Horror fans are a different breed. They will wait in lines
at horror conventions for hours just to say hi and meet the star of some low
budget horror film made 30 years ago. They will seek out their favorite films
and if not available are willing to pay outrageous amounts for a bootleg
version of the film. So when a new version of their favorite movie comes out,
even if they already own it in one form or another, the odds are good they will
fork out the money for this version. And in some cases, as with the new release
of ZOMBIE from Blue Underground, it is worth the investment.
For those who never saw the original it was the somewhat
recognized unofficial sequel to George Romero’s DAWN OF THE DEAD, only because
that film was called ZOMBI in Italy and this one was released there as ZOMBI 2.
Once again the dead have risen to feast on the flesh of the living. But that’s
as close as it gets to the Romero classic.
Director Lucio Fulci, a well-known name among horror fans
and especially those who love Italian horror films, brought about a different
sort of zombie in this film. Taking the old school zombies of the past, those
infected by voodoo, and combining them with Romero’s zombies, those infected by
being bitten, he combined them to create something just as chilling.
The film opens with a sailboat arriving in New York harbor,
drifting along with no apparent crew. When the harbor patrol investigates one
man is attacked and bitten by a very large zombie. As he makes his way to the
other officer he’s shot numerous times before falling over the edge of the boat
and into the harbor.
Things move from here to a newsroom from there where
journalist Peter West (Ian McCullough) is being sent to follow up on the story
investigating the boat. He meets the owner’s daughter Anne Bowles (Tisa Farrow)
who says she hasn’t seen her father in months. The clues they find lead them to
the Caribbean island Matul. There they hitch a ride with vacationing couple
Brian Hull (Al Cliver) and Susan Barrett (Auretta Gay) to reach the uncharted
island.
They arrive to find the island nearly deserted. One of the
few people they find is Dr. David Menard (Richard Jordan) who has been running
a hospital and investigating the cause of the voodoo problems there. Prior to
their arrival he was arguing with his wife Paola (Olga Karlatos) who wants to
leave the island, fearful of what is killing off the native population. The
locals blame voodoo but he believes it is something else. The question comes
will the group survive to find out?
The movie has several memorable moments that fans of the
film have long remembered. Perhaps the most interesting is when Susan is
attacked while scuba diving by an underwater zombie she escapes from when he
finds something more worthwhile to eat, a shark. Yes that’s right, a shark.
Another is one of the most stomach churning scenes put on film as Paola is
attacked by zombies. When one breaks through the slats of her shutters and
grabs her by the hair, he slowly pulls her closer and closer to the splintered
remains, her eyeball nearing it an inch at a time. Fulci does not allow the
viewer to pull away nor does he Paola.
The film was a huge hit in Italy and around the world. It
was also a part of the infamous Video Nasties in the UK, movies that were
banned from being released there in any format including tape at the time. But
that didn’t keep those fans from finding a way to see it or to own it. Now it’s
considered a classic of the genre.
Blue Underground has gone to painstaking lengths to present
the film in pristine format with a 4K Restoration from the uncensored original
camera negative, the first time this has been done. The film has never looked
better and if, like me, you first saw this in a drive-in the difference is
noticeable. There is a second disc that is just the soundtrack for the film. In
addition to that they’ve included a ton of extras, so much so that they needed
to be placed on a third and separate disc. My favorite among those is ZOMBIE
WASTELAND, interviews with some of the remaining cast members done at Cinema
Wasteland in Cleveland back in 2010. I’ve gone to this convention several times
and it is one of the best.
But there are more extras than just that. There is a new
audio commentary track with Troy Howarth the author of SPLINTERED VISIONS:
LUCIO FULCI AND HIS FILMS, an audio commentary track with star Ian McCulloch
and Diablik Magazine editor Jason J. Slater, “When the Earth Spits Out the
Dead” a new interview with Stephen Thrower author of BEYOND TERROR: THE FILMS
OF LUCIO FULCI, theatrical trailers, TV spots, radio spots, a poster and still
gallery, an introduction to the film by Guillermo del Toro, “Flesh Eaters on
Film” an interview with co-producer Fabrizio de Angelis, “Deadtime Stories”
interviews with co-writers Elisa Briganti and the uncredited Dardano Sacchetti,
“World of the Dead” interviews with cinematographer Sergio Salvati and
production & costume designer Walter Patriarca, “Zombi Italiano” interviews
with special make-up effects artists Gianetto De Rossi and Maurizio Trani and
special effects artist Gino De Rossi, “Notes on a Headstone” an interview with
composer Fabio Frizzi, “All in the Famiy” an interview with Lucio Fulci’s daughter
Antonella Fulci, “Zombie Lover” in which Guillermo del Toro talks about the
film, a collectable booklet with a new essay by Stephen Thrower and the cover
is a lenticular cover. Blue Underground is doing this film right.
Horror films may not be your type of film but if you know
someone who loves them then I would suggest that you make this an item for them
to find beneath the tree this Christmas. The iconic images that most horror
fans recognize from the film will have them delighted when they unwrap this
one. And who knows, you might just decide you enjoy it as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment