Zombie is a song by British singer/songwriter Jamie T and is the second single to be taken from his 2014 Virgin Records album Carry on the Grudge.
The promotional music video for “Zombie” features the singer and his backing band The Pacemakers gradually turning into the living dead whilst performing at a soulless, lifeless English pub.
The video was directed by James Slater and the gory makeup and special effects were designed by Natasha Lawes.
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‘There is a fate worse than death!’
Night of the Living Dead is a 1990 US horror film directed by Tom Savini. It is a remake of George A. Romero’s 1968 horror film of the same name. Romero rewrote the original 1968 screenplay co-authored by John A. Russo
Following the plot of the seminal original film, Barbara (Patricia Tallman: Army of Darkness, Monkey Shines) and her annoying brother, Johnnie (Bill Mosely: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2; The Devil’s Rejects) travel by car to visit the grave of their mother. At the graveside, Johnnie’s taunts of, “They’re coming to get you, Barbara”, are interrupted by not one but two shambling corpses, a tussle between corpse and male sibling leaving Johnnie dead with a cracked skull. Barbara flees but after crashing her car, is forced to sprint to the nearest dwelling, a large, remote farmhouse.
Once there, she finds several previous occupants dead but mobile but is soon aided by another living person seeking sanctuary, Ben (Tony Todd: Candyman; Hatchet). Ben has just about kept his cool whereas Barbara is a gibbering wreck. With the house barricaded up, they are surprised to find five other survivors, Harry Cooper (Tom Towles: Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer; The Borrower; ) and his wife, Helen (McKee Anderson), who, despite the racket, had opted to stay out of sight in the cellar. Also holed-up are their daughter, Sarah, who has been bitten and is out cold, plus young locals, Tom (William Butler: Friday the 13th Part VII; Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3) and Judy Rose (Katie Finneran).
None too impressed at the lack of assistance, it is soon clear that common ground will be hard to find – the Coopers are insistent on locking themselves in the cellar to wait for help to arrive, the others more keen to escape by getting the truck outside to the nearby petrol station and heading for a safer, built-up area. With Barbara, who is starting to come back to her senses, staying to guard the house, the other three set off on their quest, only for a series of mishaps to leave two dead and the chances of escape even slimmer.
Back at the farmhouse, tensions have now reached unmanageable levels, squabbles over the TV and more importantly, gun rights, leaving more injured and the walking dead outside gathering in ever-greater numbers. It becomes a clear choice or fight or flight but unlike the original film, the survivors and the resolution may come as some surprise…
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Such was the farcical nature of Romero’s rights issues with the original masterpiece, it achieved an unwanted notoriety in the industry as a film anyone could release or lay claim to. Under these circumstances, it is understandable that Romero and many of his crew from 1968 felt compelled to throw their own hats into the ring, especially now more respectable budgets and film-making techniques were available.
With Russo out of the way, Romero was able to stay far closer to his original vision, fortunately at a time when he was still capable of being innovative and thoughtful without causing howls of derision. Savini, though fully immersed in the lore of the dead films, was a risk, given that it was his first directorial work but the remake can largely be hailed as a success, though the caveats to this would be the hindsight of truly horrendous horror remakes and how awful Romero’s own directorial additions to the saga are.
The primary differences are the semi-role reversals of Barbara and Ben, a nice enough device, though Barbara’s transformation from sobbing hysteria to crack-shot marksman and voice of society, literally overnight, is somewhat over-played and hollow. The character of Ben is more successful, less tragic than the original and slightly aloof, a pleasing antidote to the traditional saccharine Hollywood treatment which one may expect. Similarly, Cooper has far more about him and is more dis-likeable than in the ’68 version. He remains fundamentally correct in his decision to keep safe and out of sight, an always pleasing aspect of the first, though Cooper’s self-preservation here makes it more understandable that others may choose the other route. Despite an almost identical role to the original, Mosely is pretty unbearable as the unlucky Johnnie.
There are numerous nods to both the ’68 film and Dawn of the Dead; aside from on-camera appearances from original cast members such as “Chilly Billy” Cardille, again interviewing locals and the original Johnny, Russell Streiner, as the sheriff, we can see the early red neck collectives taking great pleasure in dispatching the shuffling corpses. Allegedly planned for Romero’s version, the ending shows ‘lynched’ zombies strung up in trees for the locals to abuse, a jarring image and perhaps the biggest hang-over to the initial implied criticisms of human behaviour and racism.
There are also hints at the cause of the zombies – a TV broadcast quickly dispels fears that the issue lies with chemical spills, perhaps a dig at John Russo’s work on 1985’s Return of the Living Dead, whilst a photograph of the USS Eldridge in the farmhouse hints at the possibility that the so-called Philadelphia Experiment carried out by the military, may have had some influence. The zombies themselves are superb and reason alone to give this version a chance. It is not only the make-up which elevates them to near the top of the living dead league but their individuality and costumes. The early stages of the outbreak allow for naked zombies, seen in Romero’s original but rarely otherwise, as well as junkies, children and neighbours and family members of the trapped survivors. There is a reprise of the bug-eating zombie, though this is expanded to a ghoul eating a live mouse, one of the only times any film concerning zombies has tackled the fate of other living mammals.
The electronic score by Paul McCollough works best when straying away from attempts at sustained melody and theme and instead creates oily and atmospheric musical vignettes, suggesting gloom without resorting to ham-fisted, obvious cues. The film suffered heavily at the censors, being cut to avoid an ‘X’ rating, the outtakes still not replaced but occasionally shown by Savini at horror conventions.
Daz Lawrence, Horrorpedia
Dr Satan versus Black Magic (Dr. Satan y la Magia Negra) is a 1968 Mexican horror film directed by Rogelio A. González (Ship of Monsters) and starring Joaquin Cordero (Dr Satan; The Hell of Frankenstein; The Terrible Giant of the Snow), Sonia Furió and Noe Murayama (Blue Demon Versus the Infernal Brains). The film is a sequel to Dr Satan (1966) and retains the character and actor of the titular physician but changes director and transfers from black and white to colour.
