3 Day Zombie Movie Fest Weekend! - my thoughts on.... 'War of the Dead'

A zombie movie fest? It was bound to happen. I've had several zombie movies in my queue, waiting to be seen. However, I just wasn't in the right state of mind to watch them and I didn't have the time. But, with the 3 day weekend upon me.... I figured there was no time like the present! So I fired up Netflix and away we go!

Let's start this off by saying, I'm not a fan of Nazi zombie movies or "flying through the air" zombie movies. Both of them have their exceptions, but overall.... they just rub me the wrong way. 'Dead Snow' and 'Day of the Dead' (2008) are a couple of ones that I actually enjoyed in each sub-genre. Because of this, I had really low expectations for 'War of the Dead'. It was Nazi zombies who jumped and flew through the air like super heroes or something. Knowing that, I was all prepared to hate this take on the genre. Well, I can admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong about this one. It may not be my new favorite zombie movie ever, but it certainly delivered a much better experience than I could have ever hoped for. The zombies were fearsome, but not scary. The action was well paced and not too much. The script was fairly basic, but enjoyable. There was only one scene that had me completely baffled in the whole thing. Where one of the main characters gets on a horse, only to ride about 20 feet and then get off and into the car that everyone else was in. Which, very slowly, had just crashed through a fence. You have to see it to understand.... or not understand.

This is the basic plot: During WWII, Captain Stone and a platoon of American and Finnish soldiers are on a mission to find a bunker held by the Germans. On the way there they come under fire and at the same time run into some German soldiers that seem to be "undead". How is this possible? Their platoon is almost completely killed off apart from a few of them, including Capt. Stone. They move on and run in to another survivor, a Russian soldier. They all try to survive and end up at the bunker they were meant to take out. Once inside, they find out just how the German soldiers became the "undead". All the while, they're finding out that despite them being on different sides of the war.... they all have a common enemy.

I don't think that this movie was meant to be any kind of giant blockbuster, but it has all the earmarks of a great war movie. It's also beautifully shot and feels like a much more epic movie then I think it actually was meant to be. With some more time and a slightly better script, this could have been pretty epic. It seems that the writer and director took several liberties with the story, in favor of just getting it done. It doesn't hurt the overall experience, but it does make some parts seem forced. There are also several logic jumps, but all of them can be forgiven. It's got lots of gun battles, hand to hand combat and Nazi's! My biggest complaint with the whole thing is that the zombies aren't as interested in chewing on human flesh as they are getting in to a fist fight. They also seem to have super human abilities, thanks to their transformation into the undead army they've become. I can look past all that though.

If you have a rainy Saturday afternoon and are looking for something new, but familiar.... then this might be the ticket for you. It's a solid war movie, a solid zombie movie and a decent thrill ride. I don't know that I really ever need to see it again. Not that this is a bad thing. Some movies are meant to take you on a one way trip through a new reality and then drop you off on the other side. Some are like a good song, meant to be played over and over so you can re-listen to your favorite parts. All in all, this movie comes recommended for fans of the zombie and/or Nazi zombie genre. It has likable characters and a good enough story line to kill an hour and a half without feeling like you wasted the time. Not too mention, who doesn't want to shoot some Nazi's in the head?

3 out of 5 stars.

If you like this, perhaps you should check out: 'Dead Snow', 'Day of the Dead' (2008) and 'Oasis of the Zombies' (for an example of an original Nazi zombie movie.... but not a very good one.)

my thoughts on.... 'Resident Evil: Afterlife'

it's no secret that i'm not a video game player.... i used to be when i was a youth.... then i was on and off again in college.... and eventually i got a Wii for free in a contest, bought a couple of games but never really used it that much.... but i've seen a lot of the video game movies that have come out.... and i must say that the 'Resident Evil' movies have been some of my favorite.... granted, i know little to nothing about the games, but that doesn't seem to matter with these.... they're stand alone movies.... i would even say that the 'Resident Evil' movies are good movies outside of the video game realm.... they may not be deep thinking films, but they're fun to watch and have a continual storyline that just keeps getting more and more in depth.... although, i'm not sure if it makes a lot of sense at times.... i mean, the Umbrella Corporation are sure going through a lot of trouble to get Alice back.... and meanwhile, the world has basically ended.... regardless, i've watched the whole series multiple times and they never get old.... i like the storyline and the actors involved.... no matter how over the top it gets, i still look forward to each new movie that comes out.... you know what, it doesn't hurt that Milla Jovovich is the star.... she's a fairly credible action heroine and kicks some ass on the big screen.... i have yet to see her in a movie that i didn't like.... and she's especially cool in these movies.... Alice is a great character....

