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This little movie called Zombie.

post #1 of 10
4/6/02 at 11:27pm
Thread Starter 
Okay I thought walking into my video store...I wanna see something new, something different and something worth watching. "Hey, whats this." I said lamely. I saw a cover box with a zombie on it and worms were coming out of it's eye. Wow this movie seems kinda popular, but whats with all the dust on it. I gently wiped the dust off the cover box and notice that well I had to wipe it again anyway I got the movie and brought it home and sat down to watch a good ol italian horror flick...ehhh...huh...what?! This movie sucks I thought to myself as the zombie had just ripped a piece of flesh off a shark at the bottom of the ocean. Maybe it was just a test so i keep going on, okay so the piece of wood through the eye was pretty cool, but when it got to the part where the zombie came out of the ground and the worms dropped out of it's eye I felt the need to shut the movie off. This was suppose to be a good movie I thought...gee i think alot anyway..I found it to be horrible. Maybe I am just use to American horror or maybe I need to give another italian horror a chance. I felt the need to search around againa nd came across a movie called Suspiria.

Witches, blood, a good story line what more could you ask for. Seeing as my video stores don't carry these classics I found myself at Suncoast looking at the 3 disc dvd, GOOD LORD 40 bucks you can keep that I said placing it quickly back onto the shelf. I made my way to the vhs section maybe I would get lucky. Hey alright 11 bucks, I scanned the back "don't watch it alone" "the last five minutes are scary" you know all those lines that suck you in to think that the movie is so great. I got home popped it in the good ol vcr and started to watch what became the most longest and boringest horror movie ever. What the heck is up with all the dialogue? Where's the witches! And what the hell is up with the green and red hue colored scene's..know wander why people said this horror movie was beautiful..and i thought that it actually was. the only thing cool about this movie was rewinding it, I was so dissapointed. Maybe the blood was to bright, or maybe it was something about the acting but I just didn't like it.

Maybe it's me, maybe I can't get into italian horror movies. I'd like to give it one more shot, but I don't know of what's good. I heard beyond was good but if it's anything like zombie I don't want to touch it. I did however buy Re-animator which I also heard was good, I hope so. Sorry if I offened all the italian horror flick lovers out there.

On a side note Re-animator I don't think is a italian horror movie so you don't have to reply and say that.
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post #2 of 10
4/7/02 at 12:44am
How about Torso?
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post #3 of 10
4/7/02 at 1:17am
KillThrushKill,

You are my new hero! My feelings mirror (almost, I happen to like 'Demons 2') exactly yours on this portion of 'our' genre.

SuperNova,

Stick with it, my friend. Follow KTK's advice. It is right on the money, in my opinion. But, who knows, perhaps this stuff just isn't for you.

If you find that this is the case, check out some Japanese stuff. The 'Ring' series is a good place to start... Although 'Versus' (albiet not strictly horror) may be easier to acquire.

I think I was lucky. My exposure to Italian horror was relatively early. I happened to see 'Demons' on the big screen here in Phoenix back in the 80's when it was released here in the US. It changed me.

Keep in mind, back in the 80s in Phoenix I thought I was 'on the edge' cause I was the only person I knew who had seen 'Evil Dead'. Our breed is far and few between here. Either that or we just don't connect with each other (God knows I continue to search for kindred souls...).

No offense taken. We don't make this stuff (yet). Taste is just that, taste. We don't all agree on everything.

However, I believe (as do most of us that post here) that horror films are best when they are a shared experience. We need to discuss and reflect on these movies to get a variety of perspectives. Perhaps given the opportunity to experience these films with someone who appreciates them will give you a better view.
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post #4 of 10
4/7/02 at 10:30am
Zombie (or Zombie Flesh Eaters as it's called here in the UK) was my first foray into Italian horror, as I was especially curious to see it because it had been banned here for so long. I really enjoyed it, it's not absolutely amazing, but it has some very cool scenes, and is a fine addition to the genre. With Suspiria, I blindly ordered the Anchor Bay three-disc. With high expectations, I slipped it in and loved it. Such a masterful mix of atmosphere, visual aesthetic and aural evil. A great movie. I can understand it being an acquired taste, though. Jessica Harper is also way cute.
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post #5 of 10
4/7/02 at 11:26am
Thread Starter 
I did happen to find a video store by me with a pretty good horror section. I kept thinking gee this movie called Demon must be good cause it's always out. So I skipped that and went ofr the second copy. Hey uhm exscuse me..do you happen to have a copy of demons back here? I had to ask it cause I know how annoying it is ( i use to work at blockbuster. ) The lady grabbed the box from my hand and put it back on the shelf..??? I was confused..she approached me and said it was sold. Rrrriiigghhttt. Anyway I got demons 2 and went home that night and watched it to make a long story short I didn't finish the film. Not because I didn't like it but because I had a feeling like I needed to watch the first one because I was feeling a little empty. Also I had rented about 5 other movies at the time so I had to watch these all real fast. I managed to watch C.H.U.D. which was pretty good even though I keep thinking of home alone when I saw that one guy in the movie. Last house on the left was good but didn't leave as nearly a big impression on me as Henry: Portrait of a serial killer did. I rented Phatasm 2 but never watched it, Did I miss out on anything good?