Deep in the bowels of Hell, the notorious yet suave Doctor Satan (Cordero) is being given a thorough dressing-down by his employer, Lucifer. He is given one last chance to avoid Earthly punishment by doing his master’s bidding; he must return to Earth and steal the evil sorcerer, Lei Yin’s (Murayama) secret of turning base metals into gold. Preferring action and violence to an eternity in Purgatory, the doctor accepts.
Back on the Earth’s crust we meet Lei Yin, a somewhat Fu Manchu-like character who, alongside having a brilliant scientific mind, also happens to be a vampire of the old school changing-into-a-bat variety. Yin has come into possession of ‘the Sorenson Formula’ (by virtue of murdering Doctor Sorenson), which grants him alchemy via the use of an elaborate set-up involving a large ray-gun. Like any arch-villain worth his weight in recently transformed gold, he is always accompanied by his henchpersons played by Aurora Clavel (The Wild Bunch) and Nathanael León (Hellish Spiders; Night of the Bloody Apes; many Santo films).
Meanwhile, Dr. Satan is busy interviewing young ladies in his office, the lucky candidates rewarded by being transformed into super-strong go-go zombies, doomed to do whatever the good doctor decides. In a thoughtful touch, he dubs them Medusa (Furió) and Erata (Luz Maria Aguilar) and they sleep alongside him in coffins in his crypt. Whilst Dr. Satan and his slaves attempt to track down Lei Yin, the evil mastermind is attempting to relocate to Hong Kong but is rumbled by the police; luckily for him, his able assistant uses her desk-cum-tank the riddle to interferers with bullet-holes.
An early attempt to slay Yin is foiled when the doctor realises his bullets are useless and he can only kill him via the usual stake to the heart. Now aware of his pursuers, Yin makes the first of his regular transformations into a bat, a metamorphosis which only confirms Horrorpedia’s regular assertion that the manufacture of realistic fake flying mammals will forever remain out of Man’s reach.
In true Satanik/Diabolik fashion, it now becomes a battle of wits, with the permanently fog-greeted Lin maniacally laughing, as Dr Satan and his zombladies chase him in a red sports car, eager to please Lucifer. The doctor’s quick wits shift the advantage, as do Lin’s futile attempts to suck the blood of the zombies (“Ugh, zombies! Disgusting!”) but when The Infernal One checks in, will the doctor have succeeded in sparing his own life from an eternity in limbo?
Dr. Satan was considered a strong enough character to bring back for another crack at box office success, the advent of colour giving a whole host of new opportunities to exploit one of the more bizarre genre mash-ups from Mexico. The titular character is something of a novelty in himself, following in the footsteps of the likes of Italian characters Satanik and Kriminal but with an even closer bond to evil and Hell itself. Handsome and debonair, Cordero is a difficult villain/hero to either despise or root for, a little bland in himself and only of any real interest at all due to his winsome companions. Murayama, however, clearly relishes his role, cackling and cape wafting like it’s going out of fashion, equally diabolical when in his laboratory of bubbling vials or transforming into a bat in a flash of magnesium light.
The film is of the shaky sets kind but enjoyably so, the lurid, psychedelic colours redolent of some of the more trippy of Coffin Joe’s films, whilst retaining a cartoon innocence and throw-the-kitchen-sink-at-it fireworks mentality. Somehow, the film conspires to drag its heels on occasion, the pay-off being that when the action does hit, it’s with kaleidoscopic fervor, both visually and aurally, the blips of the lab combining with berserk electronic barrages to assault the senses.
Zombies, vampires, coffins, a mad scientist and his lab, bats, a stunning appearance by the Devil himself and fatal femmes and foes, this is Mexican fantasy horror at its most enjoyable, as you’d expect from the director of the jaw-dropping Ship of Monsters.
Daz Lawrence, Horrorpedia
A ghoul is a folkloric monster or evil spirit associated with graveyards and consuming human flesh, often classified as undead. The oldest surviving literature that mention ghouls is likely One Thousand and One Nights. The term was first used in English literature in 1786, in William Beckford’s Orientalist novel Vathek, which describes the ghūl of Arabian folklore.
A being which is largely misrepresented or used as a ‘catch-all’ to describe anything from vampires, zombies or other mythical creatures, a ghoul has habits and behaviour which can make it far more distinct. Despite this, even today it is used as a general phrase to describe someone (or something) who displays a macabre love of death or torture, especially any frowned-upon activities taking place in graveyards.
The word ‘ghoul’ is derived from the Arabic غول ghūl, from ghala, “to seize”. The term is etymologically related to Gallu, a Mesopotamian demon who dragged mortals into the Underworld and was widely understood to be appeased by the sacrificial slaughter of a lamb. Once the tale One Thousand and One Nights was translated into French by Antoine Galland, the concept of the ghoul entered Western lore.
In ancient Arabian folklore, the ghūl (Arabic: literally demon) dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The ghul is a fiendish type of jinni believed to be sired by Iblis, the Muslim God of darkness. Ancient accounts refer to ghūls as generally being female, distracting male travellers before killing and consuming them. When faced with such a foe, the only way of escape was to kill the ghul with one blow; a second or more would resurrect it from the dead.
A ghoul is also a desert-dwelling, shapeshifting, demon that can assume the guise of an animal, especially a hyena. It lures unwary people into the desert wastes or abandoned places to slay and devour them. The creature also preys on young children, drinks blood, steals coins, and eats the dead, then taking the form of the person most recently eaten.
