are there too many zombie flicks out there now?

[Adrenochrome]

For a while, I wasn't complaining at all....I was soaking them up like buttaaaaahhh!! For the longest time I had to really hunt for a "good" zombie flick; now they're coming out of the woodwork like ravenous termites switching to an iron diet!
I have always preferred the "zombie" flick over the typical horror thing, but,.......It's almost got to the point where I roll my eyes whenever I see a new "straight to DVD" zombie flick added to the rental store shelves!
There are quite a few great indie flicks (including Cereval's and DjfunkmasterG's shortys) that have been released via theater, DVD or public circulation - or, am I just being my "normal, picky, asshole" self?
I'd hate to see the zombie genre become "mainstream" and "goth".

[erisi236]

too many? nahhhh :)

[Adrenochrome]

oh, I'm still at the "not quite yet, but almost" - I guess I'm asking if there's a line that can be crossed....you know, "remakes" have become mainstream......anything can eventually become "mainstream".
Are the zombies crossing over?

[Cykotic]

Adrenochrome has a point when he mentioned the "Line being crossed". I think there is a point where it's gonna be like the 80's where zombies where fun and appeared in beer commericials and music videos.

[Adrenochrome]

Adrenochrome has a point when he mentioned the "Line being crossed". I think there is a point where it's gonna be like the 80's where zombies where fun and appeared in beer commericials and music videos.


**shudders** remembering the Greg Kihn Band:dead:

[Philly_SWAT]

I like the George Romero zombie movies so much, that I almost wish that there were NO other zombie movies at all other than his. Dont get me wrong, I like Fulci's zombie, and various other movies OK, but the GAR movies are so much better. I mean, its like it someone other than George Lucas made some movies that featured Jedi's fighting against an evil empire, but it was not Star Wars related at all, it would just seem like a much less-worthy series of movies.

[Cykotic]

I never thought about it like that!

[DjfunkmasterG]

Too Late


Look up a Movie called F.I.D.O or FIDO

It is about people who have Pet Zombies and stars Carrie Anne Moss

[erisi236]

I like the George Romero zombie movies so much, that I almost wish that there were NO other zombie movies at all other than his. Dont get me wrong, I like Fulci's zombie, and various other movies OK, but the GAR movies are so much better. I mean, its like it someone other than George Lucas made some movies that featured Jedi's fighting against an evil empire, but it was not Star Wars related at all, it would just seem like a much less-worthy series of movies.

Hmm, I like the concept of zombies too much to go THAT far :)

I don't think the "the line has been crossed" quite yet, I think we're actually on the downward slope right at the moment, if we didn't hit critical mass in the middle of last year, I don't think we ever will.

[Adrenochrome]

if we didn't hit critical mass in the middle of last year, I don't think we ever will.

that's what I'm hoping.:D

[DjfunkmasterG]

I think we're actually on the downward slope right at the moment

That sucks... My film comes out soon, and I feel like I am riding that downard slope. I always felt that way after seeing a slew of zombie films, I actually began thinking... Am I contributing to the downfall of the genre or am I just someone caught in a system that has been falling off for sometime now.

[LetsGoPens1]

zombie horror films are definitely crossing into the mainstream, especially over the last 5 years or so. Remakes and successful box office flicks are making it more acceptable, more popular.

i'm sure there's a line to cross with over-saturation of zombie movies, but we're not there yet. as of now, any new take on zombies is a step in the right direction for the genre. as different as 28 Days Later was, i still enjoyed it. Same with Shaun of the Dead. Same with Slither. add comedy, add a British spin, add different causes and effects....all good stuff in my books!

[Deadman_Deluxe]

The recent glut of zombie movies is purely down to people cashing in, jumping on the band wagon and trying to make money while zombie movies are considered "hip".

It is only a matter of time until the whole genre gets watered down so much it becomes nothing more than a parody of itself.

Personally i can not wait for them ALL to give it up.

When they do give it up and hop off the bandwagon ... we will hopefully once again return to normal service and see ONLY zombie movies of good quality, made by people who actually want to make a good zombie movie, rather than people who want to make a turkey which they can then rush straight to DVD in order to cash in.

