Nightbreakers - The Undead

The Spierig Brothers' (Peter and Michael) "Undead" would seem even more like a cheap '50s drive-in "B"-movie if the film just billed itself as a cheap '50s drive-in "B"-movie outright instead of masquerading as a zombie-splatter flick spoof. In "Undead," we get zombies, aliens (aliens?), laughs and gory head shots that are delivered to us in such a fashion, the film plays out like a head-on collision between each genre.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I've seen enough zombie flicks over the last two years to know. I've seen enough over the last two years to realize that alongside comics and video games, zombie movies represent one of the remaining avenues left for truly innovative (if not completely original) film-making. After the success of the "Dawn of the Dead" remake, "Resident Evil: Apocalypse" and "Shaun of the Dead" last year, WE should not be surprised.

"Undead," unlike these films, did not receive a major distribution in the United States (it certainly didn't come to theaters anywhere where I live here in Virginia), and it's set in the Land Down Under. It's an exotic place, Australia, with beautiful seaside communities, friendly people, and nut-job backwoodsmen. The film takes place on the continent's fishing mecca Berkeley and as it opens, ominous meteorites have been raining down on the countryside, shooting through unsuspecting townspeople (leaving holes in them so big you can New Zealand), and turning them into flesh-hungry zombies.

Meanwhile, poor Rene (the strangely attractive, doe-eyed Felicity Mason), a recent "Catch of the Day" beauty queen, is on her way out of Berkeley when the occurrences begin. The bank has just foreclosed on her family's farm because of her deceased parents' skyrocketing debt and wants to say good-bye to this place once and for all. Well, one thing leads to another and she soon finds herself locked in the farmhouse of the town nut and survivalist Marion (Mungo McKay), who manages to save the frightened young woman from the legions of living dead lurching in the countryside. Along for the ride are Wayne (Rob Jenkins), his girlfriend(?) and Rene's beauty queen rival Sallyanne (Lisa Cunningham), and constables Harrison (Dirk Hunter) and Molly (Emma Randall).

"Undead" is boldly original in its own twisted, off-beat way. Some might say it's in bad taste. The strange thing is, they're correct. It's in "bad taste" the way the early zombie flicks of Peter Jackson were, or the "Evil Dead" films of Sam Raimi. Yet, in America, we hold those movies to some pretty high standards, though I doubt the same blessing will fall upon "Undead." The movie is indeed in bad taste and deliberately so, but unfortunately it seems to forget to also be watchable in ways to elevate itself above its bad-taste rating and into "B"-movie greatness, which it wants real bad.

Though you can't really hold that against it. There are some pretty good visual-effects zombie-kills, including a scene where young Rene takes a stick, attaches a saw blade to it, and swings away at approaching undead. Now that's creative thinking in exterminating zombies. It's also pretty funny in some spots with some wicked social commentary and jabs at American zombie movies, which suffices the plentiful gore. But unfortunately, creativity seems to go out the window with the somewhat unneeded alien invaders and their purpose in bringing the dead to life to chew on the flesh of the living. It's revealed why they are here but it is neither surprising or convincing - certainly the result of lackadaisical (or brain-dead?) writing on the part of the Spierigs.

Don't go in expecting Academy Award material performances either; if you do, you're a fool - plain & simple - you'll be as dead as the zombies if you do. Many of the characters are pretty unlikeable, as the only real ones you can relate to are Rene and Marion, the latter of whom has had an apparent run-in with the invaders before (killer fish!) and is ready this time, and Rene is pretty one-dimensional - what scream queen isn't? Still, there are plenty of scenes of Marion in action, dual-wielding handguns, Woo-style, and unloading literally hundreds of rounds into approaching hordes of zombies.

As far as "Undead" goes as a zombie movie, the Southern Hemisphere may have a winner on its hands. Horror seems to be the new "it" for aspiring filmmakers. Look at all those who started out in the genre and have graduated to greener pastures in the film-making community... well, some have. This obviously isn't the last we have heard from the Spierig Brothers, since, as the film's ending would lead you to believe, an "Undead 2" could hit American theaters in two years or so.

6/10

Rene (Felicity Mason), the town beauty queen of Berkley, Austrailia, wants desperately to get out. But as her and her boyfriend are driving out of town, meteorites fall from the sky turning various town-folk into rampaging zombies. When Rene's boyfriend gets changed, she watches as a mysterious stranger (whom we later learn is the town 'crazy') dispatches the now zombiefied BF. She decides to hole up in the isolated farmhouse of said 'kook'. It's soon up to her, the guy, a husband, his pregnant wife, and two cops to survive long enough to figure what the hell is going on.