In the Arabic language, the female form is given as ghoulah and the plural is ghilan. In colloquial Arabic, the term is sometimes used to describe a greedy or gluttonous individual. Anglicized as “ghoul,” the word entered English tradition and was further identified as a grave-robbing creature that feeds on dead bodies and on children, the former offering a clear difference between ghouls and zombies. In the West, ghouls have no specific image and have been described (by Edgar Allan Poe) as “neither man nor woman . . . neither brute nor human.” They are thought to assume disguises, to ride on dogs and hares, and to set fires at night to lure travelers away from the main roads. They can often be detected by hoof marks in the ground near graveyards.
There are many cultural references to ghouls throughout the ages:
One Thousand and One Nights is the earliest surviving literature that mentions ghouls, and many of the stories in that collection involve or reference ghouls. A prime example is the story “The History of Gherib and His Brother Agib”, in which Gherib, an outcast prince, fights off a family of ravenous ghouls and then enslaves them and converts them to Islam.
Lord Byron made a reference to the ghouls in his epic poem “The Giaour” (1813): “Thy gnashing tooth and haggard lip; / Then stalking to thy sullen grave, / Go – and with Gouls and Afrits rave; / Till these in horror shrink away/ From spectre more accursed than they!”
In Hans Christian Andersen’s literary fairy tale, “The Wild Swans” (1838), the heroine Eliza has to pass a group of ghouls feasting on a corpse.
Edgar Allan Poe mentions ghouls in the despairing fourth section (“Iron Bells”) in his 1848 poem “The Bells”, describing them and their king as “the people, they that dwell up in the steeple” tolling the bells and glorying in the depressive effect on the hearers. “They are neither man nor woman— / They are neither brute nor human— / They are Ghouls.” His 1847 poem “Ulalume” also features ghouls.
Harry Shannon’s 2006 horror novel Daemon features a portrayal of a ghoul as an undead creature.
The Morlocks in H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine may have been inspired by the idea of a ghoul. Though subterranean, they feed on the living Eloi, not the dead.
In the short story “The Nameless Offspring” (1932) by Clark Ashton Smith, the ghoul is a cannibalistic humanoid which, besides eating the flesh of human corpses, procreates with those buried while still alive.
In the fiction of H. P. Lovecraft, a ghoul is a member of a nocturnal subterranean race. Some ghouls were once human, but a diet of human corpses, and perhaps the tutelage of proper ghouls, mutated them into horrific bestial humanoids. In the short story “Pickman’s Model” (1926), they are unutterably terrible monsters; however, in his later novella The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath (1926), the ghouls are somewhat less disturbing, even comical at times, and both helpful and loyal to the protagonist. Richard Upton Pickman, a noteworthy Boston painter who disappeared mysteriously in “Pickman’s Model”, appears as a ghoul himself in Dream-Quest. Similar themes appear in “The Lurking Fear” (1922) and “The Rats in the Walls” (1924), both of which posit the existence of subterranean clans of degenerate, retrogressive cannibals or carrion-eating humans. This theme is elaborated on in Anders Fager’s “Grandmother’s Journey” in which a large family have degenerated (or changed) into a brood of sub-human beast men. Pickaman’s Model is also featured as a tale in Rod Serling’s TV series, The Night Gallery.
The November 1973 issue of Skywald Publications’ Psycho comic-magazine was an “all ghoul” edition.
In Neil Gaiman’s novel The Graveyard Book, ghouls are small, ape-like creatures who make their home in an extra-dimensional realm called Ghûlheim. They travel to our world through ghoul-gates, and name themselves after the first person they eat on becoming a ghoul.
In 1987, Brian McNaughton wrote a series of dark fantasy short stories in which these Lovecraftian ghouls are the protagonists. The stories, collectively published as The Throne of Bones, were a critical success and the book went on to receive a World Fantasy Award for Best Collection.
In P.B. Kerr’s Children of the Lamp, ghouls (spelled as “Ghuls”) are one of the six tribes of djinn, and one of the three evil tribes.
In Larry Niven’s Ringworld series, the ghouls are a race that eats the dead of the other races that live on the ringworld. They have a fairly sophisticated (for a post-apocalyptic people) culture, and are the only race with a communication system that traverses the entire ringworld: heliographs.
In J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, ghouls are harmless creatures that live in the homes of wizards, making loud noises and occasionally groaning; a ghoul resides in the attic of the Weasley family’s home as the family’s pet. Context implies that in the Harry Potter universe, ghouls are closer to animals than human beings. They are translated in some versions as vampire, although they have nothing to do with the creatures.
In Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series, graveyards became infested with ghouls when the blessing of the graveyard was used up; this was usually caused when too many zombies were raised or voodoo rituals of evil nature were performed in the graveyard. That, or numerous animators (or people who possess magic related to the dead) are buried in the graveyard. Though they were once human, they are like lone wolves, and they are not very smart. The only reason Zach’s ghouls stayed and worked together was because Zach was controlling them. They will only attack if a person is vulnerable. A ghoul will run from a healthy, strong human being, and is afraid of fire. Like zombies, ghouls have human strength, but seem stronger because the sensations of pain and the ‘governors’ that keep people from ripping their bodies apart died with them. So while a human would stop trying to punch a hole in a steel door because of the pain a zombie or ghoul would keep trying until stopped or the door broke even if it would mean completely destroying their arm in the process.
In Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files, ghouls are much like they are in the classic mythologies: humanoid monsters that feed on human flesh, and seem to be able to disguise themselves as ordinary humans. These ghouls are intelligent, as opposed to being mindless and feral monsters.
In Chelsea Quinn Yarbro’s St. Germain series, the ghoul is an undead being created through an ancient Egyptian ritual to act as a servant to a vampire. St. Germain comes across a dying slave and resurrects him as his faithful servant, Roger, who accompanies him through his adventures for the next 2,000 years. Roger is indistinguishable from humans except for his immortality and that his diet consists of raw meat. In her book Cautionary Tales, there is a short story about a teenage ghoul, working the graveyard shift in a morgue, eating parts of unclaimed dead people.
