City of the Living Dead...

[sammylou]

I'm sure some of you guys have seen "City of the Living Dead." What are your thoughts on that one? I thought it was a steaming pile, but it had some cool moments like the drill scene. Do any of you consider it a classic?

[MoonSylver]

AKA "Gates of Hell"

...Depends on what you consider "classic" I suppose. I do consider it a classic of it's own particular sub-genre, the Italian/Euro zombie/horror movie. I dig Fulci a lot, as long as you approach it with the appropriate expectations (or lack there of...) & mindset.

I really like the characters in Gates, the story is unusual & interesting (if uneven, but that's par for the course...). The gags & set pieces are well done & the imagery & mood are grim, moody, & unrelenting.

So yeah, I dig it! Double bill it w/ "The Beyond" & I'm a really happy camper!:D

[capncnut]

Good movie. Not Fulci's best but I really dig the atmosphere with this one.

[bd2999]

City of the Living Dead, a strange movie even for Fulcili. I am not the mans biggest fan in the world, but his movies do have a sort of gory charm to them if you are into that sort of thing. It suffers from the same general problems all his movies do, they have a good overall theme but the story is next to impossible to follow and I have always found most of the characters to be unlikable, with some exceptions.

This movie was interesting because as I remember it is not a true zombie movie, which is the case with most of Fulcili;s movies, so they are not just guys going to eat you. In this I believe they can teleport and can force people to vomit out their internal organs and such. Some people would hate it, some would love it. I would say its a classic of the splatter films famous from Italy but not sure how much credit I would give it aside from that, its a decent enough movie.

[shootemindehead]

Steaming pile for me.

...and that drill scene was just ridiculous. So too was the zombies ripping the backs of peoples heads off. WTF was that all about?

Nah, 'Zombie Flesh Eaters' and ' The Beyond' are the only Fulci movies I can truly say I've enjoyed.

[major jay]

In this I believe they can teleport and can force people to vomit out their internal organs and such.

I need to see this movie! :)

[DjfunkmasterG]

I can't even sit through those older Italian Zombie flicks anymore. They are just way out there, and horribly bad. Not that I have even a right to talk, being an indie filmmaker myself, but I have seen low budget indie stuff way more superior to those films.

[major jay]

They are just way out there, and horribly bad.

That's part of their charm, and their so different from your typical Hollywood flick. Also, Some are beautifully photographed and very slow paced, which is pretty cool if your in the mood for it....Plus, there's a ton of sex and gore.

[EvilNed]

Big Euro-fan here. There's a special charm in 70's/80's Euro-horror films that cannot be replicated by any shot. I hate modern horror films, indie or not. Sure, sometimes, I see something I'm surprised by (Like REC), but overall Horror was at it's best when it was in the hands of the italians!

[zombob]

Agreed!!

[MoonSylver]

That's part of their charm, and their so different from your typical Hollywood flick. Also, Some are beautifully photographed and very slow paced, which is pretty cool if your in the mood for it....Plus, there's a ton of sex and gore.


Big Euro-fan here. There's a special charm in 70's/80's Euro-horror films that cannot be replicated by any shot. I hate modern horror films, indie or not. Sure, sometimes, I see something I'm surprised by (Like REC), but overall Horror was at it's best when it was in the hands of the italians!

Ditto. I really think there is a whole different cultural mindset that goes with Italian horror. If you approach them with that mindset & accept them on their own terms they're something quite special.

It's pretty much an apples/oranges comparison between them & American horror. Or Japanese vs American, etc.

[triste realtà]

After I saw my first Fulci film (Zombie), I was like what was so great about that? After I watched that and couple more a few times is when I started to get it. Now I prefer Eurohorror. I remember before I saw City I was scared to watch the drill scene cause I read that it was really disturbing. Now the most disturbing thing to me in the movie is when Catriona is foaming at the mouth in the beginning.

I love how it's sort of a Phantasm ripoff. That's what I want Phantasm and Creepshow ripoffs but there aren't any.

I also agree that any horror movie after around 1990 sucks unless they are made with intent to emulate the good stuff and there's not many of those.

[Andy]

Big Euro-fan here. There's a special charm in 70's/80's Euro-horror films that cannot be replicated by any shot. I hate modern horror films, indie or not. Sure, sometimes, I see something I'm surprised by (Like REC), but overall Horror was at it's best when it was in the hands of the italians!
I Gotta agree with ned 100% there, modern horror is total pish compared to classics.

Also, anyone remember a member called fulcifan? whatever happened to him?

[capncnut]

Also, anyone remember a member called fulcifan? whatever happened to him?
Yeah, you'd think he'd be all over this thread like a fly on Tommy-Tit.

[major jay]

After I saw my first Fulci film (Zombie), I was like what was so great about that? After I watched that and couple more a few times is when I started to get it.

