 3 trailers. The first trailer was for the brilliant film Mean Streets. The second trailer was for the gorefest that is Dead Alive and the last trailer was for Gobstopper, which I have to talk about.

Gobstopper

I’ll admit, when I saw the trailer for this I let out an expression of slight disgust because I thought the concept for it was really tacky and stupid. However, I warmed up to the idea of a Willie Wonka going bat-shit insane and using real people to make his candy. I found it hysterical that Christopher Lloyd agreed to play the part of the crazed chocolatier. Slugworth is racked up in chains and on the verge of death, the Oompa Loompas have bloody handprints on their shirts; it all looks like great fun and I would love to see it.

Official site.

Afterwards the showed us a brief 20 minute clip for One for the Fire: The Legacy of ‘Night of the Living Dead’ and I was a little bored by the clip, but than again… it was only half of the movie so I would want to see the full film eventually.

And now for the films:

Night of the Living Dead

This was shown on a 35mm print and it was nice to see this in the theater as opposed to watching it late night on TV. I forgot how character driven the film was and how the arcs molded out throughout the film. I also forgot how Barbra looked completely stoned out of her mind the whole time, specifically when she is touching the lace on the couch. It’s also nice to note that the zombies in these films are significantly more brutal than the latter Romero zombies because they pick up rocks and bash in windows.

There was a Q&A with Bill Heinzman afterwards and he was the man who started it all, the very first zombie to ever appear in Night of the Living Dead and the first modern zombie. He was a fun guy and he did his zombie walk for all of us.

Bill recalling his time working for George.

Bill doing his zombie walk for the audience.
And the crowd goes wild!

Me and Bill.
I know, I’m a fan boy.

REC 2

I did not see REC but I did see Quarantine and from what I know, Quarantine is a direct, almost word-for-word remake of REC so I did understand what was going on in REC 2. All I can say is that I really enjoyed this film and I enjoyed the perspective of having 3 different cameras. Even the twist, which is in the beginning, is great and why these people are suddenly going crazy. I’ve come to the conclusion that these found-footage films are always creepy because they really utilized the silence in the movie.

They also held a zombie contest for who is the most sexy looking zombie, who is the funniest zombie and how is the most disgusting looking zombie. Needless to say, it was no Zombie Pageant

Zombie (aka Zombie 2)

Where can I begin with this movie; it’s campy, it’s corny, it’s really good, it’s epic and the score is hypnotic. This was the first time I saw this film and I have to say… after the zombie vs. shark scene I knew it would get better. I love the idea of having zombies, as part of some voodoo, terrorize an island and it was executed perfectly. The gore was fantastic but sadly that can’t be said for the acting.

I’ll have a full review of Zombie on Buy Zombie.

The sexy zombies.

Shockingly, I did not see Kitty Zombie at all during this event. Overall, it was a fun time at the Portage and as I always like to state during these event treatments, it was really nice to see all these films on the big screen.

The Rawness of Horror

The other night I was watching Messiah of Evil aka Dead Bodies (Courtesy of Cult Reviews) and I noticed something about independent 70s horror. For a while I could not put my finger on it until I realized that it had to do with the way the movie scares it’s audience. It was something that I noticed in Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Piranha, Bay of Blood and even Black Christmas. I had a fan of mine, A.W. Quinn, message me and tell me that the word I was looking for was ‘raw.’ That’s exactly the word I was looking for; the horror in these 70s b-movies and even some studio made movies are extremely raw.

Let’s take Messiah of Evil for example: the jump-out scares of this film have absolutely not anticipation, or if they do, it’s very light. In horror films nowadays you have music that progressively gets tenser and tenser, making the audience anticipate the scare. It does the job effectively to some degree but with this film, there is no anticipation, I just jumps out and smacks you in the face. There is no music, just the natural sounds of the scene and a few sound effects. It puts your right there in the movie and makes it more realistic.

Now, when we first see Leatherface in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre the door opens and the character looks up at him; there is not music, there is barely any sound and he pops out. It’s shocking to the audience and it leaves them stunned. Leatherface then clubs the character and drags him into the room and closes the rusty doors. Here, the only thing we really hear is the clubbing and the sounds of the rusty doors, which only adds to the rawness of the film.

This was just a thought that crept into my head as I watched this movie. It was a great movie and I think it would have been so much better had I seen it on VHS.

Zombie Star Wars Posters

I want to take a break from Christmas stuff and bring you something special. I cannot believe this, but my dreams came true… or one of them at least. I am a huge Star Wars fan and an even bigger zombie fan and finally they merged together into an awesome compilation of zombie genius. I found it as a link on one my horror forums and I had to post it on the blog.