Caitlín R. Kiernan has written a number of short stories and novels featuring ghouls (referred to as the ghul), including “The Dead and the Moonstruck” and “So Runs the World Away” (both from To Charles Fort, With Love, 2005), Low Red Moon, Murder of Angels, and Daughter of Hounds. Kiernan’s ghouls exhibit a blend of human and canine traits, are highly intelligent, live in subterranean cities, possess magical powers, and feed on the flesh of human corpses. According to Daughter of Hounds, they seem to have an extraterrestrial origin. They are often referred to as “The Hounds of Cain.”
In R.L. Stine’s Attack of the Graveyard Ghouls, ghouls are depicted as non-corporeal green mists that were humans at one point of time, and are able to steal bodies.
In the manga Rosario + Vampire, ghouls are a type of mindless, cannibalistic monster that are created in two manners. Ordinary ghouls are created when an evil spirit possesses a corpse. Rarely, ghouls are created when a human repeatedly has monster blood injected into their veins. The monster blood grants the ghoul supernatural power but at the same time destroys the psyche, leaving them a mindless killing machine. They resemble vampires but are easily identified by the web-like marking surrounding the bite mark where the monster blood was injected and their complete lack of self-control. The lead male character, Tsukune Aono, eventually becomes one such ghoul due to the continuous intake of vampiric blood from Moka Akashiya. Although thanks to some intervention he was able to regain almost all of his humanity and senses by having the vampire blood sealed through a Holy Lock. Although, for a time, there’s still a danger he’ll revert to a ghoul again. Eventually, Tsukune overcomes the vampire blood and becomes a full fledged vampire himself.
Although many screenplays have featured ghouls, the first major motion picture of this theme was the 1933 British film entitled The Ghoul. Boris Karloff plays a dying Egyptologist who possesses an occult gem, known as The Eternal Light, which he believes will grant immortality if he is buried with it, and thereby able to present it to Anubis in the afterlife. Of course, his bickering covetous heirs and associates would rather keep the jewel for themselves. Karloff vows to rise from his grave and avenge himself against anyone who meddles with his plan, and he keeps this promise when one of his colleagues steals the gem after his death.
In 1968, George A. Romero’s groundbreaking film Night of the Living Dead combined reanimated corpses (zombies) with cannibalistic monsters (ghouls), creating new film monsters more terrifying than either of their predecessors. The term “ghoul” was the one actually used in the film, though as we now know, the beings in Romero’s film exhibit the habits of zombies, in that they crave live human flesh, not that of corpses.
The 1976 Turkish movie Milk Brothers (based on H. Rahmi Gurpinar’s story, “Ghoul”) is a comedy in which ghouls feature prominently.
The 1975 British film The Ghoul (unrelated to the Karloff vehicle) stars Peter Cushing as a defrocked missionary whose son has developed a taste for human flesh while travelling in India. As the son’s mind and body degenerate, Cushing has several young people dispatched and prepared as food for his offspring, whom he keeps locked up in the attic.
The 1980 anthology film The Monster Club featured a segment about a village of ghouls stumbled upon by an unwary traveller (Stuart Whitman), who temporarily escapes the creatures with the help of one half-human girl, but he is recaptured when it turns out that the ghouls have representatives inhabiting our normal human world.
In the anime and manga series Hellsing, ghouls are zombie-like creatures that are created when a “chipped” (technological) vampire drains a victim to death, or, in the Manga, where a vampire drains the blood of someone who is not a virgin. If fatally wounded, they instantly crumble to dust. They are under the control of the vampire who bites them, eat human flesh, and are intelligent enough to use firearms. It is not rare to see a vampire amass a small army of ghouls for offence and defence
In Cannibal Flesh Riot, the 2006 film directorial debut of Children’s Book Author and illustrator Gris Grimly, two ancient ghouls, Stash and Hub, prowl cemeteries by night digging up the decaying bodies of the deceased to feed on their rotting flesh.
In I Sell the Dead, the 2008 film directorial debut of Glenn McQuaid, a comedy horror film about two grave robbers and their escapades, once they discover the prospects of the grave robbing of supernatural entities, their title goes from grave-robbers to ghouls .
The Batman comics-based franchise, including the 2005 movie, Batman Begins, has an antagonist named Rā’s al-Ghūl, whose name derives from the original Arabic name for the star Algol in the constellation Perseus meaning “the monster’s (i.e. Medusa’s) head”.
Daz Lawrence
‘For use with a stiff drink’
The Zombie Head Decanter is perfect for wine and spirit enthusiasts who also have a penchant for the undead whether they are in movies, TV, video games or comics. This unique decanter will be a talking point for any gruesome gathering and a novel way to store and present your booze in a fearsome fashion.
With its 1150ml capacity and cork stopper, this horrifying decanter is perfect for parties, Halloween, creepy Christmas get-togethers, or horror movie nights…
Buy a Zombie Head Decanter from Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk
‘Prey for Salvation’
Zombie Resurrection is a 2014 British horror film, made partly with the aid of online funding. Set in an unspecified part of the UK, eight survivors of an apocalyptic outbreak, which has seen the dead rise from their graves, attempt find sanctuary as the undead hordes thin out and make sense of the chaos that surrounds them. It is the debut feature of directors Andy Phelps and Jake Hawkins.
Fifteen months after zombies ravaged the country, eight survivors trudge through the British woodland attempting to find a place of refuge known as Imperium, the destination known only by one of their number, the upper class Major Gibson (Joe Rainbow, Stag Night of the Dead), who revels in the hold he has over the others. These include Mac (Jim Sweeney), a sweary Scottish tough guy; God-fearing Esther (Shamiso Mushambi); almost respectably middle-class Beaumont (Danny Brown), who carries a golf club just to make sure you’ve “got it”, and the shackled prisoner Dr. Sykes (Eric Colvin), plus three more utterly detestable individuals.
