Zombie Movies?

An original take on the zombie genre and bizarre 80s sci-fi zombies. (Yes that second entry is a bit of a cheat and certainly isn't "horror", but what the heck.)

Pontypool (2008)

Okay, so I'd heard rather mixed things about this, but was intrigued by the idea of a zombie movie set entirely in a radio broadcast studio. What I wasn't really prepared for was the very original take on the zombie genre. That said, while it's an original idea it's not an idea that I think leaves much scope to be re-used by other zombie movies in the future. Still, originality points all the same.

( Read more... )

Trancers (1985)

Trancers are sci-fi "zombies" in more of the voodoo sense of the term. The future villain of the movie is apparently able to turn weak-willed people into "trancers" who will mindlessly do his bidding. It seems that this villain does not need to actually need to be anywhere near a person in order to turn them into a trancer, meaning that trancers can turn up at pretty much any time during the movie.

( Read more... )

Bad Trailers

There've been two trailers I've seen in cinemas recently that have caused other people in nearby rows to say out loud "well I'm not seeing that then". In both cases, I must admit that the trailers have been awful, yet in both cases I want to see the film for other reasons.

Devil's Double
(video link)

It sounds like a really interesting story. A man is forced to be the double for one of Saddam Hussain's sons. A single actor played both parts. Still with the focus on sex and violence in the trailer, it comes off looking like a bad Guy Ritchie movie. That this is a true story with the actual double closely involved in production makes it even more intriguing.

Warrior
(video link)

I couldn't make any excuses for this one. I was absolutely shocked at how awful this trailer looked. I was expecting something quite impressive, so to see this generic-looking Rocky clone being advertised really surprised me. I think the trailer actually starts okay, but when the over-sentimental orchestral music starts up around the 1:10 mark it becomes increasingly nauseating.

I wonder what I'll think of them when I see them? At the moment I still intend to catch both of these on DVD, though to be honest you'd probably have to pay to get me to see Warrior at the cinema right now.



Also, on an unrelated note, having now seen "Drive" I have allowed myself to watch the trailer and I can assure everyone that the trailer does not do it justice at all. I think the biggest mistake was not including music from the actual soundtrack, what with the popularity the soundtrack album now has. Try to avoid the trailer for "Drive" if you can. It doesn't make the film look bad, but it doesn't give the best impression either.

"How about this- shut your mouth or I'll kick your teeth down your throat and I'll shut it for you."

Drive (2011)

Wow.

Okay look, the short of it is that this is the best movie I've seen so far in 2011. Even if you don't find that you rate it as highly as I do, everyone is going to be talking about it anyway. The trailer is not that good, so you are best off avoiding that. As per usual, my review is spoiler-free, however reviews cannot help but give preconceptions. I'd suggest you only read the review below if you have either seen the movie or are disinclined to watch it (even later on DVD). All you need to know is that this a unique piece of cinema unlike anything else you've seen this year.

So, with that being said, the review begins now...

( Read more... )