"Star Wars artist Matt Busch has turned the beloved posters of the Star Wars saga and has them eating brains. If you’ve ever wondered what Luke, Leia, Han, and the gang (along with the stupid prequel characters no one cares about) would look like as zombies, look no further. The answer is: no lips, exaggerated teeth, and the women have no pupils and need to wipe their mouths. I personally love the little R2D2 with an axe in his dome and an R2 in another poster with a skeleton climbing out. Hit the jump to check them all out."
- Matt Goldberg of Collier.com

Now, if only these were turned into theatrical posters and released to the public… everything will be golden.

Review - Zombie Girl: The Movie (2009)

While at the Zombie Outbreak Film Festival I had the extreme pleasure of watching a movie made my a 12-year-old girl named Emily Hagins named Pathogen and then, right after, I had the pleasure of watching Zombie Girl the Movie… a documentary about the filming of Pathogen. By the end of the documentary, I could not contain myself, I leaned over to my friend and I told him that we have to make a movie. Something about that film made gave me inspiration and it had to have been one of the best documentaries that I had ever seen in a long time. There was nothing wrong about it and it was truly heart filled.

I want to get first talk about why this documentary had so much heart to it. It showed the relationship that Emily had with her mom and her dad through out the whole filming of Pathogen and it gave me a very happy feeling. Her parents helped he out so much and supported her the whole way and I could not believe it. Most parents would only say “sure, do whatever,” but they supported her the whole way. It wasn’t just bias towards the good times she had with her mom but also the times when they go on each others nerves and it really humanized the family. The documentary even gave a little history of Emily and her mom and how she had miscarriages and how Emily would always grab the camera… this made me happy to see somebody so enthusiastic about film.

The movie perfectly captures the hardships and the passion that Emily had while filming and throughout the whole movie there were complications such as reshoots, the cast being late or even getting a cast. I really felt for her and I could empathize with her because of all the problems she had to encounter. I also really like that the story also focused on how Emily was 12 and how she tried to direct a movie… such as, when she was filming the office scene she kept rolling after the scene was over and she didn’t say cut… I loved it!! Also, the beginning of the movie she stated that she never sues shot sheets or anything. It really captures the fact she was an amateur and yet she dished out an amazing zombie movie.

Something that I also really liked about this was the passion that drove Emily and this movie really showed it. It showed how she wanted precise clothing, precise props and how she wanted everything to go as planned… but also was really opened to other collaborative suggestions. Her passion fueled her and I think that was something that I could sense off the bat and it was intense. She was a born filmmaker!!

Overall, this documentary captured everything perfectly and it was such a simply documentary but so inspiring. Honestly, right I could not wait for the movie to end so that I could talk to my friend about making our movie… it just kicked me in the ass and pushed me to go that extra mile. The little titles with the decapitated dolls, hanging stuffed animals… right down to the passion, Zombie Girl the Movie was beautifully made. Congrats Justin and congrats Emily!!!!

For my Pathogen movie review, check out BuyZombie.com

Official Zombie Girl: The Movie website
Official Twitter of Zombie Girl: The Movie Website
Official Twitter of Emily Hagins and Cheesy Nuggets Productions
Official Cheesy Nuggets Productions website

Zombie Outbreak Film Festival

Now as many of you know, I went to the Chicago Zombie Outbreak Film Festival hosted by Horror Society and it wasn’t bad. There were bad movies and there were very good movies and While I was there I met a lot of cool people that I had met online through Twitter. I finally met Brittney-Jade from Day of Woman, I met Ron Pringle and Jay Hawkinson and I met the real man behind Kitty Zombie. So, it was a great time and I loved it!!!!

We watched several zombie movies and I want to run down the list of them and a brief little review for each of them.

The Basement
This movie was about two guys, who walk into a hold house where an old lady died and they decide to investigate the basement. What I liked about this movie was that it was so simple but yet it really terrified me at one point. I loved the humor and I loved the characters and it was a great indie zombie movie to open the night up.

Fleshbeast
This movie, from what I can gather, it about two scientists that are working on a zombie that fell from a helicopter and they have to save them selves and… then one of them gets turned into a zombie… so… I don’t know. The whole movie was a jumbled pile of images; bad voice dubbing and glossy image effects. It made no sense and it was hard to understand.

Chemical 12-D
This short was about a man who is trying to find the cure for the zombie outbreak but he takes a collard zombie boy to test on. The test fails and the mother of the boy finds the man… and she is pissed! This short was amazing! It was sad, it was dark and the ending is like a slap in the jaw.

Tales from the Script
This was like a more comedic version of Tales from the Crypt and it had a vampire, known as Mr. Wormwood, who told the stories. It looks like an okay show and not that bad for a small budget. I think it had potential.