I felt the same way about this movie. Now I love it. The story is great, it's kind of like an adventure into the beginning of the apocalypse.

[Mike70]

Also, Some are beautifully photographed and very slow paced, which is pretty cool if your in the mood for it....Plus, there's a ton of sex and gore.

outside of bava and argento i'm not that big of a fan of italian horror but i totally agree with jay. argento's movies, particularly suspiria, opera, and deep red, are among some of the most beautifully shot movies in any genre. the way argento (and his cinematographer) use color is damn near hitchcockian. the scenes in "deep red" where argento recreates the nighthawks painting by edward hopper are pure art.

[Trin]

I've never seen any Euro horror. Sounds like I should give it a go. If I were to choose a couple to get me started, which ones would be a good primer? Fulci's Zombi I assume? What else?

[EvilNed]

Euro Horror is probably never you love from the get-go. It takes awhile getting used to it. You have to be introduced into their zany world, disregard it as crap, then get over it being crap... You know you've reached the final step when you love the way the dialoge doesn't match the lips, and when you can recognize certain voice actors who you've heard in several other italian horror films.

Fulci's Zombie is where most people start. It's a good one, but it feels very "light" to me now. Other than that, Zombie Holocaust was a terrific adventure film if you ask me. Oh and go out and get Suspiria. If you hate Suspiria, then you can quit right away. You don't have to like it, but if you're in anyway fascinated by it... Then you're on the right track.

[DjfunkmasterG]

Yeah, you'd think he'd be all over this thread like a fly on Tommy-Tit.

FulciFan, thats Scott Simpson, my make-up artist from my Dead films... If I am thinking of the same one, or was there an older member?

Anyway if it is Scott you're talking about last I heard from him he was working with Robert hall on Laid to Rest.

[major jay]

argento's movies, particularly suspiria, opera, and deep red, are among some of the most beautifully shot movies in any genre.

Yeah, those are great movies!

I like Wernor Herzog's too. Nosferatu The Vampire is a good one. It's pacing is like molasses, but it fits the times being depicted.

[krakenslayer]

Did anyone paying attention to the threadbare plot in City notice that the drill scene had NOTHING to do with the supernatural or the main storyline? it was just a little subplot about the village idiot and that guy's daughter that just goes nowhere and ties up with nothing but that one set piece.

Wasn't a big fan of this one - some good atmospheric visuals but the pace is excruciatingly slow and very dull in places. And the logic of the ending is either infuriatingly obscure or just a total lazy copout.

[EvilNed]

I always assumed the guy doing the drilling had been somehow possesed by the evil spirits that haunted the town. But It's been awhile since I saw it.

[MaximusIncredulous]

Other than that, Zombie Holocaust was a terrific adventure film if you ask me.

The ending seemed anti-climatic though. I was expecting a boatload of gore when the natives seemed bent on revenge but nothing really happened. Maybe the version I saw was edited. Up until the end, the movie was quite enjoyable, although nothing was done much with the zombie natives. I guess they were there for atmosphere only.

[krakenslayer]

I always assumed the guy doing the drilling had been somehow possesed by the evil spirits that haunted the town. But It's been awhile since I saw it.

As far as I can remember, the dad threatens to kill the guy near the start, then later on, he does.

[EvilNed]

The ending seemed anti-climatic though. I was expecting a boatload of gore when the natives seemed bent on revenge but nothing really happened. Maybe the version I saw was edited. Up until the end, the movie was quite enjoyable, although nothing was done much with the zombie natives. I guess they were there for atmosphere only.

I thought the ending was Okay. I liked the mad scientist bit, myself. :)


As far as I can remember, the dad threatens to kill the guy near the start, then later on, he does.

Hehe, I might have to rewatch that film. :P

[Mr.G]

Eh, not a bad film but nothing great. I've never gotten the EuroZombie movies. Give me Children of the Living Dead ANY day! :)

[krakenslayer]

Some Fulci mini-reviews/opinions for the uninitiated:

Zombi 2 (Zombie Flesh Eaters/Zombie) - My rating: ****
One of my favourites. Not too heavy on plot and characterisation, like many other films of it's ilk, but at least they're there and serve the purpose. The movie looks great and has some amazing visuals and legendary gore scenes and gloriously weird set-pieces. Some decent actors too. The plot is a bit slow, but that's par for the course.

City of the Living Dead - My rating: **
Not Fulci's best. This was the first of his movies to really disregard plot and characterisation in favour of sleazy/gory set pieces - this was later to become a trademark of his, but it really doesn't work here. Visually, it doesn't look as good as Zombie or The Beyond, and although some of the set pieces are good, it's difficult to actually give a shit about the random nasty things that happen to people during the film. Not really a true zombie movie. This one is a little sloppy.

