Starring: Bill Oberst Jr., Jason Hughley, Jason Vail, Hannah Bryan, Don McGraw, Canon Kuipers, and Baby Norman
Directed by: Richard Schenkman
Written by: Karl T. Hirsch (story), J. Lauren Proctor (story), and Richard Schenkman (screenplay)
Running time: 90 minutes
Rated: R (for strong bloody violence, language)
Reviewed by Michael Juvinall – Horror Society
[I originally wrote this review back in 2012 after I saw an advanced screening of the film. I thought in honor of President’s Day, it would be a good time to dust this review off and republish.]
Anybody who’s read any of my previous reviews of distributor The Asylum’s films knows that I’m not a
real big fan of their work, they have some decent stuff, but mostly they are not too original. They’re usually making one of their “mockbusters” hot on the heels of a bigger budget film coming out, thus ripping off the original idea, and just trying to cash in. Well, there’s an exception to every rule, and luckily, that exception is Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies. Director Richard Schenkman has taken the Lincoln of lore and introduced an alternate history into the mix, one where the civil war or slavery isn’t his biggest problem, its zombies.
The film opens with a brief prologue showing a young Abe Lincoln around the age of 10. A mysterious viral outbreak seems to have started in his community that has its victims re-animating from death and craving the flesh of the living. Young Abe’s mother gets bitten by the infected and is transformed into one of the zombies; Abe has to do the unthinkable and has to dispatch his own mother with a farm scythe. Abe and the other community survivors manage to destroy the rest of the infected before the virus spreads, believing they have contained the outbreak.
Jump forward to 1863, when Abe (Bill Oberst Jr.-Children of Sorrow, True Blood) is now President of the United States. Word comes in that a mysterious threat has befallen a Confederate fort. A soldier makes it back to Washington after contracting some unknown virus at the fort. He is under observation by military doctors but they are incapable of curing him. Upon hearing of this new threat and fearing the worst, Abe goes to investigate the afflicted soldier only to discover it is the same (un) deadly virus he encountered back home as a child.
Knowing that not only the future of the Union is at risk, but the whole nation, he fashions a top secret mission using specially trained agents of the newly formed Secret Service to accompany him. Having seen this outbreak once before, Abe knows he is the only one able to lead the dangerous mission behind enemy lines to eradicate the outbreak before it can spread across the entire country.
En route with a dozen of his elite Secret Service agents, one of which is a young actor by the name of John Wilkinson (Booth), (Jason Vail-Black Hat), they arrive at the seemingly abandoned Confederate fort. Once on site, they are descended upon by a horde of undead zombies. Good ‘ole Abe has to quickly educate his team how to destroy the undead marauders by shooting them in the head or destroying the brain. The mission takes a turn for the worse when the group has to barricade themselves inside the fort before they become overrun by the zombies.
Lincoln has to come up with a plan to eradicate the zombie outbreak before it can jeopardize the entire nation. Along the way, they get some help from a young Teddy Roosevelt (Canon Kuipers), a couple of prostitutes, Mary (Baby Norman) and Sophia (Hannah Bryan-Where Strippers Go to Die), one of which just happens to be a long, lost love of Lincoln, and even General Stonewall Jackson himself.
Lincoln armed with his uber cool switchblade scythe, he and his group must slash their way through
hordes of the undead if they are to survive and stop the zombie outbreak before it can spread throughout the land.
The Asylum and director Richard Schenkman, believe it or not, have actually made a very fun movie in Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies. It’s not the usual high camp that The Asylum films are known for. Whereas it’s not really scary, it is though played straight by all involved, which adds an air of seriousness to their predicament.
The star of the show and the main reason to watch this film is Bill Oberst Jr.’s interpretation of the Abe Lincoln of history, but as a badass zombie killer. His portrayal of honest Abe is straightforward and mostly accurate (except for the zombie killing of course), he does though manage to sneak in a couple of funny quips like “shoot ‘em in the head!” and my particular favorite of the film, “Emancipate this!” as he is about to slice and dice a menacing zombie. Oberst Jr. has a commanding presence onscreen as Lincoln in every scene. I love how he keeps his switchblade scythe in the pocket of his overcoat and whips it out when needed, good stuff!
The supporting cast is great as well, Jason Vail’s performance as Lincoln’s future assassin Wilkinson is fun to watch. The young Canon Kuipers turns in a strong performance as a rough-and-tumble, young Teddy Roosevelt. Lincoln’s former love interest Baby Norman and her prostitute protégé Hannah Bryan are well equipped for their roles, both are beautiful women, and kick some zombie butt. Let’s not forget Don McGraw playing General Stonewall Jackson in a credible performance.
The film’s costume and set design are equally impressive. The film was shot in Savannah, Georgia at a real fort, Fort Pulaski, which aided immensely in creating an authentic look to the film. The only complaint I have is that the zombies in the film were not the best looking zombies I’ve seen, maybe I’ve been spoiled too much by The Walking Dead, but It’s a minor issue, and I know the budget was under a million dollars, so you can’t expect too much.
As I was walking in to see the screening of Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies, I really wasn’t expecting much at all, but I’m glad that I was pleasantly surprised; it turned out to be a great little movie that’s a blast to watch. You will get a kick out of Bill Oberst Jr. as Lincoln; he’s a tough-as-nails leader with the rough job of keeping the Union together by day and kicking some zombie ass by night. I love the idea of incorporating alternate history into the storyline of Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies because at the end, it really makes you wonder…”What if?” We will never know. Recommended!
4 out of 5 Pentagrams!
Watch the trailer here,