Stub Hub Trailer
This was 30 seconds of pure comedy; it’s about a product known as Stub Hub that turns your tired, demanding, non sexual husband into a working, sex-induced zombie… for the wives of course. I loved it and it was funny!

Colin
This long, never-ending movie was simply put… the day in the life of a zombie named Colin. It follows the zombie Colin around during the outbreak. This movie could have been good, but I don’t think the camera man or the director know what the definition of steady-cam. Too many close ups and it would start focusing on parts of the movie that didn’t need to be focused on. The acting was good and there were some good points but… it could have been A LOT better.

Pathogen
Directed by a 12-year-old girl… this movie is about a group of kids trying to stay alive when a deadly virus infects the town water supply and turns everybody into ravenous zombies. What I liked about this movie is that it stayed to the basics and it was really good for such a young girl to make. It had great characters and it was so compelling. It reminded me of a Goosebumps book… only a tad darker.

Zombie Girl the Movie
This was a documentary about the making of Pathogen and it had to have been the simplest, yet inspiring documentary that I had seen. It really captured the hardships and the fun times making that movie. At the end of it, I really wanted to get up and make a movie myself.

Return of the Living Dead
Well, if you want to know what I think… check out Buy Zombie for my review.

The Biography of Bub the Zombie

So, since I am a rabid fan of the movie Day of the Dead… I was always puzzled by who Bub was and how he became a zombie. He is my favorite zombie of all time and he was possibly the most innocent and funniest zombie ever on a horror film. I know his history should never be told but I decided to piece together a biography of my own based on Howard Sherman’s bio and some of the movies that he has been in. So I give you Bub’s Fictional Biography.

NOTE: After reading this, you’ll see how bored I really am.

Bub the Zombie was born as Sherman Dietz on June 11, 1949 in Chicago, IL. I am under the impression that, considering his domestication in Day of the Dead he was a very average kid who got average grades in school and wasn’t really much of a fight. I am assuming that he was an A, B and sometime C grade child and that his favorite subject was science and history. I think that when he went to middle school, that’s when he decided to go into a military career as well as becoming a scientist.

When high school came around, he really got into his military passion… taking classes such as military history as well as exceeding in gym, but he probably still had a passion for science and it was hard to single out whether or not he wanted to be a scientist or a military man. He graduated high school with honors chemistry, physics, geometry and biology and as a Valedictorian. He got a scholarship to attend Princeton and he did, but first, he decided to spend some time in the army. He took basic training as well as training to become a military scientist and this caught the eye of one of the top-level generals… General Starkey.

After getting out of basic training he decided to take up the scholarship for Princeton. There, he studied in some of the highest level science classes there and he passed every test and term paper with flying colors. He was at the top of his game. Starkey watched over him at every turn and when Sherman finally graduated with a doctorate degree in chemistry, physics and biology… Starkey approached him and offered to give him a position of being one of the leading scientists for a top-secret biological warfare weapon.

Unfortunately, his slight rise in power got to his head and he began turning into a very unlikable and cold-hearted person. He began researching on helpless people that the military would capture from across seas or people that tried to leak secret information to other countries. His shyness and quietness went out the door and he became an asshole. Of course, riding on your high horse has its downfalls… because of him and his co-workers the virus was let out and plagued the whole world and slowly started killing people. Military men were dispatched to gather as many helpless citizens and possible and use them as research dummies. Sherman was then promoted to being the lead researcher on the project.

After the military kidnapped 4 friends, 3 of them died and one of them was still living. Sherman began to collapse under pressure as all of his co-workers were beginning to die as well as the population and he couldn’t take any of it. He wondered why this one person wasn’t dying. After almost everybody in the underground lab died he snapped and he shot and killed the remaining people and confronted the 1 patient and was still living. After he tried to shoot him the patient wrestled him to the ground, took the gun and shot Sherman 6 times in the stomach… killing him.

He died while wearing a corduroy jacket, pants, a red plaid colored shirt and a white lab coat. When resurrected as a zombie due to the virus, he lost the lab coat somewhere as he walked around the lab trying to get out… the virus rendered him a walking dead person and reverted him back to his innocent yet primal instincts. Years later, he would be found by Dr. Logan.

NOTE: Though the movies I used are not connected in any way, I had to make the necessary changes to connect them including wardrobe changes and name changes. The pictures are just references. Also, if you would like to follow Bub the Zombie, he is on Twitter: Click here.

31 Days of Halloween - Day 10: Top 5 Zombies

I know this is a delayed post and the reason why it is delayed is because I was at Music Box Massacre 5 in Chicago and I was unable to complete the post before hand. Well, this is a follow up to my post of Top 5 Zombie Killers, and this time around I am going to talk about the top 5 Zombies of all time, these are individual zombies and not hoards or anything like that. I don’t have a specific criterion but rather what zombie captivated me the most. So here they are:

 

5. The Tarman from The Return of the Living Dead: Why is this guy on the list, since, compared to the others he is a flesh eater? Because he is the fucking Tarman! He yells for “BRAINS!” and he totally fucks shit up when he can’t get what he wants. Plus… you gotta love that face.

