What Makes A BAD Zombie Film?

[Ozhair]

We're putting together plans for a low-budget zombie feature film shoot here in Australia. We'll have a fair bit of experienced talent on the production side of things, so we're hoping to have a decent film at the end of it. I'm a long-time fan of the zombie genre, and I've written a script that I think works quite well. But I want to make a film that appeals to the zombie fans, so I want to ask you all a question that will hopefully allow us to prevent any mis-steps before we go into production. So, my question is: What makes a BAD zombie film? And I'm not talking about so-bad-it's-good. What makes a zombie film unwatchable or disappointing to the zombie fans out there? Any input appreciated :-) Cheers

[JDFP]

- A scene with a character saying: "Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?" -- this isn't just for a zombie genre but any horror film at all. "Day" gets a pass due to situational purpose. And you can always see it coming. I'm almost to a point where I see this happening I want to shut the fracking film off because this damn shit pisses me off to no end. This doesn't EVER happen in real life and it's cheap. It just irks me. Horror film cliches 101. If this isn't #1 it's in the top #5. Just once I'd love to see a horror flick where someone yells "Hello?" and someone replies: "Yeah? Here I am!" - Running zombies. Yeah, you try running with rigor mortis. Let me know how that works out for you. - Zombies that give impossibly high screeching. Does becoming a zombie change your vocal cords? - People doing stupid things. "Hey guys, let's go into this creepy looking house here instead of walking onward into town!" I'd like to see the end of the film where the guy who said: "Screw that!" is hanging out with some people in civilization and nonchalantly asks: "Hmm, wonder where the rest of that group is." - Cars that happen to break down at the worst possible moment. Why don't you ever have it happen five hours earlier? "Sorry, guys, can't join you up at Camp Crystal Lake because my POS car broke down on me." Anyway, these are mostly general issues I have with horror films and not necessarily just zombie flicks. I just felt like raving a bit over some stuff that annoys me. Hope it helps some. j.p.

[Yojimbo]

For once I would like to see characters in a zombie film who are not gunslingers in their normal lives have difficulty hitting thier targets in the head (as was the case in the original Dawn, but not the case in the remake) This sort of sudden and unexplicable profiency with guns just pisses me off and is the mark of a stupid film.

[Rancid Carcass]

Paramount Pictures...

[BillyRay]

Bad Acting. I know, I know, when you have a small budget to work with, you're happy for "shows up", or at least telegenic. or at LEAST least, will take off her shirt on camera for free. But shitty acting takes me right out of any film. I need to believe the people involved if I'm going to buy anything else the filmmaker wants to tell me.

[Andy]

So, my question is: What makes a BAD zombie film? And I'm not talking about so-bad-it's-good. What makes a zombie film unwatchable or disappointing to the zombie fans out there? Watch romeros new trilogy, particularly land of the dead. Do EVERYTHING romero doesn't and don't do anything romero does and your movie will be great

[Trin]

Unwatchable - - Gags... Those are a killer... They take you totally out of the situation. Pair that will characters responding with quips and I have no desire to keep watching. - Unrealistic things... People continuing after getting shot. Zombies that have inhuman traits (strength, quickness, etc.). Some of the stuff that JD quotes. Disappointing - - Character Motivations not aligned with Plot... If I have to ask myself why the characters are doing something... then my engagement with the movie goes down. - Plot Contrivance... When the plot doesn't make sense it doesn't matter how epic the battle is or how iconic the scene shoots. Plot and character lay the foundation for a good story. Don't overlook them. - Explaining Zombies - Yes, we all want to know *why* there are zombies. Don't bog me down with explanations... especially if those explanations are half-assed and make less sense than not knowing. Take a cue from Romero - the 3 greatest zombie movies of all time have NO ANSWERS about why there are zombies.