The Beyond - My rating: ***
Similar in plot to City of the Living Dead, but actually a quite bit better, Beyond is a visual feast (to use a cliche). Some of the stylings remind me of Suspiria, and anyone who's seen that knows it's a good thing. There are some amazing gore effects (including some of the nastiest headshots ever), and some not so amazing (a man attacked by rubber spiders and a plastic-looking eye-gouge that pales in comparison to Zombie's). Slightly overrated, but worth a watch mainly for the wonderfully surreal atmosphere - like a bad trip.

House by the Cemetery - My rating: **
Meh. A family move to a creepy house inhabited by the ghost of a nanny and a little girl, with a flesh-eating undead occultist living in the basement. The slowest and most boring of Fulci's "big four", and the one that deviates most from logic, without anywhere near the same volume of atmosphere and chills as The Beyond. As with City of the Living Dead, just as things start to get exciting near the end - BAM ...anticlimax.

[MaximusIncredulous]

I thought the ending was Okay. I liked the mad scientist bit, myself. :)

So did I :evil:. It just seemed that he was due for some major veng-gore by the natives.

[major jay]

Some Fulci mini-reviews/opinions for the uninitiated:

Zombi 2 (Zombie Flesh Eaters/Zombie) - My rating: ****
One of my favourites. The movie looks great and has some amazing visuals and legendary gore scenes and gloriously weird set-pieces.

I agree.

[triste realtà]

You know you've reached the final step when you love the way the dialoge doesn't match the lips, and when you can recognize certain voice actors who you've heard in several other italian horror films.


Several other? Try every other! :lol:

Nowadays I try to imagine how the actor sounds on set with the heavy accent.


As far as I can remember, the dad threatens to kill the guy near the start, then later on, he does.

It has something to do with Bob's mom being slutty and considered the same as a witch and the town's forefathers being Salem witch burners which has damned them somehow (written in Enoch) but Fulci probably gouged the script and now it's confusing.



http://www.gunaxin.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/phantasm.jpg

http://content8.flixster.com/poll/14/50/145006_std.png

:rockbrow:

[Spider]

I like it but not as much as The Beyond and Zombi 2. It's been a few years since I've seen it so I need to get it a rewatch sometime soon.

[MissJacksonCA]

A quick note to bring this thread back... COTL is going to be avail on Netflix starting next week for those who haven't seen it! :D

[fulci fan]

Damn. I just wrote a huge wall of text saying how great Fulci was and how great Gates was but I hit spell check and it got erased. Bottom line: Fulci is an underrated filmmaker and never got the praise he diserved. I can say that fulcifan and I are the biggest fans of Fulci's work in the United States. Barely anyone sees Fulci's films for what they are. They go in expecting cheesball Romero zombie antics and don't get it. Don't get me wrong, I love Romero. The problem is that many fans of Romero are too immature to apperciate Fulci or Italian zombie films. The thing is, Fulci could direct any genre and he did. Romero is only good at Making zombie films and he isn't even good at that anymore.

Gates of Hell is a great film and is one of the best films ever made. It is very inspired by the works of H.P Lovecraft because the writer, Dardando Sacchetti was a big fan. Some of Fulci's strongest films were written by Dardando Sacchetti and were very Lovecaftian. I can't tell you people how much of a God Fulci was when he was alive but now he is more than a god; he makes gods. Italian horror films are not "cheesy" or "fun"; they are works of art. Let Romero deal with fun and cheese. :)

BTW, I was the other spfx makeup artist on Gary's Deadlands movies. Gary, you can check out our latest work on Fearnet. It is called "Fear Clinic". Rob Hall directed it.

FULCI LIVES!

[krakenslayer]

Don't get me wrong, I quite liked it, but the ending just really frustrated the hell out of me.

I don't personally have a problem with films that prioritise style and artistry over narrative and traditional character development. However, my issue with Fulci has always been that he build just enough narrative and character development in the early parts of the film to make me interested in the fates of the characters and the outcome of the story, and then a few minutes from the end (or five seconds from the end in City) he completely disposes with these elements and just ends the film, leaving me feeling a little dissatisfied. If his films were just surreal imagery with less plot and characterisation then it would be easier to take, IMO.

[capncnut]

However, my issue with Fulci has always been that he build just enough narrative and character development in the early parts of the film to make me interested in the fates of the characters and the outcome of the story, and then a few minutes from the end (or five seconds from the end in City) he completely disposes with these elements and just ends the film, leaving me feeling a little dissatisfied.
The ending of City made no sense whatsoever and completely destroyed what was built up in the first hour. I remember me and a couple of buds were having a drink and watching it some time ago on cable and just as the last image dissolves and the credits roll, we were all straight-faced and looking at each other like, "wot?" :|

But I do love Lucio's work. Some of that stuff back in the eighties used to make people's stomachs turn proper.