 

4. Fido from Fido: Probably one of the cutest, innocent, harmless, servent of a zombie all thanks to a zombie collar. What makes him so special is because of exactly that! He slowly falls in love for Helen, he has a relationship with Billy and he is slowly becoming human. Even when the collar is off, he reduces to his primitive zombie needs but then he goes back to his original self because he knows he loves his family. Its touching and sweet.

 

3. Dean Alan Halsey from Re-Animator: Much like Big Daddy and Bub, he is a misunderstood zombie that was brought back to life for an experiment. What makes him so special is because he is conscience but is afraid of everybody around him; he is kept in an institution then mind controlled by Dr. Hill and when he finally sees that he gave up his daughter he snaps out of the mind control and starts to fight back. You are rooting for him because you want him to win, he understands that that is his daughter and she is about to be turned into a zombie for Dr. Hill’s sick experiment.

 

2. Big Daddy from Land of the Dead: Much like Bub, this is a zombie who is unaware that he is not supposed to exist. He learns, and he has feelings for his fellow undead people and that’s what makes him such a strong zombie; he is a leader who is trying to save his people from genocide. You can feel his pain and his rage when a fallen comrade gets shot up. He is slowly learning and for that, you can’t blame him for wanting to take out humanity because in his eyes, we are unwanted trespassers. Plus, since he is slowly learning, it gives him more pity because they are trying to be human.

 

1. Bub from Day of the Dead (1985): Why is Bub my number one favorite zombie you may ask? Because, this is a zombie that we love, we feel for and we want him to win in this case. He is innocent, he doesn’t know any better and he is somewhat conscience of what he is doing. He is the most loveable character in all of the Dead series. When Logan gets killed, you empathize with him because in a way, Logan was his father and he lost him. He just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and it’s just so touching.

Looking back on all of this, I think it is fair to say that most of these zombies are more civilized zombies, except for the Tarman, and I think that is why I love them so much… because they are innocent and they aren’t just mindless killing machines but there is depth and character to them that make them so special. It’s fascinating as well as brilliant to see character development in such a drone of a character. 

31 Days of Halloween - Day 8: Top 5 Zombie Killers

Day 8 of our 31 Days of Halloween and today I will be doing a day old Halloween tradition; honoring the dead, the Living Dead and in the same sense I feel as though I am also desecrating the dead with Top 5 Zombie Killers and Zombies. For the first half I will be giving you my personal favorite zombie killers. But I use a certain criteria to determine an efficient zombie killer and here it is: you have to be efficient, reliable, no pussying out when your friend turn into zombies, brutal, violent and care about the people around you that are not zombies. Plus, you have to be a badass while doing it.

5. Starla Grant from Slither. I have always had a thing for women with spunk and kick to them (sugar and spice) and Starla is not exception. When I saw this movie I fell in love with here character because she knows how to kick ass and take names and she isn’t one of those floofy kinds of chicks who wuss out when zombies start attacking. She can pick up any kind of object and use it against the living dead… and she looks good while doing it.

 

4. Kenneth from Dawn of the Dead. I have always enjoyed Kenneth from the original movie but I think the remake taps into his psyche and character more and it shows that he isn’t just a badass but a man who suppressed the way he really felt and possibly the way a lot of us felt when others get killed and not us. He’s effective because he doesn’t toy around and he is tough and strong enough to be a solid leader. 

 

3. Samuel from Diary of the Dead. Probably one of the best characters and the most memorable scene-stealers in this whole movie. He is deaf and dumb Amish man who writes on a chalkboard and blows up zombies. Why does he make the list? Because based off of that one scene (before he dies) you can tell what his history was… he probably got his hands on a couple of grenades and started blowing zombie hoards to kingdom comes, he probably knows how to use an AK and he probably isn’t afraid to get his hands wet. He is totally deceiving and yet he makes a great hero. Praise to the Amish folk!

 

2. Tallahassee from Zombieland. Never had I had so much fun watching zombies get mowed down in my life! Tallahassee is one of those hardboiled guys who seems conceded and only determined to help himself but when you finally meet him, he is like the rest of us. He takes pride in killing zombies, he doesn’t fuck around, he enjoys the simple thing and he is reliable and funny; something that is needed during the zombie apocalypse.