[bassman]

What Makes A BAD Zombie Film? 1. Zombies riding horses 2. Zombie babies 3. Vegetarian Zombies 4. Running Zombies 5. "Braaaiiinnnsss"

[BillyRay]

1. Zombies riding horses 2. Zombie babies 3. Vegetarian Zombies 4. Running Zombies 5. "Braaaiiinnnsss"

[Danny]

easy point few filmmakers think of: set design. eg: the cast walks down abandoned road, for some reason they pause, investigate something, wot zombies outnumbering and surrounding them! which wouldnt be a problem if the little things worked to enforce the idea of the area being 'foreign territory'. When was the last zombie film you saw where they walked through a street and there were dead bodies just on the sidewalk, garbage blowing around and just general crap about? i cant think of one. its almost always "is nobody walking down the street? okay, roll film!" but the mise-en-scene is not there to reinforce the film as any more than theatre. they dont use the scene, the actors play a world out that we never really see and thats a big problem nobody seems to comment on. So make sure you have shit lying about, a bike on its side, a body slumped against a wall thats just there to be walked past instead of the focus of the scene. build the world for the actors, not the other way around.

[blind2d]

Listen to everyone above, especially Hells. He makes a very good point. Also, don't make up words for the title of your film (Contagium. Still my choice for favorite-to-hate). And remember to have fun making it, just um... Not so much fun that the end result is crap.

[DjfunkmasterG]

Looks like my comment was deleted when the forums were attacked... What I originally said was.. I don't mind Running Zombies, especially for outbreak movies because as I have stated in my own forum regarding my films is that Rigor Mortis takes 12-24 hours to set in, so if the dead did come back to life, and say the individual was a fresh kill... they could technically be as mobile as they were before expiring. Once you approach the 12-24 hour mark you would see them gradually slow down, but keep in mind as long as muscles are moving, it can work out rigor mortis. By Romero's own rules the death and decay process is slowed down dramatically, so using his own science from Day of the Dead... technically zombies could run and be more agile... now as far as super smart zombies... no thanks, but agile zombies I have no problem with.... Now as far as what makes a bad movie... a terrible script. I have learned through making 2 of my own flicks script is very important, and with each new movie I make I try to work on the dialog and the story as much as I can but also keeping in mind that I will have severe budget restraints. I have also learned using friends is not the best course of action when it comes to actors... now if you have friends that act for a living or are pursuing acting and do community theater/plays etc etc, use them by all means, but if you have to use friends with no experience... take it from me... rehearse rehearse rehearse. Now the single biggest issue for me as to what makes a horrible indie zombie film, are over the top concepts.... keep it reality based. Do not do over the top stupidity and then bill it as a zombie horror film. my second biggest gripe is the use of DEATH and SPEED METAL. I have walked out of indie zombie films at horror fests because of this and refuse to watch a single additional frame if the soundtrack has to be laiden with death or speed metal. CInematography - This is something I have been putting a lot of time into with my last film (Deadlands 2) and the film I am currently shooting (All In the Game). Make sure that whatever camera you use it shoots 24fps and have a progressive mode. If you're shooting on DSLR's which btw are awesome cameras, I recommend the Canon T2i. The camera comes with a Mic input, and the standard kit lens (18mm-55mm) s good, buy an additional lens (55-250mm) for $200 and you have some to work with in terms of nice shots and good picture quality. You can also find rental houses that will rent you primes for that camera. For the money, you can get a T2i for about $700 new, with a total investment of $900 you have a decent, 1080p HD video camera in DSLR format and it shoots on SDHC mem cards usig H.264 format. You can get 32gb Class 10 cards from Newegg for about $32.99 That is my 2 cents on the subject. Good luck with the project

[glazedoverdead]

Hey hey now DJ... What the Hell is wrong with using Death Metal my friend???

[Trin]

I'm with DJ on this one... death metal in horror flicks does NOT make a movie more hardcore, scary, horrific, intense... whatever. It's just awful.

[BruceDowns]

Hi Guys, Great thread. I'm also shooting a zombie (short) in late July. that i co-wrote with Rob Fox the auther of "z day is here" amazon link. If you don't mind please listen to this song, Dead Alive, that a friend wrote that i have permission to use. If you want to follow the production and news for the movie like my facebook page, Mile 29 Films. Thanks.