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| "Grindhouse" |
Typical me, arriving last to
the latest popular trends, I’m finally making it to the zombie sensation. Not that I haven’t had some fondness of
zombies, I recall quite clearly zombies in the old “Dark Shadows” series, the
“Living Dead” films, and of course needed something for Shevata to practice on
in her early history of the Gastar novellas.
I suspect some of the popular
recent films involving walking dead helped move along the popularity of the
carnivorous afterlives. Why are zombies
so popular, besides some great hashtags, like #unemployedzombies (who knows
me)?
Zombies are answer to
vampires, to me, in a way. They’re not
snobby or pretentious. Ever see a
zombie lie to anyone? OK, so maybe I
didn’t read that book or see that film.
But, in general, zombies are pretty honest. If you get close, you get eaten. Simple.
Zombies give us a grotesque
view of horror and anatomy. After
watching a zombie film or three, I can cut back on my eating for a while. Consider it an appetite-suppressant. Also, it’s quite educational, what’s so bad
about a bit of Gross Anatomy? OK, bad
joke. Muscles, tendons, crushing bone, I
think I’ll stop there.
Zombies are classic. “The Night of the Living Dead” is someone’s
favorite classic bad horror film, even if it isn’t mine. Some films out there, especially in the
horror genre, are great because they’re
so bad. It’s like going full circle,
one has to admire a film that’s so bad.
All right, let me back off a bit for the real fans, my dearest late
sister included. She loved zombie films;
so I’d better be nice before she finds me.
Overall, we dark fantasy
readers shouldn’t sell zombies short.
When we call upon them, they deliver.
Be it readily available Armies of Darkness (yes I mean the film “Army of
Darkness”, but those were more like skeletons; same difference), cannibals of
evil creation, neighbors post mortem redux, zombies are there for us. Must we always take ourselves so seriously
all the time? Nah. Zombies help us through the dark times and
throw a little darkness in to cheer us up.
Get close, get eaten. Love it. If you want a good zombie film - Sean of the Dead. It's hilarious.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think zombies could be seen as a dark metaphor of a global financial collapse in today's consumerist paradigm- sort of an alternative sci-fi post apocalyptic view of something that's not possible makes us feel better if our enemies are no longer human. Films are getting closer and closer to this, as zombie films are not as popular for hollywood to produce, films like crazies (a george a. romero film- one of the fathers of modern zombie films) and book of eli are exploring the possibility of post apocalyptia without zombies- the enemies being somewhat closer in their 'humanity' to ourselves. The reason I think it's a metaphor is because this is the closest thing to a realistic post apocalyptic world we can get where there is survivors. Whilst the death toll might not be as bad- since a financial collapse might not necessarily lead to a near-extinction global event- it would be chaos, with an overnight collapse in public services, social order and life as we know it. This is a concept which people DO fear and people are aware could happen, no matter how realistic. By portraying it as a zombie apocalyptia, people get to view and think about the concept without the damning realistic fear that it could happen to them. Furthermore, a finical collapse would make a very boring film. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I loved the Evil Dead series. Especially Army of Darkness. Bruce Campbell is so good. I am reviewing several zombie books right now. Zed by Stephen Herfst is written from the zombies POV and Aftereffects:Zombie Therapy is about how they cope after being cured. Both have unique twists and are very good!
ReplyDeletelaura