 

1. Ben from Night of the Living Dead. When it comes to zombie killing, be doesn’t fuck around and he has always been my hero. He is your classic hero, he is smart, clever, reliable, and efficient and he knows that shit is hitting the fan. He is a great leader even in the time of danger and betrayal but his heroics in the movie doesn’t stop there. Culturally, he was one of the first public African American hero that slapped racism in the face and set new standards for heroes. He is truly a memorable and legendary zombie killer. 

Honorable Mentions go to the following:

Ray Cameron from Night of the Creeps

Lionel Cosgrove from The Dead Alive

Burt from The Return of the Living Dead

The next post will be about the zombies themselves.

Review - Surprise (2009)

I had the pleasure of seeing a very independent low-budget zombie movie courtesy of Mike and Ike on YouTube. Now, I have seen many zombie shorts and many of them were really, really bad because they didn’t have the money to afford good effects… well, this film avoids all that and I will tell you why: the entire story is a one-shot canted angle of a woman who trying to break down the door to rescue her husband.

I actually enjoyed this movie, I thought that the one angle, one shot thing was getting annoying but I realized that’s the whole point… to keep the audience on edge and to keep them wondering what is happening behind that door, giving them the perspective of the woman. Sometimes the unknown is always the best. What I also enjoyed was how this story started and how it picked up right at the end of what happened. It makes the audience ponder what led to this happening, especially since she blames the guy for starting the whole thing… the audience wants to know what happened. What I also liked was the emotional drive of this movie, something that all zombie movies have since it give the viewer a look at the inside of the character’s mind.

The only complaint that I have is really minor and it’s almost unnoticeable but it took me out of the film slightly, I don’t remember at what point it was but there was one point where the actress sounded as though she was reading off of a note card and it sounded a big fake.

In summation, this was a pretty good film for what it was and how long it is… and from what I heard, not many people liked the ending because you don’t know what happens. Maybe that’s the point. Maybe, you’re not meant to know what happened because at this point there is not hope. I enjoyed this movie a lot and I seriously think you should see it.

In fact, you can see them right here:

Review - Flying Saucer Rock'n'Roll (2007)

From Blogger Pictures

Okay, this movie was everywhere and it I think that it’s meant so that you shouldn’t take it seriously. This movie is of course Flying Saucer Rock ‘n Roll and all I can say is that it was pure wackiness and a pretty fun ride of laughs and indie cheese. It’s about a group of people who find an old hermit in the woods who tells them a story set in the 1950’s about a nerdy kid and his girlfriend who have to save the world from aliens and zombies with the help of a beatnik.

There were a lot of problems with this movie but I will give them credit for making it. Quite honestly, this looks like a bigger independent production of an Ed Wood movie and it really looks as though it used Plan 9 as an inspiration, which is interesting because the plot is the same and the decade is the same. The acting, was not bad… in fact, I thought it was good for such a lowbrow production and set wasn’t really that bad either. They took an idea and they ran with it and milked it for all the cheese it had.

There were parts that I found really confusing and I ended up wondering why they were in there. For example: why was the gun building in comic book form? Couldn’t they have used a live action montage? Some parts were just ridiculous like seeing the zombies drive and trekking along the world in an obvious green screen effect. It had the production value of a studio movie but the plot and care of a indie flick and it could have been better… way better, but if they took it seriously it would have been a pretty damn good movie.

I guess if you are a huge fan of the b-movie cult as well or independent movies in general, then you’ll enjoy this movie… but if your looking for anything that is serious or true horror, you might have to look somewhere else. I enjoyed this movie only because it was ridiculous and funny but I kind of wanted it to be scary or at least somewhat scary. 

Find it here on Cinedoo.

Zombify Yourself

With the promotion of the new zombie comedy flick 'Zombieland,' came an official website where you can add your photo to and zombify yourself then share it on Facebook and Twitter as well as your computer. Being the geek that I am, I decided to give this application a whirl and this is what I got. 

From Blogger Pictures

Zombie don't eat just brains, they like pizza too.

From Blogger Pictures

Playtime at Zombieland always keeps them at bay. 

Now... all of this stuff has inspired me to do a couple of posts where I can show pictures of all the places in the U.S. that my zombie character has gone. A new blog series. 

Of course... click here if you want to zombify yourself too. 

The Horror Re-Cuts of YouTube

From Blogger Pictures

After much consideration, I have decided to do a brief rundown of the re-cut horror trailers of the YouTube community. The first time that this was brought to my attention was from my teacher/mentor who showed me the re-cut version of West Side Story. Well, I just wanted to give a brief run down of my favorite re-cut trailers. This is not a top 10 list.

 This was the second one that I saw and it really made me laugh my ass off!! It cleverly manipulates the footage to make the movie center around a dad, who is a struggling alcoholic writer that tries to bond with his son. The point at which this trailer hits hysterical lever is when ‘Solsbury Hill’ by Peter Gabriel. Sheer brilliance.