In a twist to the usual lore surrounding zombie outbreaks, we learn that time has taken its toll on the dead, who are now few in number and those who do survive are ineffective decaying lumps. Regardless, the disagreeable bunch of the living find getting on with one another impossible and tensions rise even further when Gibson steps in a mantrap and has his leg removed. Taking shelter in a school building (expanding the quite obviously tiny shooting area by up to twenty feet), we find that Sykes is held as a prisoner due to his role in the development of the ‘virus’ which started the apocalypse – actually an attempted cure for chemical warfare – and that he is due to be hanged. Events spiral out of their control when they realise the building actually houses some unexpectedly spritely zombies and, even more surprisingly, that one of them has a quasi-religious gift for resurrecting the more decayed of his number, threatening to send them back to the early days of the outbreak.
On the plus side, there are some interesting ideas here; the diminished threat of rotting corpses over time has been touched upon in film and fiction before but, in this case, it’s central to the plot; similarly, aside from voodoo, there hasn’t been a great deal of emphasis on religion’s part in such a scenario. Unfortunately, these really only become viable as part of a short story – at a push, a play, though presumably a rubbish one. Without zombies as an immediate threat, you have to rely on the living characters and their back-stories to provide the drama and tension, done skilfully in periods of Romero’s early zombie films and large tracts of The Walking Dead comic and television series. You’d be correct in assuming this film has none of that.
Firstly, there are far too many characters, none of whom are engaging or illicit any sympathy from the viewer. This is exacerbated by the fact that the acting is of a shockingly poor quality, veering from potty-mouthed shouting to something that resembles the farce of a drunken person assuring assembled onlookers that they’re completely sober, whilst stood in a duck-pond. This sits particularly badly when the closing quarter of Zombie Resurrection attempts to ponder the complexities of life, religion and all points between, with the film left hanging as neither fish nor fowl, though almost certainly, foul.
The gore effects and make-up are passable and indeed, if that sends your pulse racing, you may still find something of interest here. Despite this, at no point is anything in the least believable; how a compound came to be called Imperium in just over a year (surely rejected even by eager Apprentice candidates), why the filmmakers opted to omit someone in a wheelchair from their parade of abysmal stereotypes and why, four years after filming wrapped, has this been allowed to surface without anyone having the guts to recognise this simply didn’t work. It’s another nail in the coffin of a horror sub-genre that just won’t stay shut.
Daz Lawrence, Horrorpedia
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‘Don’t drink the water’
Waterborne is a 2015 Australian horror short film directed by Ryan Coonan from a screenplay co-written with Richard Barcaricchio.
Press release:
Octopod Films and Veritas Entertainment, in association with Deadpan Films, are proud to bring you ‘Waterborne’ – the world’s first zombie kangaroo film, and a prequel for a feature film currently in development.
Shot on location in regional Victoria, Australia, the film only came about due to the amazing support from over 250 crowdfunding backers, who helped fund the creation of an incredible zombie kangaroo puppet, as well as a digitally animated zombieroo.
The film has screened at over fifty festivals around the world (including big genre festivals such as Fantasia, Fantastic Fest, Sitges International Film Festival) and won multiple awards.
‘She’s into whips and brains!’
Zombinatrix is a forthcoming 2016 supernatural American horror film written and directed by Michael Kyne.
Cast:
Bianca Allaine (Albino Farm; Monster Mountain; The Crawling Dead), Lenora Claire (The Devil’s Muse; Noirland), Nadia White (Toxic Tutu; Don’t Fuck in the Woods, Dracula’s War, MILFs vs. Zombies), Doug Sakmann (Punk Rock Holocaust and sequels; Return to Nuke ‘Em High Volume 2), Mark Quinnette (Return to Nuke ‘Em High Volume 1), Mike Hearse (Blood on the Reel), Johnny Daggers (Caustic Zombies).
Filming locations:
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
New York City, USA
Washington D.C., USA
King of the Zombies is a 1941 American horror comedy film directed by Jean Yarbrough (The Devil Bat; She-Wolf of London; House of Horrors) from a screenplay by Edmond Kelso. It was produced by Monogram Pictures.
The role of Dr. Miklos Sangre was intended for Bela Lugosi. When he became unavailable, negotiations ensued to obtain Peter Lorre for the part, but a deal could not be reached. Veteran character actor Henry Victor was signed just prior to the date of filming.
In the press kit for this film, Monogram advised exhibitors to sell “it along the same lines as Paramount’s The Ghost Breakers (1940).”
Two years later, in 1943, the film was followed by a sequel, of sorts, called Revenge of the Zombies which included two of the original cast members. Mantan Moreland reprised his role as Jeff.
Plot:
During World War II, a Capelis XC-12 plane somewhere over the Caribbean runs low on fuel and is blown off course by a storm. Guided by a faint radio signal, they crash-land on an island. The passenger, his manservant and the pilot take refuge in a mansion owned by a doctor.
Quick-witted yet easily frightened valet (Mantan Moreland) soon becomes convinced the mansion is haunted by zombies, and confirms this with some of the doctor’s hired help.
Exploring, the three stumble upon a voodoo ritual being conducted in the cellar, where the doctor, who is in reality a foreign spy, is trying to acquire war intelligence from a captured US Admiral whose plane had crashed in a similar fashion on the island. But the interruption causes the zombies to turn on their master…
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Reviews:
“In what would otherwise be a rather mediocre movie, the hilarious performance of Mantan Moreland is masterful to say the least. It’s interesting to see that, even back in the forties, black people were the voice of reason in horror movies. White people never listen, and are therefore doomed.” Nigel Honeybone, HorrorNews.net
“… utterly absurd and delightful” Peter Dendle, The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia
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“Jeff’s role is a lot like that played by Shaggy some 30 years later in Scooby Doo, Where Are You? – with the important distinction that we are invited to believe that Jeff’s cowardice somehow follows naturally and inevitably from him being black. Above and beyond all else, it’s this that makes watching King of the Zombies such an uncomfortable experience.” 1000 Misspent Hours and Counting
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Cast and characters:
Whole film [public domain]:
Kirk Hammett’s Nosferatu guitar is a 2015 limited edition ESP Ltd edition homage to the 1921 German classic horror film. Only thirteen guitars having been produced, priced at $2,400 a piece. Each one is hand numbered and signed by the Metallica guitarist and horror fan.