in this 4th installment, we find Alice and her squadron of clones attacking the Umbrella Corporation in Tokyo.... after barely escaping with her life, she makes her way to Alaska where an outpost is supposed to be located.... once she realizes that the outpost doesn't seem to exist, she ends up re-united with Claire Redfield.... she takes her plane with Claire and heads to find a new location and refuge.... she ends up in an abandoned prison with several other survivors and finds out that the outpost has re-located to just outside of where she is.... the rest of the movie is spent showing Alice and the other survivors trying to get to safety....
there are some great scenes of zombie horde action.... there is a horrific giant, known as The Executioner, who has a frightening fight with Alice and Claire.... there's lots of great action sequences.... the special effects are pretty solid.... and despite the fact that this was originally in 3-D, it holds up well in 2-D and doesn't seem to cheesy.... even if you can see where the shots are in the movie.... now, being a fan of the franchise, i may be a little biased but i gave this 4 out of 5 stars.... as i've done for the other 3 movies as well.... again, it's not high art.... it's a zombie, horror, action movie with a plot.... so if you haven't seen any of them yet, please start with the original and watch them all in order from there.... if you don't expect too much, i think you'll be pleasently surprised....

before you watch this, watch: 'Resident Evil', 'Resident Evil: Apocalypse', and 'Resident Evil: Extinction'

my brief thoughts on.... 'La horde aka The Horde'

in this day and age, zombie movie are a dime a dozen.... every director's first movie seems to be in the zombie genre.... there's an oversaturated market right now.... there's new zombie movies come out almost every week.... and very few make a lasting impression.... recently 'The Walking Dead' took the genre and made it into a series.... and it was the first time zombies were on TV on a weekly basis.... now there's another series starting soon and the movies keep coming.... i watch a lot of the movies that come out with the hopes that something fresh or original or at least fun will come out.... i love 'The Walking Dead' and have seen a few good zombie films in the past year or so.... but a couple of weeks ago i finally had the chance to see the French take on the undead....! and let me say that i was NOT dissappointed.... this movie was such a good time to watch.... it is what i would call a 'satisfying' movie.... something where at the end of it, you feel like you didn't waste your time.... and i certainly felt like it was time well spent.

the basic story is that some cops go rogue to avenge the death of a fellow officer.... they infiltrate a run down old apartment complex where the bad guys are hanging out.... things seem to be going fine, but then things suddenly go straight to hell and the cops get caught by the bad guys and are held hostage.... meanwhile, the rest of the world has been taken over by the living dead.... once they realize what's going on, they lockdown the building and make a shaky truce so that they might get out alive.... the rest of the film revolves around them making their way through the building in an attempt to escape....
if you don't mind subtitles, lots of gunfire and some pretty nifty gore, then this film is for you.... i am continually impressed with the quality of the horror films that the French have been producing.... they are a big time contender in the horror genre and this movie proves yet again that they're on the top of their game.... the action is well done.... the zombies are scary.... the characters are well drawn out and you get attached to each and every one of them.... i can't recommend this film enough.... it's a wonderful addition to the zombie lexicon and one that will eventually be a part of the Joel DVD library.... zombie films are my bread and butter of the horror genre.... and this one stands out above all the other garbage that keeps getting pumped out.... i gave it 4 out of 5 stars.... a great film.

if you like this, watch: 'Diary of the Dead', 'Zombieland' or 'Dawn of the Dead' (2004)

my very brief thoughts on.... 'Faust: Love of the Damned'

