Director – Thomas J. Churchill (The Amityville Harvest, Big Freaking Rat)
Starring – Natalie Victoria (Deadheads, Last Shift), Ray Capuana (Escape Under Pressure, Emerging Past), and Kevin Eugene Franklin (1000 Ways to Die, America’s Most Wanted: America Fights Back)
Release Date – 2014
Rating – 1/5
I’m a huge fan of no budget zombie flicks. In the world pre-The Walking Dead, I was obsessed with zombie flicks and slashers. When I was in high school I remember snagging movies like Meat Market, Dead and Breakfast, Shaun of the Dead, Land of the Dead, and the Dawn of the Dead remake along with the classics like Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead. Meat Market would be one that really stuck with me and I soon found myself searching for indie zombie flicks. A good portion of the ones I found were no budget zombie flicks with a lot of heart.
The zombie sub-genre is a oversaturated once The Walking Dead become a pop culture phenomenon but I still find myself looking for them on occasion when I’m out and about shopping. A few weeks ago I walking through Walmart when I spotted the blu for The Day of the Living Dead. I rolled my eyes at the title but found myself pulled in by it. I snagged it and decided to give it a spin when I had a chance. After my recent Vinegar Syndrome marathon I decided I was in the mood for some indie zombie fun.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows an insurance investigator who is investigating a $13 million dollar claim against a cigarette manufacturer. Several employees of the company became ill at the job and subsequently fired. After interviewing several of them he discovers that they are infected and are slowly turning into the living dead. However, by the time he discovers this it’s too late and falls victim to one of them. His wife and their assistant go searching for him but continue to run into dead ends until they come face to face with the undead as well. **spoiler Alert**
I was pretty excited to check out another zombie flick but it was evident early on that this one was not for me. As I stated before, I love a good no budget zombie flick but this one was just a bit lazy. I hate watching an indie horror flick and not liking it but this is one I just couldn’t get into.
The acting in this one is surprisingly well done. In fact, it’s the only aspect of the film that was enjoyable. The entire cast is brilliant from the film’s protagonist to the director’s cameo. Everyone is absolutely amazing and deserving of praise.
The story for this one could have been a fun noir horror flick but it’s messy, chaotic, and extremely dull. Having an investigator searching for people only to find them as zombies could have been a pretty fun horror flick in all honestly. However, the way it was shot and the extremely long scenes filled with mind-numbingly dull dialogue makes for a very tough watch. Also, I have a hard time taking a film seriously that names a character George A. Lazarus. I’ve seen characters named after horror icons countless times and each time I find it cringy.
Finally, the film has the typical zombie make-up effects and a few bite scenes here and there with minimal effects. If you are looking for a bloody and gory zombie flick you will not find it here. However, if a character driven zombie tale is more your speed then this one is for you. Overall, The Day of the Living Dead was not what I was expecting. The title should have been a dead giveaway as to how bad this one was going to be. I’m a champion of indie cinema but this one is one of the toughest films to watch I’ve seen in awhile. Skip it.
