Groovy.

I'm a deadite and I don't care who knows... Well, actually... Most people don't know what that means so um... Let me explain. Tonight I watched Evil Dead II and it doesn't matter how many times I've seen that movie, it will still be one of my favorites.

Evil Dead II is a reboot/sequel to The Evil Dead which stars Bruce Campbell and directed by Sam Raimi. This is a picture almost 30 years old but this is one of my favorites of the two best friends.

You may know Sam Raimi as the director of the upcoming movie, Oz staring James Franco. And hopefully (fingers crossed) you know Bruce Campbell from Hercules? Oh how about... Burn Notice? He's the guy that always wears the Hawaiian shirts. 

Okay, so Evil Dead II is when Ash (Bruce) and his girlfriend stay at an abandoned cabin for the weekend in the woods. He listens to a tape recorder there and he basically unleashes the evils from centuries of hibernation. So, zombie things attack and in the end Ash has to cut his hand off and attaches a chainsaw to the hand stub and save the day. It's pretty badass. (If you've ever seen The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, a guy with a chainsaw hand should seem familiar. Remember this guy?

That's Hoss Delgado. A reference to Kurt Russel's character from Escape From New York, Bruce Campbell's character from Evil Dead and his name is an ode to the comic book character Gangbuster.)

This movie series is a cult classic- literally, it's basically like a cult. Deadites live for these movies. My family and I use Bruce's brilliant one-liners in an everyday conversation. (We could be talking just about anything and if the conversation allows it, someone will just say, "Hail to the King, baby." like it made sense to the conversation.) There are horror conventions and when Bruce Campbell is there, you know it's the place to be. 

Now, a lot of us Deadites got really really really really really really really really really pissed off when they decided to remake the first movie. It looks terrifying as hell but I was so nervous as to whether I was going to see it out not. Luckily, my main man Bruce and Sam are producers on the movie and are fully behind the film. So thankfully, soon, I'll be able to be scared shitless for days on end after seeing the remake.

Oh Bruce. You worked so hard and did your own stunts so directors that weren't his best friend would hire him in action films. You are the #1 B-Movie Actor and always will be. Any man who defeats the Deadites in Army of Darkness and fights with his own hand will always on the top of my list.

Oh, also. The day before I came to campus from winter break, I tweeted a picture to Bruce Campbell stating that I was organizing all of my Army of Darkness Comics and not even a minute later, Bruce Campbell tweeted back. I squealed and ran down to my parents room and showed my half asleep mom and dad the best moment of my life.

 Bruce. I shall always have a crush on you for as long as we both shall live... Even though you are old enough to be my father, but that's besides the point.

That awkward moment when....

Your daughter has half of her face eaten off and is staring at you while you sleep. The Dawn of the Dead re-make is an epic zombie movie that I think should be a role model for other zombie movies.

Nothing can make a movie better than zombies mixed with one of my favorite bands, Disturbed. This is probably the only time I will ever say this, I think this re-make is better than the original. During this movie I'm not laughing my ass off at the pathetic zombies who move at the pace of a snail to get to you,  instead I'm shocked by how fast they move. I saw this movie when it first came out 8 years ago, so I was 11 years old, and naturally I was terrified and grossed out. I've seen it countless times since then, and each time noticing something different that makes me appreciate it even more.

The part that gets me every time though is the zombie baby, I don't know what original Dawn of the Dead the writer saw, but I didn't see any creepy zombie baby that gives me nightmares when I saw it. Everything about this movie should win an award, the actors play their parts phenomenally, the cinematography is top notch, and the editing is pretty solid. And the endless amounts of blood never hurt a zombie movie either.

Rule 1: Cardio

Zombieland isn't very plot heavy or dramatic in any way. This movie is awesome because of the actions the characters have against zombies. One of the interesting parts of this film that I liked is how they named the characters, each of the four main characters are named based on where they want to go.  Except for Bill Murray who just plays as himself because he's awesome like that. Columbus, the wimpy teenager who is paranoid about everything and has rules to help him survive (such as cardio and wearing your seatbelt), feels bad for the zombies and doesn't like to hurt them. Tallahassee on the other hand is a big guy who will kill any zombie that is in his way of getting a twinkie.

