Zombie

From the dark reaches of the classic horror vault comes “Zombie” (Also marketed across the world in various titles including “Zombi 2”, “Zombie Flesh Eaters” and “Island of the Living Dead”), directed by the genius Italian director Lucio Fulci. He was inspired by George A. Romero’s “Dawn of the Dead”, and shot this film in 1979.

You have no doubt heard the story before, the plot is of dead people who have risen and feast on the flesh of the living. Centered mostly on a small remote island, “Zombie” ties the living dead phenomenon back to voodoo roots that some people feel are based on real events. The movie begins on the island of Matul, where we see what appears to be a dead person rising in bloody sheets. A doctor, careful aims his pistol and shoots the body in the head, then utters the somewhat famous quote “The boat can leave now, tell the crew.”

The movie shifts us now to open water just off the coast of New York, where Fulci takes his time setting the scene. We see the boat, apparently abandoned with the sails flapping, cans rolling about on the deck, and the steering wheel spinning wildly. The boat drifts into the harbor where harbor patrol officers board to investigate. You don’t for one minute suppose the boat is really abandoned, do you? They are attacked by a zombie which is eventually shot, and falls over the side of the boat into the water.

The boat, we learn, belongs to a scientist who has disappeared months ago to do some research on a faraway island. Enter Peter West (Played by Ian McCulloch- {Not to be confused with Ian McKellen who stars in the “The Lord of The Rings” trilogy as Gandalf}), a reporter who has been investigating the appearance of the mysterious ship and the murder of the patrolman. He teams up with Ann Bowles (Tisa Farrow), who is the daughter of the boat owner. They travel to the remote island of Matul which is his last known location, thanks to a letter found on the boat telling of a mysterious disease he contracted on the island of Matul and that he believes he will never leave the island alive.

What they find on the island is a slighty obssesive Dr. Menard (Richard Johnson) and eventually a horde of walking dead. Ann’s father died from the disease and the local hospital is now full of sick people who have contracted that strange disease. As the native drums pound in the distance, horror begins to spread across the island. As you watch this film you are not certain who will survive and what of the zombie in New York? Since a simply gunshot would not have eliminated him, what might happen? We certainly cannot forget that is the only movie where you will see a zombie fight a shark underwater.

As the zombies take over, we see the trademark Fulci gore, which is plentiful and fantastically done. There is nothing left to the imagination as fans are treated the now classic zombie with worms in his eye (The picture on most VHS & DVD covers here in the USA), exploding head shots and gruesome flesh eating. Another spectacular sequence is the close up of the eye punturing scene. The special effects and make-up were done by Gianetto De Rossi (later famous for his work on “Dune”, “Conan The Destroyer” & the Academy Award winning “The Last Emperor”)

The overall quality of the movie leaves much to be desired and the dialogue scenes don't help to raise this films standards, B-movie rating in most circles. However, it is a must see for all horror fans, especially if you like zombies. Lucio Fulci may be considered an acquired taste as his gore is usually over the top, but I for one love his style.

• Today's Cure song is The 13th from the Wild Mood Swings CD-(1996) A finger-snapping tune flooded with horns and a cuica. It seems to tell the tale of a reluctant man lured into the sinful clutches of a woman. Robert says "Originally titled Two Chord Cool, the meeting that the song is about occured on the 13th, the song was written on the 13th, and Jason was reading an article about the 13th motel killings. He felt like someone up there was trying to tell him something."
  

"You will be all the things in the world you've never been. See all the things in the world you've never seen. Dream all the things in the world you'll never dream...
But i think i get a bit confused...Am i seducing or being seduced?."

CJ