Ten next one on the list is pretty interesting, it keeps the story of The Ring but it subtracts the supernatural element out of it… therefore it’s a story of a woman who is trying to get as much stuff done before she dies in 7 days. This trailer sure knows how to manipulate video footage to make it seem like it is a hard-hitting drama.

Who would have thought that such a beloved children’s movie could look so wicked, twisted and demented… but somebody decided to give the horror treatment to Marry Poppins in this parody of the faux film Scary Mary. This is one of my ultimate favorites because it’s short, clever and to the point and it takes footage that would normally be funny and makes it seem more possessed the usual.

What happens when you take the love and affection of Free Willy and the cinematic suspense of Steven Spielberg? You get a story about two men who fell in love with a shark in the hit summer movie Must Love Jaws. What a wonderful way of turning such a brutal movie into a heart-wrencher and one of the best scenes has Brody watching Quit get devoured by the shark as he laughs.

With the exception of the tagline at the end of the trailer, whoever did this re-edit took my number one favorite movie of all time and set it to one of my favorite genres of all time. Bravo! But what I enjoyed about this is that it makes it look like some evil force aboard the RMS Titanic was killing off people… a brilliant supernatural thriller.

This is perhaps my favorite re-edit of a movie… through clever editing techniques and some good special effects; the editor took an American musical classic and turned it into a brutally violent zombie movie. I guess it worked cause there is enough random street dancing to look like running zombies, but I can’t help but laugh. Don’t get me wrong, I love West Side Story, but I like the zombie version of it just a little more.

Well, I think this just proves that I may have too much time on my hands or I am really that obsessed with horror. There are so many re-cuts out there but the reason why I chose these is because they were professionally done and they included both a voice over and a wide selection of Immediate Music whereas some are just music and that’s all. I hope you enjoyed these and if you did… look for them online. 

Age of the Zombies

I have really good news, The Paradise has agreed to be affiliate with the radio show Age of the Zombies. Here is a small description of what the show is about. Please, take a look at the site and listen to the radio show, it won’t be a waste of time.

“What if?...

A plague has ravaged the Earth and changed the world as we know it. Millions upon millions have been transformed into flesh-eating zombies that roam the Earth with an unquenchable thirst for the living. Those fortunate enough not to have been infected are in a fight for their lives. Spread out across the globe… small groups struggle each day to see the next. One such group of survivors are trying to reach out to anyone who’s still alive… They live in… the Age of the Zombies."

-       Age of the Zombies

This is the premise of the radio show Age of the Zombies presented by Necropolis Studios Production. The Paradise of Horror as agreed to become an affiliate as well as endorse this radio show.

The show features the voice talents of:

 

Mellissa D. Johhson as Alex Thayer

Sidney Williams as Jake Thayer

Stephen Lindsey as Scotty Davenport

Edison Pongklub as John Tate and Oren Williams

Glen Hallstorm as Steve Reynolds

Scott Oka as Ryan Davis

Eric Busby as Frank Thompson

Michael Hudson as Rob McCrery

Rhayne Archer as Catherine Fraser

Lee Sands as Ian Fraser

Alison Snowfender as Emberly Murphy

Ryan West as Blaine Murphy

Christina Lam as Samantha Murphy

Jonathan Cooke as Joshua Moseley

Gwendolyn Jensen-Woodard as Beth Wilson and Paige Peretti

Zack Maher as Richard Currier

Katie Dehnart as Phebe Sanborn

Melissa D. Johnson as Alex

Kimberly West as the Lady and Rebecca Chapman

Tim Hoffman as the Cameraman

Dave Frizzell as the Announcer

And the Zombies as themselves.

 

Music by: Human Response

Written, Directed and Produced by: Dave Frizzell

For the website, click here. 

To Be (Zombie) or Not To Be (Zombie)

From Blogger Pictures

So this is something that I am putting together since some kid in my class argued with me on what classifies somebody to be considered a zombie. He thinks that the ‘infected’ in 28 Days Later are considered zombies… and I say they are not. They are not dead, they are just lunatics. There is a difference. I am calling on you to help me put this kid to rest because he wants me to do this so that he can prove me wrong… so, my fellow horror fans, do you consider 28 Days Later a zombie movie or just a horror movie?

Below is a small list to classify a zombie by. Now, I know several movies have made different editions of this list and have changed it… but I am basing on what George A. Romero has set in motion since this kid said Romero is the worst horror director ever.