[MoonSylver]

As long as ther are a few pearls among the swine, I'll say no.

If you want to see where the genre is headed though, consider what the LAST big horror genre was of a simular nature in the 90's & chart its course: The Vampire Movie. A few groundbreakers to start the ball rolling (say, Lost Boys &/or Near Dark), a big blockbuster that cashes in on the phenomenon (Like Francis Ford Coppla's Dracula or Interview With The Vampire), then everybody & their brother jumps on the bandwagon and makes a bunch of crappy, strait-to-vid's, then the whole thing dies off.

I see it happining now:( . Hopefully though there will still be some quality filmakers (prolly indies) who feel passionate about the genre & have good stories to tell, or that'll be its fate.

[Creepshow]

You can never have too many zombie flicks. :cool:

[HLS]

I do not think zombie flicks will ever be mainstream.

[jdog]

i agree that there are to many crapy zombie flics out there in the last few years , as a result of hacks who are just trying to cash in on a quick buck. most of the strait to dvd flicks are trash with weak stories and terrible acting. as far as zombie movies going mainstream i think they already have to an extent. a movie like dawn04 that was made to attract a very diverse audiance , such as the action lovers (since it was more an action movie then a horror movie), the hard core zombie heads (by the name "dawn of the dead"), and the teen crowd (by publicity adds on such channels as mtv and one programs like WWE wrestling). i sure hope that the zombie genre will not go main stream because it would take away a piece of my individuality.

[Princess Flesh Eater]

There will never be too many Zombie films!

[Cereval]

I've mentioned before that I feel it's like the post-Nirvana wave of wannabe's. Everyone latches on to the given trend and tries to come up with something equal to or in tandem with their predecessors. Only what it ends up being is this watered-down, imitation, no-integrity, unfaithful cash-in. A lot of companies are getting in on this because of the popularity and the dollar amount.

Remember Nirvana? So many bands tried imitating the Seattle Sound after grunge died ... it was a sad sight. Suddenly everyone was a morose rocker that had so much pain in their lives - which obviously meant wearing flannel t-shirts and playing faux-passionate rock. The whole sequence of events simply later melded with the mainstream into a big soupy disappearance. Where's alternative now? It's at the Gap and Pac Sun. It's on the billboard for your favorite radio station. Alternative music is officially part of the spectrum, and all because of the stages it went through for induction.

I think some parallels can be drawn with the zombie genre currently. Unfortunately, we're at the "post" phase now where it's getting a bit worn down. I give it 2 more years before zombie movies are yet again an anamoly. But of course people will remember that somewhere during the middle of this decade, there was an outpouring of zombie flicks. But as mentioned in the Romero radio interview (http://www.preciousnightmare.com/cgi-bin/emAlbum.cgi?c=download;p=Listen/Miscellaneous;f=Ron_Fez-03-31-2006-George_Romero_Interview.mp3), zombies are the new vampire.

And what of the vampire genre? How many rehashes and homages have we seen over the years? It starts up, then dies out. But every so often there are some interesting things done with the idea. This is where I see the zombie genre going. As an official inductee in the mainstream, it'll be subject to a lot of lameness. But once in a while, a project will emerge from the shambling crowd of followers, and lead the rest like the films we love.

[bassman]

Great post, Cereval. I agree 100%.

Sadly, that's how most people are. They don't want to use their own mind and form their own opinion of things. They just want to "fit in", so they wear the clothes that everyone else wears, listen to the same music that everyone listens to, and act exactly the same as everyone else.

What happened to originality, people???

[Cereval]

What happened to originality, people???

"I am unique ... just like everyone else."

Questions? See MySpace (http://www.myspace.com). :|

[Shemp]

At least zombie movies are being made right now, albeit most of them are crap. You've just got to take the bad with the good. Old-timers like me will recall just how lean times were for horror films in the late eighties and much of the nineties (sure there were some good films, but I recall seeing LAWNMOWER MAN and PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS when they were the ONLY horror film in circulation at the time). Even a great horror director like GAR couldnt really produce in the 90's (DARK HALF and BRUISER both suffered from nearly non-existent distribution). We're in a pretty good cycle for horror films right now, with several in circulation and many of them doing well at the box-office.

