Undead

release year: 2003
genre: zombie weirdness
viewing setting: home DVD, 12/18/05

synopsis: The small Australian town of Berkeley is thrown into chaos when meteors fall from the sky and dead people rise to attack the living.

impressions: It was a quirky twist of a zombie movie, but I didn't like it. Why didn't I like it? Because it wasn't just a zombie movie, it was also a movie with aliens doing things that remained unclear at the end. The cause of the zombie problem, the nature of the zombies, what the aliens were up to - all were never stated explcitly. If you're going to make a movie and leave things vague, you need to at least have strong material to back the guesses that the viewer will have to make. To make things even more confusing, the filmmakers added in acid rain that may or may not hasten the zombie-fying process, and a gigantic wall that surrounds the town and has spikes sticking out, and people taken from the ground and brought up into the sky by rays of light. The characters and situations here were campy, probably intentionally so, which resulted in both funny and strange moments.

something this movie has that no other movie has: I'll give you two choices: 1) zombie fish or 2) a triple-barreled shotgun, which if you think about it really is an ideal zombie-fighting weapon.

acting: Felicity Mason is the former beauty queen who must learn how to fight. Mungo McKay is entertaining as a survivalist type who pulls flashy Hong-Kong-style weapons moves during fights. Rob Jenkins is annoying as a whining, generally useless survivor. Dirk Hunter is a hyperactive cop who is all talk and little action.

final word: A zombie movie with quirks - perhaps too many quirks.

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