Neways, I promised in Part 1 to offer some kind of explanation as to why IMHO zombie movies are more badass than movies about sizzling hawt vampires. The short version is: not only do they contain substantial social/political issues for ppl who want to get more than just popcorn when they watch a movie (i.e.: those who use their brains for more than just storage space), but they also have awesome mindless gory killing scenes for those who prefer to shove food in their mouth while screaming excitedly (‘ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod...what happened? Did he kill her? Did he kill her? Oh shit! Dude…that’s awe-some!’ – insert some testosterone-induced male grunts and high fives).
Admit it, sometimes we look like some of them in the morning.
Yes, zombies movies are indeed awesome. But for some ppl it might be a required taste. If you find yourself saying ‘What issues? Most zombie movies are about unnecessary violence. Children learn through example, you know. These so-called filmmakers just put a bunch of ugly people and smash the crap out of them and call it a movie! And in the end, there’s nothing to justify these acts...’ *end scene*
First of all, movie watching experience works both ways. As audience, you have to prepare yourself for what’s coming. Don’t go watch a movie with the word ‘dead’ or ‘zombie’ in the title if you refuse to tolerate what comes with it.
Basically, there are some important things you must have if you want to watch a good zombie movie and enjoy it: a sense of humour, a strong stomach, an apocalyptic view of the world and the willingness to accept that special effects/make up in movies nowadays may differ slightly from, say, those in the 60’s - 90’s (they’re not intentionally designed to be bad, you know. Well, sometimes they are intentionally cheesy, but not bad).
Some zombie movies like The (original) Dead Series by George A. Romero, 28 Days/Weeks Later and the Resident Evil series are more serious in nature. They serve as social commentaries on modern society – how we’re becoming immobilized by over-dependency on our mundane daily routine. So that when things go shitty and disrupt our lives, do we man up or submit into a catatonic state? They also make us question our own humanity: would you kill strangers or even your loved ones if they threaten your very existence? Btw, I'm glad I have great friends - Fake Frenchie and Baby Kailan - who unanimously voted to kill me off as soon as I am zombified/infected. And when there’s no law to control/stop you, would you relent to your animal instincts and run amok killing ‘zombies’, stealing stuff, raping people etc.?
These movies are some scary shits, y'all - gay voice ala Bruce.
Too heavy for you? Then opt for ‘lighter’ movies like Dellamorte Dellamore, Re-animator, Shaun of the Dead, Planet Terror, Dead Alive (Braindead) and Creepshow. These movies may sound stupid; with gory scenes that either disgust you or make you laugh but trust me, they’re good. These are the ones that you can watch just for pure enjoyment. If you get something out of it, then good for you. But to me, they are genius simply because there aren’t many movies than can make you cringe and laugh at the same time. If you enjoyed Sam Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell last year, it’s definitely an indication that you will like these movies (and that you have an excellent sense of humour).
Watch them in all their gory-awesomeness and cheesiness before you pass any judgement.
Classics: White zombie (1932), I Walked with a Zombie (1943).
