Miss Zombie

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This film by SABU takes place in a reality where zombie infections have many different stages and full-blown zombie transformations take years to complete. Zombies with a low virus count are used as household servants, since they are relatively harmless if fed properly. One such zombie woman is the focus of this story. Spectacularly shot in black-and-white and glacially paced, this is an art-house film that plays with genre expectations. The zombie is used as a protagonist that quickly earns the viewer's sympathy thru a referenced backstory as well as the fact that she is consistently harassed (and worse!) by humans. There's also an interesting family dynamic involving the little boy. The lead actress (Ayaka Komatsu) gives a very good silent performance. This is a sad film that is also disturbing on a psychological level. Scoring is minimal but effective. Impressive stuff.

FYI, SABU is a very talented drama/comedy director who made some very good films early in his career - Postman Blues (1997), Drive (2002), Monday (2000), and Blessing Bell (2002) being the most notable examples - but he has become less reliable over the past decade. So this film was a bit of a surprise. Miss Zombie (2013) is his first horror film and it's arguably the best title in his filmography now.

Miss Zombie is a short Japanese social drama and horror movie shot in black and white. It convinces with great acting performances, gloomy atmosphere, calm camera techniques, artistic creativity and a solid plot.

It tells the story of a bourgeois family consisting of an adventurous son, an emotional mother and a self-centered father. They purchase a female zombie maid who became what she is under dramatic circumstances. She is the type of zombie that isn't dangerous as long as she isn't fed any meat. Her presence still isn't welcome as neighbours are afraid of her, children throw rocks at her and homeless people attempt to stab her on multiple occasions. This abuse soon continues at the family's home as the zombie maid is sexually abused by several men. Things get tense when her presence leads to conflicts between family members. The story reaches its climax when an unspeakable tragedy happens with unforeseeable consequences.

Miss Zombie is an intellectual movie that makes you wonder whether the zombie maid is the monster or the abusive women, men and children around her. The film starts as slow-paced but atmospherically gripping social drama and becomes a horrifying tale of tragedy, survival and murder. The movie also deals with complex topics such as family values, moral courage and the fate of minorities. Some critics even draw similarities between the fate of the fictional main character and refugees that are mistreated by foreigners. You can enjoy this movie as entertaining art house experiment but also as sociocritical work. In both cases, Miss Zombie is refreshingly different from any other movie involving zombies and could even appeal to audiences that usually don't care about fantasy or horror films thanks to this movies dramatic and realistic touch.

If you are open to think outside the box and accept a slow-paced movie in black and white in Japanese with English subtitles, you will discover a unique gem that mixes survival horror and family drama in a most poignant way. Miss Zombie is a movie you won't forget anytime soon as it offers food for thought, different interpretations and even elements to debate long after the film has concluded.

A very strong Japanese film in many aspects, in which we can make several analyses, for example, we see the similarity between the treatment of the zombie not only with the maid but with minorities in a broad sense (blacks, homosexuals, PNE), and mainly how women are subjugated, humiliated and ******** and attacked, and this is not about zombies... When zombies are more human, than humans themselves, literally...

A rich and successful couple decides to ignore the strict laws that prohibit zombies in homes and welcomes a zombie woman to become their housekeeper. When she arrives, the couple also receives a note warning them not to feed her with any type of meat. However, the scarred zombie named Sara endures horrors, while maintaining some memories about her past.

This film starts somewhere in Japan when a wealthy family buys a zombie to be their housemaid. They know it can be dangerous, so together with the user's manual there's also a gun in the "zombie's kit", in case of the zombie turns aggressive. But they were told that this particular zombie is peaceful because there're many kinds of zombies, it depends on the degree of their zombie infection…

Does it sound bizarre?? Well, this movie is bizarre! But it's also interesting on the point it uses the zombie issue as a metaphor! It has nothing to do with any other zombie movie I have ever seen. It's almost a poetic zombie film! In fact zombies here have feelings and emotions and in the end we don't know who is human or who is zombie…

The main idea is quite interesting but the movie is too slow paced and turns a bit boring at parts. The shot is entirely in black and white which increases the melancholy and the poetic feeling. I appreciated the concept but won't score it more than 5/10 because it's too slow paced!

Of any of the countless films to have ever been made about zombies, the horror-drama is relatively rare. Earnest substance finds its way into zombie flicks every now and again, but something that's plainly dramatic is more uncommon. With this said, the substance of Sabu's 'Miss Zombie' couldn't possibly be more clear-cut as themes immediately present of the struggles of vulnerable communities, enduring exploitation, abuse, persecution, prejudice, class inequality, and dehumanization, and how easily society overlooks the humanity of anyone deemed Lesser Than. The only difference is that the domestic help here is not part of a real-life marginalized demographic, but an undead person, and the picture is no more than two short steps away from being a more ordinary, recognizable indie drama.

Yet neither the familiar territory nor the particulars of this iteration serve to specifically diminish what the filmmaker is doing here. We might say reasonably enough that the feature isn't so much outwardly striking given the tried and true narrative and themes, but at the same time, Sabu does interesting, meaningful things with the concept beyond merely substituting a zombie for some other minority. The lives of the Teramoto family are irrevocably changed owing to their servant's presence, and there's a compelling, absorbing, satisfying story in which those prominent bigger ideas just happen to be foremost. Even while mostly maintaining a very low-key tone the narrative ably keeps our attention, with equally strong scene writing along the way, and smart direction maintains a soft buzz of vibrancy about it all as we eagerly wait to see just where the title will take us. In turn, where the proceedings do distinctly grow more severe, the incidence is all the more grabbing.

Actually, as the length draws on this becomes more quietly fascinating, and all the richer. And outside off the writing and direction it's firmly well made all around, including keen cinematography and editing, and robust sound design. The music is employed fairly sparingly but is surprisingly dynamic and lends to the mood of any given moment, with some instances being altogether brilliant. Even through the overall subdued tenor the cast give capable, nuanced performances, certainly including Togashi Makoto, increasingly Tezuka Toru, and Komatsu Ayaka in the lead role. Where effects or special makeup are used they look great. With the black and white presentation making 'Miss Zombie' all the more stark and intense, the result is unexpectedly gnawing and impactful. It begins so unexceptionally, if nonetheless commendably, and in due course proves to be ever darker, and outright haunting as the scenario unfolds and we learn more about our protagonist.

I wouldn't go so far as to suggest the movie is a must-see, but this unquestionably gathers strength over its eighty-five minutes, and is much more potent than it seems at the outset. This is a piece of no especial renown or visibility, and that's a shame in my opinion. Despite its low-budget and modest production it's sharply made, and there's much more going on here than first meets the eye. It's nice to be greeted with a pleasant surprise like this every now and again, and for my part I'm happy to give 'Miss Zombie' my high and hearty recommendation.