The guitars also come with a photo of Hammett, a Nosferatu print signed by artist Basil Gogos, a Famous Monsters “Lil Kirk” zombie figure and a certificate of authenticity.
Promo:
Source: Broke Horror Fan | Related: All Nightmare Long
Miruthan is a 2016 Indian Tamil science fiction zombie horror film written and directed by Shakti Soundar Rajan. It stars Jayam Ravi and Lakshmi Menon in the leading roles. Advertised as India’s first zombie film in Tamil, Miruthan was released on 19 February 2016.
Plot:
A stray dog becomes violent, after being exposed by toxic fumes, then bites a security guard. The security guard becomes a zombie momentarily and starts a chain of human infections via bites…
Karthik (Jayam Ravi) is a traffic officer in Ooty who avoids from any danger as he has to take care of a younger sister in her early teens. He is in love with a Dr. Renuka (Lakshmi Menon) but never proposes as all their meetings end up putting him in a bad light and to complicate things Renuka is already engaged to be married.
As the zombie infection spreads throughout the city, Karthik and Renuka team up with a few others to move to the adjoining metro city to find a vaccine for the infection…
Review:
“A few of the zombie portions work — the initial one involving a dog, the interval block when a hoard of zombies take over the van carrying the protagonists, and the climax, which has a superb set-up, at least on paper. Even though the execution is off, the haunting song that Imman provides for this moment, Mirutha Mirutha, hits us hard, and makes us care for the lead pair.” M. Sugganth, Times of India
“Where the film succeeds, I think, unexpectedly, is that it both exemplifies and transcends regional entertainment by telling a universally popular story that includes locally acceptable tropes without alienating potential outside audiences.” J Hurtado, Twitch
“While the film has been marketed as a ‘zombie’ film, it fits nowhere into that definition except for the inclusion of zombie-like creatures. The storyline is not novel nor convincing. It is amateurish. It is just another Tamil film masquerading as a zombie film.” Latha Srinivasan, dna
Cast and characters:
Trailer:
‘Get out undead or alive’
Freaks of Nature is a 2015 American sci-fi supernatural comedy horror film directed by Robbie Pickering, from a screenplay by Oren Uziel (Mortal Kombat: Rebirth; Men in Black 4), and produced by Matt Tolmach. The film was formerly titled Kitchen Sink and The Kitchen Sink.
Cast:
Vanessa Hudgens (Sucker Punch;Machete Kills), Ed Westwick, Denis Leary and Bob Odenkirk.
The Columbia Pictures production received a limited theatrical release on October 30, 2015. A Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital release is scheduled for February 9, 2016, from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Plot:
In the town of Dillford, it used to be that vampires, humans and zombies got along, but then something unexpected arrived and now it’s humans vs. vampires vs. zombies in all-out mortal combat. Three teenagers must try to get things back to “normal”…
Cast and characters:
Trailer:
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I Am a Hero – アイアムアヒーロー – is a 2015 Japanese live action horror film adaption of the manga comic of the same name by Kengo Hanazawa, directed by Shinsuke Sato from a screenplay by Akiko Nogi.
The film premiered at the Sitges Film Festival in October 13, 2015, and is scheduled for commercial release in 2016.
Main cast:
Yo Oizumi, Kasumi Arimura and Masami Nagasawa.
Plot:
Hideo Suzuki is a 35-year-old manga artist assistant, whose life seem to be stuck around his exhausting but low-paying job, unfulfilled dreams, strange hallucinations and unsatisfying relationships. He sees himself as a supporting character in his own life, has low self-esteem, resulting in frustration.
One day, the world as Hideo knows it is shattered by the presence of a disease that turns people into homicidal maniacs, whose first instinct is to attack and devour the nearest human.
Armed with only his sporting shotgun, Hideo runs for his life, meeting strangers along the way. All the while, he and his companions struggle to stay alive, while questioning their moral choices…
Trailer:
Dead Rising: Watchtower is a 2015 action horror zombie film directed by Zach Lipovsky (Tasmanian Devils; Leprechaun: Origins), from a screenplay by co-producer Tim Carter (Mortal Kombat: Legacy). The film is based on the video game of the same name. Legendary Pictures produced as its first digital film and it was released on Crackle on March 27, 2015.
Cast:
Jesse Metcalfe (Insanitarium; The Tortured), Dennis Haysbert, Virginia Madsen (Candyman; The Haunting; A Haunting in Connecticut), Meghan Ory (Vampire High), Keegan Connor Tracy (Final Destination 2; Embrace of the Vampire; Bates Motel) and Rob Riggle (Dragula; Hotel Transylvania and sequel).
Plot:
Set between the events of Dead Rising 2 and Dead Rising 3, the story follows online reporter Chase Carter and camerawoman Jordan as they cover the stories of the people inside of the walled-in quarantined area in Oregon, as the government (running an organization called FEZA — Federal Emergency Zombie Authority) attempts to contain a viral outbreak that turns people into ravenous zombies.
