The Stiff: Chapter 1: Page 31
Trying to solve Netflix’s growing lack of streaming movies (although they certainly rule for TV shows), I rented a bunch of zombie movies from Scarecrow Video, Seattle’s awesomest video store. This week I’m checking out:
* REC (the acclaimed Spanish movie that, plotwise, seems like a more serious shakycam remake of Lamberto Bava’s “Demons”)
* Colin (the ultra-low-budget British “zombie movie from a zombie’s perspective”… I’m curious whether I like it anywhere near as much as the film “Dead Creatures”, one of my favorite zombie movies)
* Zombieland (the big-budget running-zombies horror-comedy… I had zero interest in this when it came out, but what the heck.)
* Biozombie (like Zombieland, I wasn’t particularly interested in this back in 1998, since I generally don’t like horror-comedies… though I love ‘Little Shop of Horrors’, and ‘Deadalive’ for that matter, just for its earnestness. But now it’s a semi-classic, and I feel I ought to see it.)
I feel all these movies have enough popularity to be considered seminal zombie movies, but frankly, there’s been SO MANY zombie films of questionable quality released in the last 10 years (post-28-Days-Later) that going to the video store and grabbing a random one is like sticking my hand in the garbage disposal. I want to wallow in this genre, but where do I draw the line? How do I find the good ones? What zombie (or weird-infection/collective-madness) movies or books would YOU recommend I see/read? I want to know!
NEXT UPDATE: Friday!
Well technically the “Resident Evil” films aren’t zombie films but they have zombies in them. I like them myself because they are far more than zombie pictures.
I haven’t seen Dead-Alive yet and want to. One day. I haven’t seen too many of them. I don’t want to waste my time on junk. All of the Romero ones I find good even if it isn’t always up to Romero’s standards. Including his recent ones. My favorite is “Land of the Dead.” But his early three are still fun to watch. “Day of the Dead” I highly recommend.
I’ve read in the first in a book series called “Plague of the Dead” by Z. A. Recht. You get to see it come out of the African bush and start spreading. There was one weak part where it was obvious to bomb a horde of them moving in the desert following a highway but other then that rather good. I liked “World War Z” the book. The movie is good in its own way, just wish it had a different title. Of course “Walking Dead” is excellent in my opinion better than most of the zombie movies and closest to Romero’s work.
My personal favorite zombie film is “Re-animator”. A small, local apocalypse is quite enough for me!
My all-time favorite cinematic zombie appears in “Return of the Living Dead”. Viewers of that film will know which one I’m talking about.
That said, I’m not a particular fan of the genre. I appreciated “Shaun of the Dead” for showing everybody how to outwit zombies.
@Night-Gaunt and Ken: I haven’t read the “Plague of the Dead” books. I love Romero’s films and “Return of the Living Dead”… really, all the films you mention, except for the “Resident Evil” ones. I also haven’t been incredibly taken by “The Walking Dead”, although I’ve only seen the first season.
Out of the movies I rented, “REC” was definitely my favorite. Loved it!
Check out Pontypool. While I don’t know if it’s a zombie movie in the strictest sense, it is a really interesting take on the genre featuring a great performance by Stephen McHattie.