I forgot to say that about Suspiria I did however like the soundtrack, I found myself tapping my foot to the beat. When I was at frightvison the other day I did see a copy of several movies I wanted to get, ( buy, because my video store sucks and doesn't carring anything. ) These titles were Ring, Canniable Holocaust, maybe Cannible Ferox...I have never seen these and I hate to waste money, I was kinda skeptical as this guy said to me, "yeah these are the top four cannible movies..he pointed to the two I said and I think Cannible Appocalpse(?) and something else. I got thinking this might be way out of my league and said what I really wanted to buy was Re-Animator ( another movie I haven't seen )Hey what do you know there's a copy right there, uncut, uncensored and in widescreen..i snatched it up for a couple of bucks and will watch it tonight, hopefully it will be good. Anyway this was kinda useless and you probaly didn't really want to know about this but I felt like writing something.
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post #6 of 10
4/7/02 at 3:40pm
I agree that you should give Italian horror more than 2 or 3 chances before you give up altogether.

My first Italian horror flick was Phenomena/Creepers and I absolutely loved it. I think the appeal of that title for one as young as I was (and so saturated in American hack 'n slash), was the combination of two recognizable actors, the score (hey heavy metal appeals), and it's also less subtle than some other Italian titles out there. The next one I saw was, I believe, Trauma, which is another more easygoing title to ease you into the sub-genre. Needless to say I became an Argento devotee immediately.

I would also warn though, that if you're having a tough time getting into the giallos, beware Ring. I love it and think it's a brilliant movie and was glued to my TV when I saw it, but it's not a fast, not even a quickly trotting picture. Ring is all about layers (and one hell of a payoff).

So if you see a movie you're curious about, and it's relatively cheap, I say buy it, because one should never pass up a chance to see a fairly hard to find title, especially if you WANT to see it (I have many regrets that are only recently being fulfilled in these days of internet sales and eBay). And heck, if you buy it and don't like it, there's always the sketchy return ("I got it for my B-day but I already have it..."), resale, or trading communities.
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post #7 of 10
4/7/02 at 5:36pm
Quote:
KillThrushKill:
Demons 2 wasn't exactly bad but it's a copy of the first in many elements and the first was the original (NO DUH! really? ) so I gotta recommend it over 2.
I look at 'Demons' and 'Demons 2' the same way I look at Stephen King's 'Desperation' and (Bachman's) 'The Regulators'. They are essentialy the same story told in a different setting with some of the same (or similar) characters.

I enjoyed both of them but the first was definately better.
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post #8 of 10
4/7/02 at 8:03pm
My first Argento film was "Suspiria," which I respected more than I liked. There are some frightening sequences and I love the relentless music, but I crave a little more logic from my movies.

Nevertheless, there was enough there to rent some more... Phenomena/Creepers is bizarre, but great stuff (especially the last 20 minutes or so). Plus, academy award winning actress Jennifer Connelly as psychic bug girl!

Deep Red is a fan favorite, and I liked it quite a bit as well. The DVD has the uncut Italian version. It's worth seeing, although you have to put up with the language track changing from English to Italian for the scenes that weren't in the U.S. cut.

(For those of you who like Argento, and wonder what it would be like if he made Anime, check out "Perfect Blue." This Japanese thriller cartoon feature has a real giallo feel to it.)

Since I loved Dawn of the Dead, I wanted to try the Fulci "sequel" Zombie. I heard it was awful, but I rented it anyway. Hoo boy. I love the idea of zombie versus shark, but it really wasn't that exciting to watch. I was actually more interested in the topless diver we see earlier n the scene. Most of the gore was gratuitous, not suspenseful or scary.

So then I tried "The Beyond," which has a huge cult following. I actually saw this one on the big screen last year. Ugh. It wasn't just poorly executed. It wasn't just a bad script. It's like they didn't even try. The story made no sense, characters came and went without explanation, and it was NOT SCARY. Fulci actually screwed himself in some scenes with the editing or use of inappropriate rock music that blew the scares. The whole movie's structure (if you can call it that) was an excuse to string together tedious sequences of gushy effects. By the way, I know there's a U.S. cut of the film that goes by a different title, but this had the title "The Beyond" and an English language track. If this was the cut version, I really can't imagine the uncut being any better.

For me, I have no desire to see any Fulci movie ever again.

If you want to go back to the roots of Italian horror, Mario Bava's "Black Sunday" is a must-see. The photography is beautiful. Barbara Steele is beautiful. And it has a haunting story that reminded me of Corman's Poe pictures or many of Hammer's films. In fact, this film probably influenced Hammer's look.
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post #9 of 10
4/7/02 at 11:40pm
Just to throw my two cents in...

I didn't get into the Italian horror sub-genre until VERY recently, and my first experience was Fulci's 'Zombie'. I still think it's a great flick, though certainly not one of his best.

Like everyone else has said, give it some more chances. It's an acquired taste, not something you can just sit down and love right away (for most people), but once you get it...it's great stuff.

Also, if you liked 'Re-Animator' (and I certainly hope you did), make sure you wait for the Millenium Edition release from Elite later this month if you're going to buy it.
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post #10 of 10
4/8/02 at 1:20pm
Zombie was a halfway decent flick.
And I did like the ending. Though it would have been better to see zombies walking down manhattan.

anyway... that's my two cents.
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