This movie is full of moments where you're just like "what the f*** just happened?" adding to the comedy of it. Each of the four characters were casted perfectly to fit the personality and to add to the humor. Definitely a great movie that everyone should see (along with every other zombie movie I've posted about).

World War Z

I recently watched the trailer for World War Z, coming out in June of 2013, and was pretty impressed. While I wish the trailer concentrated more on zombies rather than Brad Pitt's hair, from what I saw this still looks like a solid zombie movie.

At first I thought they would make this book into a television series, as the book goes through the history of the zombie apocalypse. So at first I was disappointed because this is nothing like the book, but then I became happy again because it deals with zombies. I'm looking forward to seeing how this movie turns out, and hopefully Brad Pitt doesn't screw up too much.

Shaun of the Dead

Shaun of the Dead is actually one of my favorite movies. When I first saw it I thought it would be a terrible zombie movie that is just looking to be more of a comedy than focus on zombies, but it is actually a really funny movie and an excellent zombie movie. I think the beginning of the movie when the virus first breaks out is the best part and seems somewhat accurate of what would actually happen. A woman ends up in Shaun's backyard and him and Ed are convinced that the woman is just drunk and needs to get home. Only until the woman constantly tries to grab Shaun does he shove her off and realizes that she is a zombie. She falls onto the platform for one of those huge umbrellas, and the circular tube goes through her stomach. I also really like the camera work and effect during this shot, as you can see through the woman's stomach as she slowly gets up and continues to go near Shaun and Ed.

This movie has an excellent story, hilarious scenes, and I really like the camera work. Oh yeah, and some guy gets his insides ripped out. Thats pretty cool too.

Land Of The Dead

Probably my least favorite George Romero movie that I've seen. The concept of the movie was this: zombies have been around for a while now (probably years from what I could tell) and are growing more intelligent. I wanted to stop the movie there. Zombies don't get more intelligent, there brain no longer functions because they don't need to breathe (so no oxygen goes to the brain). But the movie keeps going with that concept, letting the zombies function as a group, hold and shoot guns, even be smart enough to put down gasoline and then fire on top of it. The only part of that that I'll agree with is when zombies can carry out a simple function that they remember from their life as a human. Not something as complex as pointing, aiming, and pulling the trigger on a gun.

However, I did like a lot of the other concepts. Keeping most of the movie blue added a nice creepy effect to it. I also like how it had a second story to it where one rich man owns a city, and lives on top of a tower while everyone else is left to possibly be invaded by zombies and live in poverty. I also liked the camera work in it a lot. The shots had a lot of variety that kept me interested despite being angry at the intelligent zombies.

P.S., George Romero is my idol. That is all.

NEW WALKING DEAD!

It was the beginning of a great season. Shane is dead, and all of the characters survived the winter. Life was good Sunday night when I was watching my favorite show, the only thing bothering me was Dale's death (as I also spent last week re-watching season 2), and Laurie is still alive.

This episode had a lot in it that I loved. Lot's of zombie killing, everyone's badass-ness increased by 20 points because of Carl being able to pop zombies in the head like a boss, and lots of automatic weapons. The change of setting (to a prison) was a nice change of setting, and something not a lot of people consider for the zombie apocalypse. I like the way the story is going this season, last season had a lot of dialogue and drama and not enough zombie killing.

