C.H.U.D. II: Bud the Chud

I saw this movie a few years ago and I got some good laughs out of it. It's not meant to be a horror George Romero movie or anything like that...It's a funny movie about funny zombies...I mean seriously, those of you who have seen this movie how could you not laugh at the whole "MEAT!" chasing poodle scene...

Well......to be honest.....I liked the movie...but I liked the first one better. Even though this one was more of a comedy than horror, it had some good taste. If you like a movie that has more comedy than horror in it, rent this one. I give this movie a 7.

The original C.H.U.D (1984) was a pretty poor horror starring John Heard & Daniel Stern. It wasn't awful but was an instantly forgettable effort.

Understandably going into the sequel I expected more of the same and prepared myself for mediocrity only to come across a very pleasant surprise.

It tells the story of a couple of friends who accidentally lose their schools biology cadaver. Fearing expulsion they set about stealing a corpse from a nearby facility only for it to come to life!

In traditional zombie style the infection spreads and before you know it the town has been overtaken. These aren't normal zombies however, our "Chuds" only take a nibble on their victim and have a low level of intellect.

What sets this apart from the first movie is the humour, there is plenty here and does a lot of good for the film. It simply doesn't take itself seriously and for that reason it comes across really well.

Starring industry legend Robert Vaughn and Gerrit Graham as the titular Bud the Chud this is a fantastic little movie that is considerably better than it should have been.

With a rocking 80's soundtrack, a surprising budget behind it and some real laughs Bud The Chud has to be considered an underrated 80's classic.

The fact this never became a proper franchise saddens me.

The Good:

Robert Vaughn & Gerrit Graham are great

Great 80's soundtrack

Actually looks quite good

Some funny moments

The Bad:

Nothing springs to mind

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

The old cat jumping scare cliche never gets old

There are anals of history

So basically you should forget everything established in the first movie and about the cannibalistic humanoid underground dwellers as this movie has absolutely nothing to do with that movie. That movie while not all that good did at least look like a major motion picture while this one has the looks and is a B movie that tries to be a comedy. Basically, this movie is more of a zombie feature than the creature feature the first movie was. I am betting they did this to save money on make-up and monster effects as these creatures only have dark circles around their eyes and some deformed teeth. They did not bother making this movie a true zombie movie as that would have had to perhaps have decaying effects and wounds. In the end this movie is more like the film "Night of the Creeps", but not as nearly as good as far as the effects and gore or the humor for that matter. In the end the movie is a sequel in name only. The only reason this movie is called CHUD II it seems is to have the little subtitle Bud the Chud for the cuteness factor and comedy factor which is basically none existent for my tastes. The plot just has Bud infecting others and the horde of zombie like creatures grows and grows. Nothing new or funny being brought to the table in this one, but I did rather like the infected poodle.

Okay, so this wasn't "Night of the Living Dead." It was not a great film, but nowhere near as horrendous as everyone says. Gerrit Graham made me giggle a few times as Bud the CHUD. While Brian Robbins, Bill Calvert, and Tricia Leigh Fisher aren't Oscar-winners, Robert Vaughn did a great job with an otherwise horrible script. I watched this on TV at 3 am and it kept me awake. Rent it if you have nothing better to do.

My rating: 4 out of 10