Island
Of The Living Dead
+ Zombies:
The Beginning
(both 2007/Intervision DVDs)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C- Films: Island:
C+/Zombies:
B-
Bruno
Mattei (aka Vincent Dawn) directs these two schlock fest Zombie films
that are not as good but not unlike some of his previous efforts
including Hell
of the Living Dead
and Rats:
Night of Terror
(reviewed on Blu-ray elsewhere on this site) but are both still worth
checking out for hardcore zombie fans. Mattei's last two films,
Island
of the Living Dead
and it's immediate sequel, Zombies:
The Beginning)
issued on home video in 2007) feature some great zombie make-ups and
gore that are not be missed, creepy atmospheres, voodoo people that
aren't too friends, and plenty of humans for the undead to feast
upon!
Unfortunately,
what these films lack are completely original screenplays with many
scenes and plot elements highly familiar to bigger budget fair. For
instance, Zombies:
The Beginning ends
up completely ripping off the plot structure and scenes from James
Cameron's Aliens
(only here done with Zombies) and in Island
of the Living Dead,
they read an ancient text that awakes speaking demons (The
Evil Dead)
and encounter medieval zombies that come from the fog (Carpenter's
original The
Fog).
The lack of originality in story isn't why we love these movies
though, we love them because they are so bad, they are good!
The
acting is awful (and badly dubbed English from the Italian tracks),
the music is so/so, but the charm behind the lens is what makes these
films so much fun for Zombie lovers to watch. In times such as these
where shows like The
Walking Dead
are full of lots of drama, these films cut right to the chase with
creepy visuals and Zombies that grow back limbs and don't stop until
every last living human is lunch meat!
Sound
and Picture on the discs are in standard definition with widescreen
aspect ratios of 1.78 X 1 and lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono tracks.
Nothing to write home about but these aren't the types of productions
that necessarily could be restored in high definition. The grimer
the better!
Extras
are slim but include:
Zombies
Genysis (on Zombies)
Bungle
in the Jungle: Featurette with producer Giovanni Paolucci and the
Screenwriter, International Sales Promo, and Original Trailer (for
Island)
I
have seen a lot of Zombie movies but these are definitely some of the
most outrageous and original titles I have seen! I would recommend
them if you are a fan of the undead!
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films