On that note, there was also a lot I didn't like. First off, they skipped ahead at least 6 months. They ended the season in the Fall, with everyone stuck on the side of the road worrying about another zombie attack, personally I think that is still an awesome place to leave off for the current season. But no. They skip the rest of Fall and the Winter and now it's Spring. Maybe I'm the only one bothered by the fact that everyone looks different, they have new equipment, and Laurie's belly is bulging out, but that's just me. I was also bothered by the ending of it. At the end Hershel gets bit in the leg by a zombie. There first reaction is to start hacking at his leg with an axe. My first thought: OK guys, anyone else gets bit, and your first reaction is to shoot them in the head, but obviously Hershel is an exception. I love Hershel just as much as anyone else (actually I don't think many people like him but I think he's a nice guy and a decent actor), but if he survives the next episode I might just throw my TV out of my dorm window.

More Zombie Stuff

Yeah, I know, another original post by me about zombies.

I'm fascinated by the Resident Evil series. I started liking Resident Evil when I started playing Resident Evil 4 for the Playstation 2. I loved the concept of the game, and just killing hundreds of zombies. This game made me start  watching the movies, which I liked just as much. I like how the games and movies are different, but similar at the same time. A lot of the movies were set in Raccoon City, like the games, and have a lot of the same concepts, such as the G-Virus and every other letter of the alphabet-Virus.

I also like how they incorporate some of the "special" zombies from the games into the movies. They keep the two separate by having different characters and having the movies go in a different direction in terms of story from the game. My favorite part of the movies and games is the story. I like the concept of an actual virus spreading instead of other zombie movies where the zombies just randomly pop up one day. I also like how the movies actually have endings and the characters have an objective. As much as I love Dawn of the Dead, there isn't really a point to it except survive. In Resident Evil there is a lot of betrayal, plot twists, an actual objective that they have to do, and many other things added to the story.

Creating Suspense: Zombie Style

After Breaking Bad ended and before Dexter starts in a couple weeks I decided that I needed a new show to watch. Naturally I turned to my Netflix account to see what I could find. My housemate Pat, a self proclaimed TV buff, recommended that I check out The Walking Dead. This is a show on AMC that only has two seasons so I figured it would be easy to catch up and add to my collection of TV series that I follow. One thing that caught my eye about Walking Dead is the fact that it was created and developed by the critically acclaimed Frank Darabont. I wrote about Darabont before and his work on Shawshank (one of my favorite films).  This seemed like a no-brainer.

The pilot episode starts in a run down town in what appears to be hit by a Zombie Apocalypse. The main character of the show that was in a coma during this Apocalypse leaves the hospital hurt and stunned that no one is tending him in the hospital. From the start of the episode it is obvious that the director is trying to create suspense in the episode. The first scene was brilliant in not only creating suspense but also sustaining this suspense throughout the first couple of scenes.

The camera work was exceptional. Each shot created a mood that something was seriously wrong with this world and bad things were to come. One of the first shots was of the main character walking on to the streets alone. The camera was at the characters feet. The camera was focused only on the characters feet for about 10 steps. This was a great way to create suspense. By only showing part of his body raises questions about where this character is, where he is going, and what exactly is around him. As the scene continues it is obvious that this town has been deserted. There are various shots of run down houses and empty cars parked on the street. One of my favorite parts of this scene was the patience the director showed. It felt like 10 minutes until another character was in the scene. Obviously there was going to be Zombies at some point, but by showing how alone the main character was at this point, really developed the plot and suspense without any dialogue.

Not only did the camera work create suspense in the opening scene but the audio also played a major factor. The scene really focused on natural sound and no music. Hearing the footsteps of the main character created a more fitting mood than any music of sound effects could have. The audio selection made it feel as if you were the character.  By not using music suspense is created. The audience is waiting for something to happen. The relative silence in the scene creates a scary environment, which is exactly what the director wants.

Darabont’s work is usually visually stunning and the pilot episode of The Walking Dead did not disappoint. In a series about Zombies, creating suspense is essential and the directors and producers did this in a unique way. By using natural sounds and multitude of camera angles this show had me on the edge of my seat for the first 20 minutes. Especially for a pilot, getting the viewers attention is crucial. I am going to continue to watch this show and I will report back more thoughts in the future.