This Aussie film, while hopelessly derivative and ripping-off a great many great genre movies, is still a lot of fun. It looks far better than it's budget would imply and gore-hounds will be satisfied. That being said, the acting isn't the greatest and the movie pretty much loses steam towards the end when it veers decidedly off-course. But it's still very enjoyable for fans of the genre.

My Grade: B-

I caught Undead's second and final Festival screening last night, and it is just fantastic. I cannot understand how a film so cheap (cost about two million Australian, as I recall) could look so incredibly good. Most of the visual effects were done on a laptop, and they are just stunning. According to one of the Spierig brothers (the identical twins who wrote, directed, and produced the film, as well as managing the effects) the film contains 305 special effects, and maybe ten of those effects shots don't quite work.

Technicalities aside, it is also damned funny, extremely gory, and a whole lot of fun. The humour is not just slapstick gore, either - there are some priceless moments of character humour and a handful of absolutely classic lines, arguably the best of which can be heard at the end of the trailer. Surprisingly, the plot is quite strong, too, with a ripper of an ending that left me deeply impressed.

It isn't without its flaws - a few gags fall flat, the dialogue can be a bit hard to hear at times, the pacing is a tad shaky, and the final reel or two could do with a little bit of fat trimmed, plus the hero of the piece is just a bit annoying, with a whole lot of dialogue that is meant to be cheesy, but gets a bit TOO cheesy more than once - but for a first film made on a shoestring, it is just incredible. We are talking about the Bad Taste of the digital age.

I know it is getting a small mainstream cinema release here in Oz in early September, and I have heard it is getting a little release in the US and UK as well. Fans of early Peter Jackson, Sam Raimi, and George Romero owe it to themselves to go along and laugh themselves sick.

Something is seriously wrong in the quiet Queensland hamlet of Berkeley: rocks are falling from the sky, carrying a virus that turns local residents into flesh-crazed fiends. And that's just the start of the powerhouse slam-bang debut from Brisbane twin filmmakers Peter and Michael Spierig, an audacious triumph of invention and imagination over budget and genre constraints. Even more remarkable is the fact that two local Brisbane boys have achieved the impossible and created an original Aussie zombie epic that is set to lay waste to the international horror community.

Ever the post-80s horror boom cultural vultures, Spierigs plunder shamelessly from the expected sources - the grey apocalypticism of George A Romero's Dead trilogy, the outrageous gore setpieces of Peter Jackson's blood-soaked Bad Taste and Braindead, the camera histronics of early Sam Raimi and Coen Brothers efforts - while breathing new life into the long-exhausted zombie cycle and making a film that is entirely their own. Undead marries a wholly unpredictable narrative, jawdropping effects (graphic enough for the most jaded of gorehounds) and a frighteningly assured grasp of cinematic language. As expected there's buckets of gallows humour, but the film never trades cheap laughs for its primary purpose: delivering good old-fashioned blood-curdling shocks.

If Aussie horror is a dead duck, Undead blows it out of the water.

It seems to be the latest fad - movies directed by duos (brothers usually). You've got the Pang Brothers who brought us the magnificent The Eye, the Wachowski's for the Matrix trilogy, and the Coen Brothers to mention the biggies. Now add to that list the Spierig Brothers - these guys are going to be big, believe me. And if their film, Undead is any indication, they won't be unknown for too long.

I was fortunate enough to see a copy of this film on the weekend, and I must admit, I went into it not being a huge fan of the zombie genre, but I have come out a total fan!!!

The thing that stood out the most to me about this film, was the CG effects. They are simply flawless!! I cannot compliment the team behind them enough. You would be hard up to find effects of this ilk in any film produced outside of Hollywood. I think the effects alone raise the film above schlock and unbearable to watch to something that screams mass-release!!! There is definitely a market out there for this film, and I am so glad that it is being released to major markets shortly.

The comedy in the film was timely, the horror and effects were appropriate, and the acting was, was... Australian!!!! My only criticism was some of the music score - it went a bit over the top with the comical undertones in places where I thought it could have been stronger with its intensity. It's really a small criticism in the scheme of things as I thought the movie as whole was an impressive addition to the Speirig Brothers CV's.