L'Invasion des morts-vivants

Sir James Forbes (André Morell) and his daughter, Sylvia (Diane Clare), are out of the blue requested to travel to a Cornish village by Sir James' former pupil, Dr. Peter Thompson (Brook Williams). The village has become a haven for mysterious deaths and Peter's believes that Sir James can shed some light on the matter. No sooner do they arrive when another victim surfaces and it's quickly becomes evident that something far more sinister than medical problems is at work here.

Hammer Horror tackles the zombie sub-genre with no little amount of success. Directed by John Gilling, The Plague Of The Zombies was filmed back to back with the equally entertaining The Reptile. Filmed out of fortress Hammer that was Bray Studios, the same sets that were used for The Reptile were also used here. With Bernard Robinson's Cornish Village again a treat for sore eyes. 1966 was the last year that Hammer used Bray Studios and it's fitting that it was a year that saw efficient and varying creepers filling out the Hammer Horror cannon. Peter Bryan's story, aided by some interesting imagery, delves into the dark world of witchcraft and voodoo, thus giving this particular "zombie" piece an extra dimension. This is not merely about zombies roaming the countryside and killing indiscriminately. Evil they are of course, but they have a purpose and being that comes to light as the story unfolds. There's also nods to tyranny and exploitation, wryly observed by the makers here, cheekily cloaked in a cloud of rotting flesh.

Technically it holds up rather well too. The effects are strong enough to carry the story, with the zombies eerie personified as they shuffle around all green flesh and grumbling away as we know they should. All captured in deluxe colour that comes out nice in High Definition. The cast are fine, with Morell standing out as he gives his usual classy and professional performance, while James Bernard's score is suitably at one with each and every change of pace. This is not just a fine and under appreciated part of the Hammer Horror output, it's also a worthy and most notable entry in the "zombie" genre. See it if you can. 7/10

Hammer's only stab at the zombie genre, the film takes place in a small town where strange occurrences and the odd disappearance catches the eye of local doctor Peter Tompson (Brook Williams). To investigate further, he enlists the help of his old teacher Professor (and Sir!) James Forbes (Andre Morell) who arrives with his daughter Sylvia (Diane Clare). Soon strange sightings are seen of zombie-like creatures, and suspicion is aroused with the aggressive behaviour of a group of fox hunters and the reclusive Clive Hamilton (John Carson). Is this the work of black magic and voodoo, or scientific experimentation gone wrong?

This is probably Hammer's most shamelessly entertaining film. This doesn't have the cutting edge politics and satire of Romero's original zombie trilogy, or the over-the-top cheap gore of Raimi's Evil Dead films, but has the distinction of being a typically British film, only with zombies! It's predictable and silly but it's bloody good fun. It's also made with Hammer's high production standards, beautiful sets and a surprisingly sinister edge. These aren't zombies that will eat your brains, and to be honest they only properly turn up in the last twenty minutes or so, but the film moves fast and has a great lead performance in stiff-upper-lipped Andre Morell. Not bad for a film that was the supporting feature in a Hammer double bill.

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John Gilling directs with style and flair in one of his minor masterpieces The Plague of the Zombies. Hammer only made one foray into the zombie sub-genre with this film about a doctor and his daughter paying a visit to a former medical student who has written for help. Apparently in his Cornish village, men and women are dying without explanation and are showing symptoms the doctor cannot diagnose with any real degree of certainty. Of course they soon discover that the bodies are no longer in their caskets and that many of them have been seen AFTER they have died. Gilling effectively films the sequences of action that take place in typical Hammer style with an emphasis on suspense. Although lacking the star power usually attributed to a Hammer production, this film is right up there in terms of great Hammer films. The only "star" is Andre Morrell(you may remember him as Watson in Hammer's The Hound of the Baskervilles). Morrell is quite good and I think he should have been utilized more by the studio than he was. The rest of the cast does a very credible job as well. Gilling's camera is the real treat though as he really shoots several scenes quite effectively. His dream sequence with the zombies tearing the earth from their way out into the open is a classic. Now I know some people will make the inevitable comparison to this and Night of the Living Dead(a film that came AFTER this one). That is understandable using NOTLD as the barometer of all zombie films; however, let me just point out again that this film came before that one and may have aided Romero in some way. Granted there are not a slew of similarities, but Romero may have gleaned something for this production as it is apparent he did from The last Man on Earth and Carnival of Souls. I too wish Hammer had done more with zombie films. they would have given that sub-genre a bit more class than is sometimes associated with it.

One of the numerous 'period' horror movies to come out of Hammer Film Productions in the late '50s and '60s, "Plague of the Zombies" is pretty typical of the genre (excepting the absence of perennials Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee). Unwelcome newcomers arrive in a rural village that clearly has some dark secret, get warned away, refuse to leave, and ultimately get sucked into the evil goings-on. While the zombie make-up leaves something to be desired (by current standards), the script and story is quite good as is the acting. The film was shot concurrently with "The Reptile", sharing sets, cast members (including the lovely Jacqueline Pearce, perhaps best known as the slinkily evil Servalan in "Blake's Seven") and to some extent, plot*. While far from being the first Zombie film, "Plague of the Zombies" was highly influential: much of the current zombie aesthetic is a mashup of this film and the following year's "Night of the Living Dead". Recommended for aficionados of vintage horror films; however, modern fans, used to the gore and graphic decomposition in, for example, "The Walking Dead", may find the zombies a bit silly, which will pretty much kill the mood. (*also shared are comments in my reviews)

Andre Morell's character, Dr. Forbes, makes a very unusual house call at the opening of "The Plague of the Zombies." His old student, now practicing in a small (Victorian era) Cornish village, is mystified by the recent outbreak of deaths in that town, and even his wife, Alice, is starting to exhibit some strange lethargy. After Forbes arrives to help, he and his friend uncover a mix of voodoo, grave robbing and the undead, in this lesser known Hammer title that certainly deserves a greater renown. And thanks to the fine folks at Anchor Bay, this film's popularity may soon spread beyond its current cult reputation. "Plague" features an intelligent script, fine acting, solid photography and great atmosphere. Andre Morell's doctor makes for a very reassuring action hero, despite the actor's age (he was 57 at the time this picture was made). The film boasts three very chilling scenes: the first, nighttime appearance of a zombie on a hillside; the much-celebrated dream sequence; and Alice's rising from her grave. The smile on actress Jacqueline Pearce's face in this last scene is just haunting. Though marred by a somewhat disappointing finale, the film remains a minor horror masterpiece and one of the scariest works that I've yet seen from the House of Hammer. This movie would make a wonderful double feature with the similarly themed "White Zombie" (1932), or with another Hammer film made that same year (1966), "The Reptile," featuring Pearce again and the same director, John Gilling. Any way you watch it, though, the film is a real winner.