[fulci fan]

The endings are left open for your interpretation. As for the ending of "City"; It could mean a lot of things. If you actually pay attention, "Mary" played by Catriona Mccoll mentions that it is already all saint's day right before the characters enter Father William Thomas' tomb. So that means that whatever they do, Hell has still merged with earth; it doesn't matter that they kill the priest. I think that Mary Woodhouse and Gerry are seeing John John Robbins as a zombie coming after them and then the screen breaks like glass.

Gentlemen, it takes years of watching these movies to interpret what they might or might not mean. If you want expert analysis on all of Fulci's films, get the book "Beyond Terror: the films of Lucio Fulci".

[krakenslayer]

The endings are left open for your interpretation. As for the ending of "City"; It could mean a lot of things. If you actually pay attention, "Mary" played by Catriona Mccoll mentions that it is already all saint's day right before the characters enter Father William Thomas' tomb. So that means that whatever they do, Hell has still merged with earth; it doesn't matter that they kill the priest. I think that Mary Woodhouse and Gerry are seeing John John Robbins as a zombie coming after them and then the screen breaks like glass.

Gentlemen, it takes years of watching these movies to interpret what they might or might not mean. If you want expert analysis on all of Fulci's films, get the book "Beyond Terror: the films of Lucio Fulci".

Unfortunately I don't trust my own interpretations to not be complete bullshit. I prefer a few more clues to point me in the right direction(s). I don't mind an ending having several possible interpretations, and using my imagination, but where it's completely wide open and could mean absolutely anything... well, that's annoying to me. If I wanted free reign to make up my own ending then I'd be just as well lying on the sofa, letting my imagination wander aimlessly, dreaming up stories and images for myself, and not even bothering to watch the movie.

I know everyone is different though, I understand that some people get great satisfaction from these films. I'm not denigrating his films or Fulci as a director, I'm just explaining why some of them don't work for me.

[MissJacksonCA]

I was completely dissappointed by this flick. I felt like it should be on a list on when good zombie films go horribly wrong. Like they started off with a great idea and then they added too many differing ideas. There was a serious lack of consistency on the part of the zombies. It had a bizarre feeling like a melange of Phantasm (awesome movie) and The Fog (another awesome flick) and a hint of zombies. It had typical Fulci gore which is great and all but I had to stretch out watching this over two days because I couldn't bear the boredom for more than an hour at a time. And it was boring to me. Characters dont get developed and what they do only makes sense in a highly contrived zombie film. I suppose I exptected too much... bottom line.... not seeing it again wont bother me one bit.

[Eyebiter]

I'm sure some of you guys have seen "City of the Living Dead." What are your thoughts on that one? I thought it was a steaming pile, but it had some cool moments like the drill scene. Do any of you consider it a classic?

Gates of Hell literally changed my life.

Rented this movie in junior high school with a bunch of friends. Mom made us a huge bowl of popcorn.

After the scene in the jeep it sat untouched.

To this day I've never been able to eat popcorn without remembering that movie.

[fulci fan]

It is not a true zombie film. Fulci only made two true zombie films and those are Zombi 2 and Zombi 3 (Fulci did not direct all of Zombi 3). I can't see why anyone would think this is a boring film...:mad:

Then again, If you like American horror, I can see why you couldn't appreciate Italian cinema. :)

[thxleo]

The Gates of Hell a.k.a. City of the living dead was filmed in my hometown of Savannah, Ga. Of course, I was too young to even know about it being shot at the time.
BTW, I thought it was garbage. :|

[fulci fan]

Coming from a Steelers fan... Go Ravens.

[krakenslayer]

Then again, If you like American horror, I can see why you couldn't appreciate Italian cinema. :)

I'm a BIG fan of spaghetti cinema - but I just can't get into three out of Fulci's "big four". That said, some of his less well known films I really really liked - like that crazy futuristic gladiator movie... whatsitsname?

[EvilNed]

I'm kinda with kraken here. I love italian horror, but I'm not all to crazy about The Beyond and City of the Living Dead. I pop them in once and again, but as frequently as some other italian flicks.

[krakenslayer]

The soundtrack kicks ass though:
j9v_YZAEtDA

[fulci fan]

I'm a BIG fan of spaghetti cinema - but I just can't get into three out of Fulci's "big four". That said, some of his less well known films I really really liked - like that crazy futuristic gladiator movie... whatsitsname?

New Gladiators.

[krakenslayer]

New Gladiators.

That's the badger! Awesomess.

[Philly_SWAT]

I have only seen one Fulci film. Perhaps it is time that I seek out more.

[fulci fan]

He's the best. He has worked in almost every genre.