Tag Archives: Zombies

Creepshow (1982)

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CreepShow

George A. Romero’s “Creepshow” is almost a spit in the face of everyone who decried comic books a sheer stain on humanity and the youth, blaming the colored pages for the evaporation of morality in the fifties and sixties. “Creepshow” is an absolute celebration of horror comics and a love letter to the EC generation who had their stories robbed by hack psychologists who blamed comic books for homosexuality, crime, murder, and drug use. “Creepshow” is a joint effort from many people just filled with talent that simply can not hold this entire film at times. An absolute orgy of laughs, scares, and thrills, “Creepshow” is one of the finest, if not the finest anthology horror film second only to “Black Sabbath.”

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The Walking Dead: Cold Storage [Web Series]

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“Cold Storage” doesn’t have much in the way of a narrative, but then the whole purpose of “The Walking Dead” webisodes is to whet the appetites of fans craving more of Robert Kirkman’s world, and to give producer Gregory Nicotero something to do. Show producer and special effects master Gregory Nicotero is slowly making his way in to the directing business, lensing some of the episodes for the hit series, and directing both web series for the hit horror drama. “Torn Apart” was a much more meaningful and concentrated effort in the Walking Dead mythology as we got to know the origin of bicycle girl. “Cold Storage” has a link to the show, but only in a mere lip service sense. It’s an “oh look!” moment and then it passes.

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The Walking Dead: Season Three, Episode One – Seed

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When we saw Rick Grimes and his group at the beginning of “What Lies Ahead,” they were trying to prove to Doctor Jenner that there was something worth living for out in the zombie apocalypse. Maybe if they kept going, they could show that there was salvation. And then basically they took salvation and destroyed it. Jenner was right. In the opening of “The Walking Dead” season three entitled “Seed,” there really hasn’t been any progress.

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The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor [Hardcover]

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It’s very likely that I had too high expectations, or that Max Brooks just spoiled me. But in the end when I was finished with “Rise of the Governor” I was somewhat underwhelmed. Rather than considering re-reading the book, I merely just closed it and moved on with my life. “Rise of the Governor” proves that even with good writing and a wonderful premise, a prequel isn’t always a good idea. The Governor aka Phillip Blake is surely one of the most notorious and memorable characters from the Walking Dead series, and he’s yet to be topped. And while I think he was a fascinating character with a lot of depth and complexity, I really don’t know if I care who he was before the dead destroyed the world.

Phillip Blake’s story is so unimportant in the grand scheme of things because we know how he will end up, unfortunately. The characters in “Rise of the Governor” lack any impact or real individuality. I had a very hard time discerning which characters were talking most times, and I really wasn’t on the edge of my seat. Granted, there are some truly excellent moments to be mined here. I loved the search for the missing zombie kid in the house, and Blake’s intensity toward protecting his family, but “Rise of the Governor” really has nothing to add to the universe beyond “Here is what happened before he met Rick Grimes and massacred a bunch of people in the prison.” While it is a good idea in theory, I really didn’t feel the need to follow him on his path to evil.

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Dark Times (2010)

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darktimesDirectors Peter Horn and Jared Marshall’s short science fiction horror film is, as the kids say: The shit. “Dark Times” is a rollicking and creepy gore fest that takes every advantage to be unique and original. Foregoing any opening and closing credits, “Dark Times” takes every single advantage of every second to tell a fun story that is just so damn thrilling to behold. As seen through the eyes of a hapless man, a group of workers from the Blue Skies Nuclear Power plant flee from a horrible explosion that is sending them running in to the woods as radioactive debris rains from the skies taking down survivors.

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Night of the Living Dead (1968)

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notld68posterI spend a lot of time debating and exploring “Night of the Living Dead” to an almost obscene degree. While today it’s been passed around more than a bong at a Grateful Dead concert, has been included in every horror boxed set imaginable, and has been remade, reworked, and rebooted to a sickening degree, somehow George A. Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” has managed to survive it all. It still stands, feet planted, in the ground and taking whatever the film world throws at it. A lot of horror geeks say Romero gets too much credit for “Night.” I mean, in the end isn’t it just a retread of the novel “I Am Legend” and “The Last Man on Earth”? And surely, it’s not the first genre picture to star an African American man in a dominant role. But still, “Night” is just art in motion. It’s still a rich and deeply effective indictment on humanity, and still possesses themes about the inner monster that ring true even in the digital age.

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The Return of the Living Dead (1985)

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Director Dan O’Bannon’s 1985 zombie picture is about as pitch perfect a horror comedy you can get. The film itself re-imagines the walking dead and manages to deliver oodles of comedy and horror nuggets to its audience that has kept it alive and kicking since its initial release. What many thought was once an untouchable formula transformed the walking dead in to a beast anyone could tinker with, and allowed other writers and directors a chance at re-creating the modern zombie. Sadly, none have been quite as successful as Dan O’Bannon and the minds of “The Return of the Living Dead.”

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