1. Zombies eat people’s flesh

2. Zombies are dead

3. When bit by one, you become a zombie

4. Zombies skin rot as time progresses

5. Zombies (normally) walk slowly

6. They have no brain function

7. Zombies can have missing body parts

8. To kill one, you have to destroy the brain only

9. The zombie virus does not make you aggressive

10. Zombies rule

So use this list and other things that I have forgotten to help answer this question. I will be giving this list to this kid and using it as ‘hardcore’ evidence. 

What Drives Dawn?

From Blogger Pictures

I recently saw the remake of Dawn of the Dead, which was a surprise hit among horror audience and was one of the few remakes done right with respects to the original ’78 classic. There are several things in this movie that made it good and several revisions that also gave it that modernized look and feel… but what I want to focus on, that also made this movie so good, is the emotional impact this movie had and emotion that drove the characters. Character development is always key when making a zombie movie because it really shows how people act when all the chips are down and it focuses in on our primitive instincts.

From Blogger Pictures

The main characters were very well developed in this movie and the secondary characters, though not as developed, they were well acted and that made me feel for them when they eventually got killed. Lets look at Ana, she had a husband and a prominent job yet when everything started going wrong you felt for her and when she met Michael… you knew she liked him in a very special way. When he gets bit you feel for her loss considering she just lost her husband. Though their hidden, possible, love is never directly stated it’s easy to assume they had a small thing for each other. Two very developed characters that change through out the movie.

From Blogger Pictures

Now lets look at Kenneth. He is a very complex character who acts like he is tough, who is tough but he has a weakness… a soft side of compassion and fear like anybody else. He develops a sort of bond with Andy from across the street and he really feels for this person even after he turns into a zombie. I think his major turning point is when he confesses that every time he says sorry to a wife or son about their fathers death, he never means it and that “it’s better him, than me,” but like a normal human he admits that he is scared of dying and that there is something worse then death; waiting for death to come.

From Blogger Pictures

I think a very interesting character would be Andre. He is a very complex character with questionable motives and actions that make me believe the he could be considered an anti-hero. He is a savior in the sense that he loves his Russian wife or girlfriend and he is a petty thief and I think he really wants to do something right for a change and that is bringing and raising a kid of his own. Although, he becomes obsessed with writing the right that he is motive turns violent and very criminal. He’s a good person but his cause becomes lost when he delivers a living dead baby and kills Norma. A great example of human development in severe situations.

From Blogger Pictures

What about Nicole? Not a very developed character, but nonetheless a person who shows the emotional side of this movie. The scene in which she spends her last time with her dad and when her dad, Frank, explains that he is the only person left of her family and that she has nobody left. It’s a really sad and very powerful moment… and I think it highlights the loss of the zombie outbreak. What thought was a very good edition to the movie was the bond that Nicole shares with the dog, so that she could fill up the hole were her family used to be. It’s just a great profile of people compensating after losses.  

There were many different things that made this remake far more superior then other remakes and one those reasons is the emotional and character part of the zombie movie. It’s very important to have complex characters in zombie movies since those kinds of films are usually character studies. This film, is no exception. 

Zombie Clothes

My friend came across this site and I find it a very interesting... it's funny, because maybe zombies are just pissed and eat people because they want a hug. Who knows, but I still think these shirts are kind of cool!! The clothing ranges from bags, to hoodies to t-shirts and they have printed in black 'Zombis just want hugs." 

Click here for the shirts. 

Top 10 Horror Movies that Shaped Me

I figured that with as much Top 10 Horror Movie lists there are, if I were to create one it would only encompass the movies that people have already said and wrote about. That wouldn’t really be original and nor would making a list like ‘Top 10 Horror Movies that You Should Watch.’ So I decided to take a new approach and create my own list of top 10 horror movies; not movies that you should watch, not movies that I am recommending you to view but rather a Top 10 Horror Movies that have Scared Me When I Was A Kid.

DISCLAIMER: Just as a reminder, these are not movies that I am encouraging readers to view, there are just some horror movies that I have personally selected the scared the crap out of me. 

From Blogger Pictures

1. The Thing (1982) – This was a movie that I so vividly remember because of the magnitude that it scared me. I was 8 or 9 years old and I decided to challenge myself and watch an R-rated movie and this happened to be the one that I saw. When it came to the dog kennel scene where the Thing takes over I turned off the TV and I was so frightened that I could not sleep for a few days. The image of that dog and all the blood and twisted body parts… too much for me to handle. I viewed it again when I was 11 and I still had difficulty getting through it but it turned out that it was my favorite horror movie of all time.

From Blogger Pictures

2. The Blob (1988) – Strangely enough, I thought I could handle 2 R-rated movies that day and I got The Blob in the same day that I got The Thing. Of course when I saw The Blob later on that evening I got to the hospital scene when that kid was slowly melting away as the blog was devouring him and…. I turned off the TV again. The image of that kid’s mouth opening as the acid ate away at this body and when Shawnee Smith pulls off his arm will never leave my memory and that movie truly repulsed me. It’s sad to say that in the same week I could not sleep because I thought the Thing or the Blob was going to eat me.