-Michael Vulcano

Dawn Of The Dead

OK, most people have seen the new Dawn Of The Dead, but few have seen the original by George Romero done in 1978. While I like the newer version because it is a lot more interesting, looks spectacular, and is in general a great zombie movie that others should look up to, I also love the original. The original had great camera angles, awesome directing, and just over-all a great movie. I've seen it a few times now and always laugh at how the zombies are in it. All of the zombies have minimal make up (mostly just dark blue around the eyes and pale skin), and cheesy blood.
The one part that I don't like about the movie is how lazy the zombies are. This movie portrays zombies as push overs (literally), super slow, and as dumb as possible. As slow as these zombies are people still manage to get eaten by them just by being stupid. I also get confused by the movie because at times it seems like they are supposed to be hardcore zombies, but then characters will start to make fun of how slow they are, and that they can easily kill ten of them at once.

While I love the original Dawn Of The Dead because it was such a different concept for it's time, however the fast paced action of the new version is also an epic movie. For being made in the late 70's it's an excellent looking movie and definitely a movie any zombie fan should see.

The Walking Dead

One of my favorite television shows is The Walking Dead, a post-apocalyptic zombie show on AMC. This show is based off of the popular comic book and has millions of viewers every week. With a compelling story and tons of different conflicts all going on at once, it's hard not to get into such a dramatic show. It's one of those shows where you are never comfortable with what's going on, as the setting is constantly changing, characters are always dying, and literally anything can happen at any moment. The survivors, led by a man named Rick Grimes, not only have to worry about daily survival and zombies, but also other humans who want what they have or are just out to watch the world burn.

The beginning of the series starts with Rick looking for his wife because he wakes up in the hospital from a gunshot wound when the infection began to spread. Even after a few episodes into the first season when he finally finds his wife there are still a lot of conflicts to be resolved. For example, you find out that she thought Rick was dead so she was with another man the whole time. And just when you get used to the setting and get comfortable with it, they get invaded by zombies forcing them to leave that setting and constantly move.

During the second season they do the same thing to the viewers. Most of it is set around a farm with a huge barn and home. The trouble with the farm however is the people who live on it refuse to kill zombies because they are religious. And the survivors don't know that inside of the barn is a lot of the dead family members of the farm. So they force everyone to capture the zombies and place them inside of the barn, where they have several zombies that they keep. The survivors are at a constant struggle with the owners of the farm because of the zombies in the barn, how they can't kill zombies, and that the owners of the farm want them to leave. At the end of the season one survivor breaks the barn open, causing all of the zombies to come out. The survivors are forced to kill them all, and because of the gunshots and loud noise, hundreds of other zombies start to approach the farm. A lot of the owners of the farm died during this because they refused to leave their home, and a couple survivors died during the fight. 

This is a very unique show that is constantly changing and keeping the viewers on their toes. You can never be comfortable with who will still be alive in the next episode, where they will be, and what might happen next. 

Abraham Lincoln Vs. Zombies

Watching movies that look stupid hilarious on Netflix is something that I constantly do. Movies like Leprechaun In The Hood and Killer Klowns From Outer Space are so poorly made that I can't help but watch them just to laugh at the poor editing, the idea itself, or the terrible acting in it.

Abraham Lincoln Vs. Zombies is not based off of the new movie Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. It's a completely different idea and concept. This movie starts off with a very corny scene of Abraham Lincoln as a boy having to kill his mother because she is a zombie. It then immediately goes to Abraham Lincoln when he was the president, and how he is able to kill the zombies by cutting their heads off with a sickle.

Zombie movies are a favorite of mine, and comparing it to a great zombie movie like Dawn of the Dead, this movie was horrible. The zombies were constantly clueless that anyone was there, and they only knew that someone was there if a gunshot went off. Yet throughout the movie people were constantly shooting their guns at the zombies.

With all of that said, I did get a few cheap laughs out of this corny movie. I would recommend this to anyone who loves to critique horrible movies or likes to watch movies really late at night when their is nothing else to do. Or if you were like me and too cheap to go and see Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter.