I won’t accuse “Dead Kansas” of being a masterpiece of zombie cinema, but damn it you have to appreciate Aaron Carter’s ambition behind this project. I assume if given a huge budget, Carter would have given us a damn good zombie movie. But since it’s mainly a film on a tight budget, he gives us the best movie he can, and at times “Dead Kansas” has glimmers of a strong zombie film. In between it’s mediocre fodder with shaky performances. But damn, you have to appreciate the inherent ambition here.
“Dead Kansas” is a multi-act zombie movie set after zombies have taken over the South. Known as “Rotters,” we meet a dad and his daughter Emma, both of whom have spent their days as god worshiping rotter hunters, living day to day. Things take a turn for the worse though when the leader of a local safe haven insists on kidnapping Emma and turning her in to a glorified babymaker for the “sake of humanity.” Emma’s father isn’t willing to let him get her without a fight, and we soon follow Emma and her father as they travel to a new safehaven after he’s bitten by a rotter. Much of the action is left to our imagination as the rotters are never seen.
We only see through their eyes in black and white as they approach victims, and they’re shot down. For some that may feel like a cheat, but I appreciated the creative approach to zombies here. They’re more an ominous presence than monsters, and it works toward what Carter is going for. Plus if you don’t have a budget for zombies, don’t try to pull off a zombie. Director Carter never tries to go beyond his limitations and it helps “Dead Kansas” in the long run. The performances on the other hand range from mediocre to just passable enough for what the entertainment entails. There’s never a bad performance here, but we do get close to horrible turns here and there. Thankfully director Aaron Carter knows how to balance his cast and creates a darn interesting and ambitious zombie epic. It may not re-invent the wheel, but it’s definitely worth a shot for experimental zombie buffs.