Director – Torey Haas (Jack and Julie vs. The Boogeyman)
Starring – Marie Barker (Horror Hotel Web Series), Greg Garrison (Dekiru: The Three Stones), and D. Dylan Schettina (Footloose)
Release Date – 2015
Rating – 4/5
Tagline – “A grin from fear to fear”
Zombies and the undead are what is popular right now so no amount of bitching and complaining is going to make them stop. Before this current zombie apocalypse fad I was a huge fan of the sub-genre and would often grab any zombie flick I could get my chubby fingers on. That has changed with the rise of all the Walking Dead rip-offs. I wouldn’t mind it as much if they would just try to give me a different take on the zombie mythos instead of giving me the same story I watch every Sunday when I watch TWD.
A few months back I received a press release for the indie horror flick Invasion of the Undead. I saw the trailer and poster and was mesmerized by it. I reached out to the director Torey Haas and he was kind enough to shoot me a review copy of the film when it was finished. Thanks Torey.
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows a young woman living in a remote home by herself when she discovers a zombie in her home. She tells a girl scout and she has the young woman call two video store clerks who are known for defeating the supernatural. The two arrive and are able to defeat the undead pretty easily but quickly uncover a deep, dark secret involving the home and an ancient evil.**Spoiler Alert**
What makes all these zombie films so boring is that they all follow the same stories with no hint of originality. All these lackluster flicks pit a group of survivors against a world overrun by the undead. I am compelled to watch any film that I find that has nothing to do with this story line and still features zombies, That is another reason I was pulled into IotU. The story did not follow the zombie mythos the way we know them today. In fact, the film follows a more traditional sense of the zombie mythos.
The acting in this film is fun and the cast really brings their characters to life. Every character was cast perfectly and every cast member gave it their all to get into their role. This is evident by how fun the film is.
The story for this one is a different take on the zombie sub-genre. The film makes you think that it is going to go the tradition zombie path with roots in voodoo. However, they quickly change it up and instead of the undead being controlled by a human, we quickly learn that something much darker is controlling them. This was a great story that could spawn a series of films and even a few comics.
Finally, the film is overflowing with practical and visual effects. The film showcases decent practical effects in several different forms. We get a few great puppets and practical effects that are combined with some great visual effects to create one visually pleasing horror film. Overall, Invasion of the Undead is a blast. This is the most fun I have had with a movie in a long time. The characters are enjoyable, the effects are on point, and the story is awesome. Check this one out as soon as possible.