An anti-viral drug called Zombrex, that keeps the virus at bay, is being administered to those infected. When it becomes clear that the drug is no longer effective and a zombie outbreak purges the town and infects its inhabitants, Chase, Jordan, grieving mother Maggie , and survivor Crystal battle their way out of the city before it gets firebombed. But Crystal has a dark secret, and the army has a hidden agenda…
Reviews:
“Dead Rising: Watchtower is precisely the type of comedic action/horror concoction that it plainly wants to be, but there’s something about the film’s aggressively episodic structure — and 118-minute running time — that makes it feel more like a series of short films that were cut together than a full-bore three-act story.” Scott Weinberg, Nerdist
“Fans may justifiably complain that it’s impossible to invest in one-dimensional characters and cliché government cover-ups, but no one can say it’s not as good as the games. Disposable characters and convoluted conspiracies are as common to the Dead Rising universe as machete shotguns and ludicrous Mad Max-style gangs. For better or worse, Watchtower is exactly the movie the Dead Rising series deserves.” Adam DiLeo, IGN
… surprisingly very good take on the hit video games of the same name. It’s above average zombie cinema with teeth and it’s worth a shot if you’re in the mood for good apocalyptic entertainment.” Felix Vasquez, Cinema Crazed
“Compounding the uneventful nature of the movie is the simple fact that it’s not very good horror. There’s blood – mostly in obvious CG splashes and the occasional mouthful burped out in actor’s faces – but no real gore. There’s a slightly juicy bisection, and a pretty good decapitation, but that’s it. For a movie with so much inventive hardware being wielded, too little of it ever gets put to use for a memorable kill.” Dan Whitehead, Eurogamer.net
Choice dialogue:
Case Carter [Jesse Metcalfe]: “I’m putting myself to sleep, this story’s been done.”
Protester: “God hates zombies!”
Filming locations:
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Cast and characters:
Trailer:
‘Shoot. Cut. Stay alive.’
I Survived a Zombie Holocaust is a 2014 New Zealand supernatural comedy horror film that was directed and written by Guy Pigden, and is his feature film directorial debut. It stars Harley Neville, Jocelyn Christian, Ben Baker and Reanin Johannink.
The film should not be confused with the BBC3 TV series of the same title.
Plot:
Wesley (Harley Neville) couldn’t be happier- he has managed to land a job as a runner for an upcoming horror film, Tonight They Come. He also feels that he’s met the girl of his dreams in the set caterer Susan (Jocelyn Christian), which makes things that much better.
The only problem is that the director seems keen on using Wesley as a whipping boy to vent his frustrations and to make matters worse, the film’s extras all seem to have become zombies intent on killing them all…
Buy: Amazon.co.uk
Reviews:
“More or less immunising itself against charges of unoriginality by constantly offering reflexive commentary on its own movie-bound qualities (or lack thereof), Pigden’s film is an affectionate trawl though the mechanics of the modern zombie picture.” Anton Bitel, Grolsch Film Works
“One or two sequences work very well (such as the director convincing his first AD to literally sacrifice himself for the art) but it’s overlong at 100-odd minutes and it struggles to find jokes beyond the self-referential. It’s difficult to criticise a film this amiable too harshly, but it’s not particularly funny.” Jonathan Hatfull, Sci-Fi Now
“Even thought the film is infused with over-the-top ridiculousness and a script that pokes fun at the genre, I Survived a Zombie Holocaust still pays “respect” to those genre films that have come before it … The film starts with a fourth-wall breaking zombie “movie” and ends on a similar slant and in between is some of the wittiest and smuttiest humour I’ve seen in a horror movie in some time.” Phil Wheat, Nerdly
“It’s one of the funniest zombie comedies in recent memory (apart from the tremendous Stalled) and is a great example of how to get the genre right. A brilliant thrill ride that will make you laugh, make you hurl and can even make you cry – even if it’s just from laughing so much.” Luke Owen, Flickering Myth
” … there are some great gory moments that give the film a much-needed kick out of the straight comedy zone. Just as the director says, “Finally, something with real substance!” as he records real zombies for his film, horror fans will be relieved that I Survived a Zombie Holocaust can deliver brilliantly bloody action to go with its witty writing.” Jessy Williams, Scream
Cast and characters:
Choice dialogue:
“I will not tolerate cannibalism on my set!”
Teaser:
Trailer:
Vere Vazhi Ille (English: “No Other Way”) is an 2015 Malaysian horror comedy and the first zombie film in Tamil, written and directed by M.S. Prem Nath.
It stars Denes Kumar in the lead role with Jasmine Michael. The film was released on 2 July 2015 in Malaysia and Singapore.
Plot:
Surya is an easygoing laid back guy who constantly switches jobs. One day, he accepts a job from his former employer at a security agency, who offers him RM3,000 for a 2-day and 1-night job as security guard at a soon-to-be shut down shopping complex building.
Maniam, the former Head of Security, gives Surya a tour in the building and tells him that the most suspicious and dangerous place he should avoid is the sixth floor, which is currently rented by a religious yoga group led by `Swamiji` (priest). They are up to no good as they plan to summon and trap spirits in dead bodies so that they can control them.
When the door to the spirit world is opened, dozens are possessed and turned into flesh eating Zombies. The only way to stop the Zombies is to get the Black Magic Book located on the sixth floor…
Teaser:
Trailer:
Dead Rush is a 2016 American point-of-view zombie horror film directed by Zachary Ramelan from a screenplay co-written with Gavin Michael Booth and Raven Cousens for Ruthless Pictures.
The film will have its world premiere at the Canadian Film Fest, which begins March 30th, 2016.
Cast:
David Michael Moote, Raven Cousens, Charlie Hamilton, Caleigh Le Grand, Rich Piatkowski, and Austin Duffy.
Press release:
“For the first time ever, the zombie apocalypse has fallen upon the shoulders of the viewer. Dead Rush puts you in the center of the mayhem like never before by letting you experience the horror through the eyes of a few struggling survivors as they search for safety, defend their loved ones, and fight for their lives through waves of the undead! Dawn is on the horizon, and even the day seems dark as night. The dead rush has begun. Will you make it?”
Trailer:
Where Evil Lives – aka Trilogy of Fear – is a 1991 American anthology horror film written and directed by Richard L. Fox (assistant director of Donnie Darko and The Woods), Stephen A. Maier and Kevin G. Nunan. It stars Claude Akins (The Night Stalker; The Norliss Tapes; Tentacles).
