Død snø 2

Version: Grimm Up North festival screening

Actors: 6/10

Plot/script: 7/10

Photography/visual style: 6/10

Music/score: 7/10

Overall: 7/10

Nazi zombies! 2009's Norwegian horror film 'Dead Snow' was the very definition of a 'high concept' movie, given that it could be fully described and sold with those two words (and punctuation). I found it no more than OK, but someone would appear to have appreciated it because Hollywood tapped director Tommy Wirkola up for 'Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters', starring Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton.

Again, critical reviews were somewhat frosty (no pun intended), but H&G:WH made a comfortable profit, and Wirkola has used his industry cred to come back to 'Dead Snow' for a sequel.

The Hollywood influence is evident in several areas of 'Dead Snow 2'. It is considerably larger in scale, for a start, including pitch battles between the undead fascists and their new (or rather, old) Communist adversaries, as well as a tank, large numbers of extras, and a lot more daylight wide shots that indicate a higher budget.

Then there are the American characters, leading to a lot of the dialogue being in English, which is bound to raise the international saleability. It is also a lot funnier. The original played it more-or-less as a straight horror, buying into the ridiculous premise, but the sequel highlights this incongruity for comedic effect.

There are also a few jokes at the expense of the Americans, sly cinematic digs and a whole lot of gore that leans towards the slapstick side. It reminded me more than anything of the Finnish 'Nazis on the Moon' comedy 'Iron Sky', and that is a positive association in my book.

The music is very well-used, and I detected hints of world-building in the nature and rules of the resurrection, raising the prospect of an entire 'Dead Snow' series. There are some slightly uncomfortable hints of terrorist Anders Breivik in the demented Norwegian main character, taking extreme actions in response to a threat others cannot (initially) believe, but maybe I am just reading too much into it.

It's all exuberant fun, with a commendable sense of its own ridiculousness. Some of the gags are a bit low-brow for me, but others are genuinely funny, end even quite witty. Dead Snow 3? Why not, I'd watch!

Everything in zombie movies has been done to death (see what I did there?). And yet, here comes a movie that actually adds to the genre whilst simultaneously disgusting me and making me belly laugh. And not one of those infectious belly laughs. You know, when you are in a theatre and something mildly amusing on-screen sends a ripple through the crowd which grows; mostly because the girl down the front has a weird cackling laugh that morphs into a full-on snort fest, and that just sets everyone else off. Yeah, well, it's not like that.

I was on my own. And I laughed out loud multiple times. I genuinely LOLed. That's as rare as rocking horse faeces.

Dead Snow 1 was a revelation; a brilliant twist on the genre. Dead Snow 2 adds again. The comedy elements are ratcheted up as is the budget. A budget wisely spent on special effects and sheer scale.

If you are after genuine chills and insights into the human condition, Dead Snow 2 will leave you cold (see what I did there too?). But if your appetite runs to comedic gore in the vein of Peter Jackson's 'Brain Dead', you will love this one.

Of course the zombie movie genre actually is one that has least of worries surviving a troubled movie market. Yet artistically it has seen little ingenuity off lately. Luckily the Norwegians decided to step in to turn the tide of ever more formula driven boring slaughter and slashing gore. If all zombie flicks would be adding as many original ideas as this one the genre wouldn't be facing imminent death by boredom. Let's hope the next one is even better. And let's hope that the producers will be brave enough to not give in to US inspired hypocrite 'moral' in aspiring to broader audiences. A doubtful moral that would probably threat depicting the metaphors for the deplorable human condition that zombie movies are all about. And one that would most likely kill the brilliant final scene of this one.

I really really enjoyed this movie!The truth is that i had high expectations with this one but i wasn't let down not once!!!It starts with a small brief of what happened at the first one and gets better and better as it proceeds!The cast is very well chosen,each one is unique and you really care for the characters!The main actor does a great performance as he is better,funnier and interesting than he was before,Of course there are many funny parts so i would say that it is more of a comedy than a horror..the first one was more horror than a comedy in my opinion!!The end is hilarious and there is an after credit scene which prepares everyone for part 3..which makes sense since this movie has to be a trilogy!Thumbs up for this movie people!!I really enjoyed it and i recommend it even to people who aren't into zombie flicks!!

The first one was a gory blast. But the second one tops it in every conceivable way: This is a no-holds-barred splat-fest from the beginning to the end which would make (the early) Peter Jackson proud!

I can take a lot of splatter, but I must admit: some scenes were so disgusting that I was as much retching as I was laughing (a very confusing experience - believe me), this movie really takes no prisoners. And it really seems to want to make a statement against political correctness: the elderly, the disabled, kids, mothers with strollers, gays, heck: even babies(!!!) all get blown up or hacked to pieces in such creative ways that even an old gore-hound like me was a bit shocked (I must shamefully admit). Then again, when you're dealing with Nazi-Zombies, that was to be expected.

But the film is also very well done; the camera, the music, the sound-effects, and - most importantly - the make-up effects were absolutely fantastic. Nazi-Zombies have never looked better.

A word to the wise, though: This film is absolutely not for the easily offended (or people, who - unlike me - have a certain amount of taste, decency and general common sense left).

Watch at your own risk - 8 stars out of 10 from me.

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