3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) – No other movie made me feel so dirty and appalled then this independent film. When I saw it I watched it all the way through and I was frightened in the aspect of ‘how could you do this to a person?’ The grittiness, rawness and washed out coloring of the movie made it seem like I was watching a real life documented account and I felt so sorry for the kids in that movie. When Leatherface appeared it always made me jump and I always wanted to see what was behind that door but in a way… I was too scared to look. It was just one of those movies where I was left speechless after the ending and wondered did that really happen? It had the same effect on my dad too.

4. The House on Haunted Hill (1999) – I have read mixed reviews on this movie and I was shocked to see so many horror fans disapproving it. This movie scared me in a very cowardly way… when I watched the edited version of it on TNT when it was rated TV-14. I watched it all the way through and it was this movie that I got frightened by, even more so when I saw the unedited version, to the point where I developed an obsession with those ‘shuttering head ghosts.’ This movie had so many freaking scenes it that disturbed me; one in particular was the Saturation Chamber where all those ghosts came out of nowhere with twisted, mangled heads. It freaks me out and it kind of still does today.

5. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) – To be fair, I was never creeped out by this movie but what made me so obsessed with Freddy was his method of killing teenagers. Most killers slice, dice, machete hack or shoot their victims in person but Freddys attacks you when you are the most vulnerable… when asleep. See, you can always stay away from camps, shoot a killer or kill him/her in some way shape or form but you have to fall asleep and therefore there is not escaping Freddy.

From Blogger Pictures

6. The Fly (1986) – To be honest, there were only two scenes that scared me and that was the infamous maggot-births scene and when Seth Brundlefly breaks into the hospital and takes Gina Davis. What always made this movie so memorable was how sad and how tragic this movie was and how the ending almost made me cry for how powerful it was. Seth was a good guy, with good intentions and very very brilliant but it was like the Frankenstein story… it turned bad.

7. Night of the Living Dead (1968) – I have to attribute this movie for scaring me when I was really, really younger when my grandmother and me watched Svengoolie on WGN. It was after the whole Blob/Thing fiasco and what always frightened me was not so much the zombies or the gore but rather that haunting quote that has stuck with me forever: “They are coming to get you Barbara!” It’s like… whatever they are, they are coming for you and there is no way to stop them.

From Blogger Pictures

8. Sleepy Hollow (1999) – This was the first R-rated movie I saw in the theater with my friend Zack and his older brother, back when you could see rated R movies with an adult. Nearly every scene made me cover my face up with my hands or made me jump out of my seat and scream; specifically the scene when young Ichabod see his witch mom fall out of the iron maiden and blood starts flowing everywhere. That scene scared me for life and it kept replaying over and over in my dreams. That, and the scene when the Headless Horesman kills that fat guy… goddamn you Tim Burton… goddamn you!!

9. My Bloody Valentine (1981) – Along with the already known and cliché slasher movies out there this movie is perhaps one of my favorite mainly because I hate Valentine’s Day. It never scared me but I always thought the idea of having a killer dressed, as a miner would be haunting. The breathing, those bug looking goggles, the pickaxe and the idea that his whole body is covered and he tears out the hearts of teens. It’s really gritty and gruesome stuff.

10. Halloween (1978) – This movie freaked me out not because of the jumping out shit but rather the mask the Michael wore… the cold, white, ghostly gaze that he would look at you with, that same gaze that lets you know that there is nothing behind the mask but pure evil. The fact that he could walk and still catch up to you, that fact that he doesn’t say anything to you or even pants when he kills made him out like a machine. Funny enough, the mannerisms of Michael Myers were based on Yule Brenners cowboy character from Westworld.

So, there you have it… the top 10 movies that scared me and left an impression on me when I was a kid. Looking back on this list I think it’s fair to say that it was because of horror movies that I developed such a crazy sleep pattern and insomnia. Although if it wasn’t for these movies I would have never been the person that I am today.

The Rundown:
1. The Thing (1981) (Dir. John Carpenter)
2. The Blob (1988) (Dir. Chuck Russell)
3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) (Dir. Tobe Hooper)
4. House on Haunted Hill (1999) (Dir. William Malone)
5. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) (Dir. Wes Craven)
6. The Fly (1986) (Dir. David Cronenberg)
7. Night of the Living Dead (1968) (Dir. George Romero)
8. Sleepy Hollow (1999) (Dir. Tim Burton)
9. My Bloody Valentine (1981) (Dir. George Mihalka)
10. Halloween (1978) (Dir. John Carpenter)