The film remained unreleased until 2012 when it was picked up for distribution by Troma Entertainment.
Plot:
Jack Devlin (Akins), caretaker of the Spencer House State, reveals a grisly history of zombies, vampires, and witches to a prospective buyer…
Reviews:
“… Evil proves to be far from the best horror movie of the 80s (or 90s) and Troma yet again proves they’ll say just about anything to sell something. Surprisingly, two people involved in this one managed to go on to bigger and better things.” The Bloody Pit of Horror
“Where Evil Dwells is not a good movie. The first tale was fun and made me think that the movie might have a chance to be a memorable anthology, but it quickly nosedived and was very tough to get through. It was really disappointing.” Scared Stiff Reviews
“In all honesty it’s not very good, but its fun all the same. For the most part the moviemakers seem to be trying to make something out of it, and they do a decent job creating some atmosphere. But at its core, it’s no-budget schlock that should entertain, but most probably be forgotten about by morning.” Todd Jordan, Rock! Shock! Pop!
Filming locations:
Stuart, Florida
Trilogy of Fear trailer:
Troma trailer:
IMDb | Image thanks: The Bloody Pit of Horror
The Best of Sex and Violence is a 1981 American compilation of film trailers directed by Ken Dixon (Filmgore; Zombiethon; Slave Girls from Beyond Infinity) and produced by Charles Band for release on his Wizard Video label. The film also received some theatrical showings (see ad mat below).
Plot:
Genre veteran John Carradine presents “a veritable cosmic cavalcade of celluloid insanity” by way of a slew of exploitation movie trailers from the Dimension Pictures back catalogue, Charles Band’s own productions and the Jerry Gross Organisation. In doing so, Carradine self-deprecatingly bemoans the poor standard of most of the movies 
represented. At one point, Carradine is joined by his sons David and Keith, both of whom join in the good-humoured mockery.
Cast:
John Carradine, David Carradine (Q: The Winged Serpent; Evil Toons) Dinocroc vs. Supergator), Keith Carradine (Hex), Laura Jane Leary (as Girl Victim). Future Scream Queen Brinke Stevens is featured as the cover model on the VHS clamshell box (above) for this film.
Reviews:
“Carradine is spliced in-between trailers, spouting quips about the films he’s introducing (as well as his own career) that were written by Frank Ray Perilli (who also wrote several of the movies featured here, such as The Doberman Gang and Band’s 1977 musical comedy for adults, Cinderella).” Adam Becvar, DVD Drive-In
“Despite is near non-existent production values, Dixon’s The Best of Sex and Violence is constructed with far more care and professionalism than subsequent Wizard trailer/clip comps such as Zombiethon. Composer Richard Band’s fake group Rome provides an hilariously over the top prog-rockin’ main title tune…” Empire of the ‘B’s
Buy: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com
Trailers featured:
The Sin of Adam and Eve (1969)
Bury Me an Angel (1972)
Sweet Sugar (1972)
Twilight People (1972)
The Doberman Gang (1972)
The Devil’s Wedding Night (1973)
Terminal Island (1973)
Beyond Atlantis (1973)
The Single Girls (1974)
Truck Stop Women (1974)
The Working Girls (1974)
The Manhandlers (1974)
Dolemite (1975)
Dr. Minx (1975)
Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde (1976)
Tunnel Vision (1976)
She Devils in Chains (1976)
The Human Tornado (1976)
Alice in Wonderland: An X-Rated Musical Fantasy (1976)
Cinderella (1977)
Confessions of Emanuelle (1977)
I Spit on Your Grave (1978)
Fairy Tales (1978)
Tourist Trap (1979)
Zombie (1979)
Disco Godfather (1979)
The Boogey Man (1980)
Tanya’s Island (1980)
‘A vacation to die for’
The ReZort is a 2015 British-Spanish zombie horror film directed by Steve Barker (Outpost and Outpost: Black Sun) from a screenplay by Paul Gerstenberger (House of Anubis; Bad Meat). The film was formerly known as Generation Z.
Main cast:
Dougray Scott (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; The Vatican Tapes; Fear the Walking Dead), Jessica De Gouw (Dracula TV series), Martin McCann (Ripper Street), Richard Laing, Jassa Ahluwalia (Ripper Street), Sam Douglas, Bentley Kalu (Doctor Who), Claire Goose, Shane Zaza, Elen Rhys (World War Z), Robert Firth, Sean Power (Bad Karma; Fright Night 2), Rebecca James (Deader Country), Jamie Ward, Catarina Mira.
Plot:
Set in the wake of an apocalyptic zombie outbreak, the film centers on Melanie (de Gouw) and her boyfriend, Lewis (McCann), who visit a safari retreat – The ReZort – where every paying guest has a license to kill the undead.
There they meet Archer (Scott), a former zombie hunter who has to step up when the security system at the ReZort crashes and unleashes thousands of bloodthirsty zombies back into the wild…
Reviews:
“a promising film that felt like it could have changed the zombie genre, or at least inject a spark of originality into such films. Unfortunately, that didn’t quite happen. It got lost in a sea of its own attempts to hew as closely to the zombie tropes as possible. As a result, The ReZort is really just like every other zombie film out there, just reskinned in a different outfit.” Marcus Goh, Yahoo News
“Beyond being a fun, scary horror romp, The ReZort’s strength lies in its interesting take on the undead, interrogating what is and what’s not human, inverting the usual zombie conceit of the living having to accept that their fellow man are zombified, no longer human and thus ripe for annihilation. The ReZort switches this dynamic through its setting of zombie safari and its depiction of the undead.” Rachel Bowles, The Skinny
” … a film that wants to be taken seriously, but is so lacking in originality that it simply falls apart. Add in the cardboard characters led by Dougray Scott and Jessica De Gouw and there really isn’t much to keep us going for the entire ride.” Deborah Wee, The New Paper
IMDb