As long as they are making reasonable profits, zombie films will continue to be made. The financial failure of DAY OF THE DEAD (despite it's modest budget) and LIFEFORCE (with a huge budget) back in 1985 spelled the end of major-studio interest in zombie films for several years to follow. The same situation applies to Westerns (another genre I love). TOMBSTONE almost revived the genre back in 93. It was a hit, critics and fans loved it, and a small cycle of Westerns were planned or produced. The revival didn't last long, however, after Kevin Costner's big-budget WYATT EARP tanked at the boxoffice.

I truly hope that GAR's next zombie film is greenlighted soon. The timing appears to be right for it, as horror=$ at the boxoffice in recent months.

[Keith B.]

Of course, they're doing a remake of CHILDREN SHOULDN'T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS.....just what the world needed, right?

You can never have too many zombie films. Unfortunately, most of them suck ass, so it's a process of elimination.....stuff like HELL OF THE LIVING DEAD is better than the new stuff coming out.

[MoonSylver]

[QUOTE=Keith B.]Of course, they're doing a remake of CHILDREN SHOULDN'T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS.....just what the world needed, right?

Actually since Bejaman "Bob" Clark (who co-wrote & directed the original) Is onboard for this one AND this might be the best canidate for "zombie movie that could benifit from a big budget remake" (though I love the original), so this one COULD be good:)

[Mortis]

The only good thing about the Dawn remake is that it helped George get Land out. He's said that himself, too.

[rikimaru]

im a nub but this seems as good a first topic as any. I didnt grow up with these movies but i thought they where great.

Just like how i still love nintento games even though the graphics arnt up to date.

I think that zombie movies are overdone lately but eventualy they will lull and the good will show through.

On a slightly related note i was compleatly ****ed with the resident evil movies. gorges script woulda been awesome in compairison.

[Danny]

theres allways something, before this it was wizards, before that comic book heroes, before that cgi bugs and so on and so on.

i love zombie films but theres so much crap about now im kinda switching over to zombie comic books, they stretch stories to longer than 90 min's anyway, case in point the walking dead and the goon.

and though technically not zombies yesterday i discovered a comic called y the last man, currently being made into a movie , about how all male mammals die at once from a plague except one guy and a monkey, come on your intriqued arent you?.

[Svengoolie]

That was an excellent post, Cereval...but I don't think it accurately describes what we're seeing NOW as much as it describes what we saw almost 30 years ago...when the original Dawn, Halloween, and Friday the 13th were released and set off a revolution in horror.

Up to that point, horror films were still pretty much at the same level they were in the 1930s-1950s....with a few notable exceptions (like TCM or The Exorcist). GAR, John Carpenter, Tobe Hooper, and Wes Craven kicked down the door and started a revolution in the genre that produced some of the best horror flicks seen to date....pushing aside the old stuff (like Frankenstein or Them!) and the old guys (like Vinnie Price and John "Holmes" Carradine).

Much like Nirvana, the alternative trumped the mainstream...and ultimately became the mainstream. And, just like with Nirvana and the Grunge revolution, the bottom suddenly dropped out of that movement...with horror flicks in the early to mid 80s instead of the early to mid 90s, as was the case with Grunge.

What we're seeing now is a movement to revitalize the genre, for better or for worse...and in the zombie sub-genre, running zombies are the new "Seattle Sound" of ghouls, looking to replace the runners of old.

But, this movement isn't about just zombies, it's a move to collectively revitalize the genre as a whole....with remakes, sequals to old franchises, and rip-offs of Japanese stuff. Whether it's good or bad is a matter of opinion, but one thing's for certain--it's marginally successful. Hell, even GAR's Land wouldn't have ever got made if those other films weren't making money.

As to where it's all going, or where it'll all end up...who knows? As for me, I'll always keep my horror "oldies" close at hand.:D