i used to collect comics back in the late 80's and early 90's.... i had come across an ultra-violent comic called 'Grips' by a man named Tim Vigil.... i instantly fell in love.... it was kind of like Wolverine, without the mutation and with a LOT more blood.... soon after, Tim Vigil started a series called 'Faust: Love of the Damned'.... it was very similar to 'Grips', but it dealt with a man who made a deal with (basically) the devil.... to take revenge on those who murdered his significant other.... but the devil can't control him and he soon begins to wreak havoc and eventually confronts the evil 'M' himself.... it was a kick ass story, killer art, and every teenagers dream of a comic.... eventually (after i stopped collecting) i heard that Brian Yuzna, director of 'Re-Animator', was making a film version of the comic.... i was pretty excited, as Brian Yuzna is a fairly violent and disturbing director.... which made perfect sense with 'Faust'.... soon, stills from the movie started appearing and i begin to get a little concerned.... and when i finally saw an actual shot of Mark Frost as 'Faust' i nearly cried.... it was so terrible.... the reviews once it came out were terrible.... and a friend of mine, a mutual lover of Tim Vigil, saw the movie and told me how horrificly bad it was.... therefore i stayed away for a VERY long time.... it was recently released OnDemand from Netflix.... and i took the time to watch it, despite my better judgement.... i had a slight glimmer of hope that maybe it wasn't as bad as i'd heard.... and since my expectations were SO low, i figured that maybe i'd get some enjoyment out of it....

i was wrong.
Mark Frost's portrayal of 'Faust' was so over the top and bad that i almost turned it off within the first 15 minutes.... however, i generally will watch any movie to the end.... no matter how terrible.... so i soldiered on.... and it just got worse.... there was nothing good about this movie.... nothing.... the worst part was the costume for 'Faust'.... it was obviously made of latex or rubber (it wiggled when he moved) and made the character look like a bad SyFy original movie villan.... the special effects were sub-par.... the writting sucked.... the ending nearly made me hunt down Tim Vigil just so i could punch him in the testicles.... basically, what i'm saying is, "Don't watch this movie. Under any circumstances.".... i can never unsee what i saw.... i can't wash my brain clean of this giant piece of poo.... 1 out of 5 stars.... and i really wish i could give it negative stars....

that's all i have to say about that.

if you like this movie.... i don't think we can be friends.

my thoughts on.... 'Pandorum'

i cannot express the joy i get when i find a diamond in the rough.... when you stumble across a film that takes you by suprise and turns out to be so much more than you could have ever hoped for.... this is one of those rare films.... i had never even heard of this before i ran across it in the new OnDemand movies on Netflix.... the plot sounded interesting, the actors involved were good and it got a pretty high rating.... when it started, i noticed that one of the producers was Paul W.S. Anderon, who's done some excellent films in his day.... i knew it was going to be a bit more than i originally had expected.... as he doesn't make crap.... i wasn't wrong.... the film is so much more than what the small blurb explaining the plot lets on.... this movie is grand in scope, despite it's humble beginnings.... it's like a pot of water that starts out cool and slowly builds to a boil and then boils over the top of the pot and hisses on the stovetop.... i can't say enough good things about it.... there are very few moments that this movie showed weak spots....

two crewmen on a spacecraft wake up from hypersleep and have no idea who they are, where they are or what their mission is.... slowly the storyline creeps along as we find out in small doses exactly what the characters are finding out.... it's like you're another member of the crew with the same issues.... i don't want to give away too much of the plot as it's so much more enjoyable to just see what happens on you're own.... regardless, it's WELL worth the time for you to invest in this as it's an excellent film that should have gotten a lot more notice than it did.... what i mean is that more people need to know about this film. i'm gushing at this point and i don't care.... i loved this movie so much.... it had everything that i wanted in a hard sci-fi film.... excitement, blood, intrigue, cool weapons, a nifty spaceship, a great storyline, well thought out characters and an excellent script.... this movie has so much going for it, it's silly.... at this point i think i've built it up too much.... so please don't go into this expecting the next 'Matrix' movie or 'District 9'.... go in with no expectations and you'll be rewarded greatly.... it's just that simple.... watch this movie.

4 out of 5 stars.... almost 5 out of 5.... i will be adding this one to my DVD collection at some point and look forward to taking the roller coaster ride again.... it's just a shame that i can't experience it with the same set of fresh eyes i had last night.... however, i think it will stand the test of time and will hold up over the years.... so add this to your queue.... grab a bucket of popcorn and a Coke and settle in for a thrill ride.... because that's exactly what'll you'll get as your reward for listening to this humble reviewers advice.... if i'm wrong, i'll give you your money back.... (good thing it's free.).... just enjoy it and thank me later.

if you like this, watch: 'Sunshine', 'Event Horizon' and 'Pitch Black'