The movie most know as DAWN OF THE DEAD was released
elsewhere as ZOMBIE. Because of that when director Lucio Fulci made his own
zombie film it was called ZOMBIE 2 but released here as ZOMBIE. That film was
original in its own right and had some nice effects and some gut churning
moments. Fulci had already made a name for himself with several films before
and after that one and when the chance came to make a new zombie film he
hesitated. Knowing that writers Claudio Fragasso and Rossella Drudi were working
on the screenplay and wanted his input into the production he welcomed the
chance.
The movie went into production shooting in the Philippines
and almost immediately ran into problems. The biggest of those was the fact
that items promised to Fulci by the directors were not provided which angered
him. Next was the fact that the location itself was harsh and took its toll on
all involved. Lastly was the fact that Fulci himself was ill at the time
dealing with cancer among other things. The end result wasn’t approved by the
producers and they brought the writers back in to rewrite part of the film
using the footage already shot by Fulci. In addition to that they brought in
director Bruno Mattei to shoot some sequences as well as Fragasso. The end
result is a conglomeration of items that combine for a decent Italian zombie
film but kind of a mixed bag at the same time. Knowing all of this helps when
watching the film.
At a top secret government location tests are being
conducted on a program called Death Note. The end results are unsatisfactory at
best and deadly at worst. After the scientists behind the project cancel it and
are about to transport their findings and a vial of their formula to be
disposed of their attacked by spies. One of the spies escapes with the case it
was all in and is shot, breaking the case and exposing him to its contents.
Wounded and infected he runs through the jungle until he finds a hotel and
checks in.
The military sets out to find the spy who by now has
infected a worker at the hotel. Deciding the best way to be safe is to take
over the hotel the military does so, taking everyone captive and later killing
them all. To dispose of the body they cremate it. The head scientists chastises
them for this noting that it will release the virus into the air which the
commander considers “science fiction”. Apparently animating dead bodies isn’t.
Of course the virus makes its way into the atmosphere and a
large number of people and animals are infected. One is a couple out for the
weekend who come across infected chickens on the road, one of which bites the
man and infects him. Another is three G.I.s on leave and the RV full of girls
they come across, infected when a flock of birds breaks into the RV after going
mad and pecking one of the girls. Eventually their stories come together and
they unite.
As the virus spreads everyone seems to be under attack by
the infected, zombies whose only goal is to eat the flesh of the living. All of
those flesh eating moments are seen on glorious color with some well used gels,
goos, goops and plenty of torn flesh. The zombies are inconsistent in that some
are the meandering, slow moving zombies while others have the ability to run
and fight like they’ve mixed it up before. Whether or not anyone will survive is
anyone’s guess until the final reel rolls.
Like many of the Italian horror films to come out of the 70s
and 80s this one is filled with dialogue and segments that make little sense.
I’m not sure if that’s because something is lost in translation or that they
just tend to shoot stories differently than anyone else. In any event it makes
some things that happen seem incredibly stupid on the parts of the characters
involved and will leave you scratching your head as to why anyone would behave
this way. The military leader thinking one thing is science fiction while the
other is accepted is a good example. People surrounded by zombies who take
shelter and decide the smartest move is to separate and search an area is
another.
The end result is a movie that feels like exactly what it
was, a movie that had a script that was well put together and then twisted into
something completely different. Fragasso notes in an interview in the extras
the problems that they had with the producer and the fact that most of the
issues had with the film stemmed from problems he created. Fulci was so angered
that he shot over 20 minutes of footage of the actors doing nothing more than
rowing a canoe. Conditions were so bad that when asked to return for reshoots
to fix the film all of the actors involved refused, one going so far as to say
she’d never return to the Philippines.
For myself I thought the movie was entertaining enough and
one that horror fans can easily enjoy. Fans know exactly what to expect when it
comes to Italian zombie films and this one delivers on all counts, the biggest
of those being the gore content. One of those moments is also one of the
funniest when a refrigerator door is opened and an unattached head flies
through the air to begin gnawing on a victim’s neck. It’s sure to inspire
groans and laughter for those watching who will then rewind it repeatedly to
watch again and again. Another great scene involves one of the women falling
into a hotel pond. Watch and see what happens, a great effect.
Severin has done a fantastic job with their release of the
film. I’ve noted before with their release of SHOCKING DARK and in the past
about other companies who bring films like this to blu-ray format that movies
no matter how good or bad they are need to be preserved for future generations
before they are lost forever. Severin has done just that with this film
offering the film in a new 2k scan. Considering the original condition of the
film and negatives it looks great.
Not only that they’ve packed it full of extras as well. They
include THE LAST ZOMBIES an interview with co-director/co-writer Claudio
Fragasso and co-writer Rossella Drudi, TOUGH GUYS an interview with
actors/stuntmen Massimo Vanni and Ottaviano Dell’Acqua, THE PROBLEM SOLVER an
interview with replacement director Bruno Mattei, SWIMMING WITH ZOMBIES an
interview with actress Marina Loi, IN THE ZOMBIE FACTOR an interview with FX
artists Franco Di Girolamo and an audio commentary track with stars Deran
Sarafian and Beatrice Ring. The combined movie and these extras make the film a
must have for fans of horror, those who particularly love Italian horror and
movie fans looking for something different. The fans will want to forgo those
old versions of the film and pick this one up from Severin. It’s the best
version now available.
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