“Zombieland” seeks to be the antidote for folks still clamoring for a zombie television series, but hate the drama and politics of “The Walking Dead.” Where as Robert Kirkman’s pop culture smash is more of an adult take, “Zombieland” takes all of the best road trip movies and adds some zombies for good measure. Folks claiming this is an attempt to market off of “The Walking Dead” are half right. Originally “Zombieland” was pitched to every studio as a weekly series, but when it was turned down left and right, it was transformed in to a horror comedy feature film that would hopefully transform in to a movie series. When Woody Harrelson pulled out of ever playing hero Tallahassee again while stars Emma Watson and Jessie Eisenberg’s careers took off, the hopes of having a “Zombieland” movie series collapses.
Tag Archives: The Walking Dead
The Top Ten Most Shocking Moments of The Walking Dead Season Three
After breaking every record in the book and becoming a national craze, “The Walking Dead” has finally ended its third season with many a surprise in store, and an immense sense of urgency and carnage in the land of the dead. With the season finale finally airing in the US, we bring you the ten most shocking moments of “The Walking Dead” season three and look back fondly on a season filled with shocks, twists, and deaths. The countdown to season four begins and we anxiously await October 2013 for the return of Robert Kirkman’s epic. Spoilers Abound!
Pet Sematary Two (1992)
While Mary Lambert’s “Pet Sematary” was nothing but a melodramatic exercise in tedium that put the actual center of the film in the background in favor of endless moaning and groaning about inept parents, her follow-up puts the sematary front and center. And still pretty much misses the point of it all. The 1992 follow-up is ugly, mean-spirited and still lacks any dread or menace to it. Not to mention there’s an immense focus on animal cruelty that’s often tough to sit through. In the end, it also fails to recognize the lure of the sematary and why these idiots continue bringing their loved ones to it to revive the dead. Once again the sematary is still there.
Pet Sematary (1989)
Though considered something of a horror classic by many, I’ve never personally enjoyed “Pet Sematary.” For the simple fact that though the idea of the pet Sematary is good on paper, director Mary Lambert’s horror drama about a Sematary that revives the living is hell bent on melodrama and meandering back stories and never quite focuses on the allure of the Sematary. In the end the Sematary poses more of a plot device than anything, and spends much of its time on unlikable vapid characters we can never really feel empathy for.
Zombie Town (2007)
Someone, somewhere thought it’d be a good idea. Whether it was the choice of the filmmakers, the producers, or the distributor, someone thought it’d be a good idea to title this zombie flick “Night of the Creeps 2: Zombie Town.” I guess someone thought since this is a zombie film revolving around parasitic slugs that create the walking dead, therefore it should be considered a sequel.
Maybe someone loved the Fred Dekker cult classic and thought this would eventually be considered a sequel if they branded it as such. In any case, “Zombie Town” is about as much of a sequel to “Night of the Creeps” as those awful Taurus Entertainment sequels “Creepshow III” and “Day of the Dead: Contagium” are to their respective classic films.
The Walking Dead: The Complete Second Season (Limited Edition) [Blu-Ray]
SEASON TWO
Season two of AMC Network’s “The Walking Dead” is perhaps the most controversial and also the most daring. AMC made the dunderheaded decision of cutting the reins from show runner Frank Darabont and cutting the series’ budget in half right before the premiere of the high rated series that managed to break every cable record in the time of its premiere. Why AMC continues to handle the business in such a manner is baffling. The release of show runner and critically acclaimed director Frank Darabont from the series is one that continues to anger fans, but happens to be a blessing in disguise.
Fans complaining that the show detracted from the comic book source material were in store for much more in the way of detraction with Darabont’s intent on tailoring the series more toward his sensibilities and including wild card episodes at the start of every season. His vision of slow burn storytelling just didn’t sit well with AMC Network and fans either. Fans complain that the first half of “The Walking Dead” season two is sluggish and uneventful. While I disagree, the first half of the season that gets most criticism is that led by Frank Darabont. Season two is almost as flawless as season one, and is given much more room to fail than season one was.
The Zombie Combat Manual: A Guide to Fighting The Living Dead [Paperback]
Comparisons to “The Zombie Survival Guide” are only inevitable. Max Brooks’ “The Zombie Survival Guide” is perhaps the most detailed examination of what to do and how to act during the conventional zombie apocalypse. Not just that, it poses as a good hand book for tips on what to do during a natural disaster. Such as filling containers with water until help arrives, and guarding your own domicile until help arrives. If it ever arrives. Mostly though it’s about how to survive during the zombie apocalypse of the Romero variety. “The Zombie Combat Manual” completely sets itself apart by being primarily about zombie combat and nothing more. Anything about where to hide, how to hide, where to retreat and how to store food is left for the Brooks novel.
“The Zombie Combat Manual” is strictly for the violence buff who wants to know how to battle the walking dead and look like a bad ass doing so. There are explorations in to various weapons, how they hold up in combat, and how to implement them. The newest treat for the book that the Brooks hand guide didn’t address pretty much in detail is the stench of the walking dead. In “The Zombie Combat Manual,” writer Roger Ma addresses that one of the best weapons in a zombie’s defense is the smell. Often times people can forget how badly they smell and become disoriented, allowing the zombies to gain the upper hand. It’s a new Easter egg in the zombie battle tactics that I enjoyed reading about.