Zombi 3

I was hoping this was going to be a good movie. "Ooooooh the next instalment." I thought to myself. I plonked the dvd in the player and sat back. The first promising scene with the zombie with a machete really made me sit up. I, like many, am used to zombies shuffling around and moaning a bit. For those few moments i was quite excited. Then nothing entertaining happens for ages as the dull story plods along with little gore to spice it up. Then there is the flying head in a fridge scene, which made me soil myself from laughing so hard. I am glad i have the dvd, just so i can replay that scene again and again. What else can i tell you? The rest of the film is instantly forgettable, horrible dubbing, naff music and so on. If it had more gore then i would be more inclined to recommend it (yes, it is the uncut version i have). I'm sure had Fulci been more involved it would have been better. Oh well. 3 out of 10 for the flying head!!

Off the blocks let me just say that I am a huge zombie fan so I don't make statements like the above lightly. Secondly let me say that this is an Italian zombie film and Fulci only directed 15 minutes of it before handing over to Bruno (Rats, Night Of Terror) Mattei. This is no Dawn of the Dead folks.

That said this is easily one of the most entertaining zombie films I have ever seen.

The script is wonderfully horrible. Just check out the two scientists trying to find an antidote ("Let's try putting these two molecules together").

The zombies come in all varieties. From moaning shufflers, to machete wielding maniacs, to birds!

The gore is plentiful. Legs are bitten off, arms amputated, stomachs burst open.

The pace is fast, flying from one zombie attack to the next.

Then there's the head in the fridge. Oh the head in the fridge! One of the greatest moments in horror since Ash got his hand possessed in Evil Dead 2.

You should know already whether you're the sort of person who's going to like this sort of film. Get some mates and some beer and you'll be in for a fun night.

Did I mention the head in the fridge?!?!?

I am an avid fan of Lucio Fulci, and yet I must say that "Zombi 3" (aka. "Zombie Flesh Eaters 2") of 1988, which he made with two other directors, Bruno Mattei and Claudi Fragasso, was quite a disappointment. Especially compared to its great predecessor, Fulci's very own Gore classic "Zombi 2" (aka. "Zombie Felsh Eaters"/"Zombie") of 1979, this is vastly disappointing. Sure, the low rating of 4.5 already suggests that it's not a good film, but, these low ratings usually come from people who are not into Italian Zombie flicks, and as enthusiastic fan of Italian Horror films and low-budget Exploitation cinema, I love many films that have only been rewarded with much lower ratings. Also, many of my fellow Italian Horror buffs seem to think of this film as underrated, which I sadly cannot agree with. Not that the film was a complete disaster. It has some redeeming qualities, above all Fulci's nauseating gore effects, that are always a pleasure to watch for an Italian Horror/Gore buff. The basic idea behind the film is also not bad (allthough far from original) and I liked the ruthless portrayal of the military. Sadly, that's about it. While the great predecessor "Zombi 2" was extremely gory, but beyond that also genuinely creepy, this is not creepy or scary for a minute, and the nauseating and often grotesque gore is the only true reason to watch "Zombi 3". The film is sometimes fun to watch, but only for the gore, and as an unintentional comedy. I guess that it was mainly the gore that came from Fulci, and the disappointing rest that came from Mattei and Fragasso, the first of which was involved in a bunch of nasty cult-flicks (such as D'Amato's "Porno Holocaust"), and the second of which is responsible for one of the worst movies ever made, the god-awful "Troll 2". Overall, this is definitely watchable for the gore, but, out of all Fulci films I've seen so far, this is definitely the worst, and I've seen the majority of this great filmmaker's repertoire. I am a Fulci fan, and I always will be, but this sure isn't his magic moment. It may be fun for the gore, but I recommend to watch any other Fulci film before this!

This Italian, tropical ripoff of "Return of the Living Dead" by Lucio Fulci and Bruno Mattei was an awful, awful movie, but the story of its troubled production is much more interesting than the film itself.

Back in the 80s, some Italian filmmakers figured out that you could hang out in the Philippines to make movies incredibly cheap, all while blissfully ignoring every OSHA rule in the book. None were more successful at this than the studio employing director Bruno Mattei and writers Claudio Fragasso and Rosella Druidi. They made "Terminator 2" (no connection to Terminator), "Cruel Jaws" (no connection to Jaws), and countless other crazy, ballsy knock-offs of Hollywood hits. But their producer suddenly had a bout of ambition and wanted to produce a sequel to Lucio Fulci's legendary "Zombi 2" (which itself had no connection to Zombi, Italy's rename for Romero's "Dawn of the Dead"). So he dispatched Fragrasso and Druidi to Italy to write a script for "Zombi 3" and convince Fulci to direct it. Amazingly, they succeeded on both counts.

However, the problems began as soon as Fulci arrived in the Philippines. First, he was handed a budget many times smaller than he had been promised -- too small to complete the script as he, Fragrasso, and Druidi had envisioned it. Preparation was all over the place. He also had terminal liver cancer and other health problems, and the tropical heat and humidity was almost more than his failing body could handle. There was even an armed revolution going on in the country during the shoot, though not near the places where they were filming. In the end, the movie Fulci shot was still only about 70 minutes long (too short for the 90-minute minimum), so in a moment of legendary pettiness, he apparently filmed 20 minutes of footage of characters rowing canoes around and hopped back on a plane to Italy with two middle fingers proverbially in the air at the Filipino/Italian producers.

The producers were horrified at the extended canoe footage, which they knew was unusably boring, so they asked their mainstays Mattei, Fragrasso, and Druidi to do their magic and somehow redo enough of the movie to finish it. This required Fragrasso and Druidi to add scenes that fit with what Fulci shot -- but not the expensive scenes that they originally envisioned that had to be cut. They had to come up with something new on the spot to fit the bastardized end product. Somehow, they succeeded. Meanwhile, Mattei had an even bigger problem -- of the entire cast of the original movie, he was only able to convince 2 or 3 actors to return to the Philippines to do the reshoot. Amazingly, like an absolute madman, he managed to successfully add 20-30 minutes to the movie using only those three actors, an extended prologue, and many scenes with masked military personnel. Against incredible odds, the movie was successfully finished and released.

To be clear, it's a TERRIBLE movie, and not especially enjoyable even in the "so bad it's good" kind of way. "Zombi 3" has excellent makeup and special effects and a killer soundtrack, but those aren't enough to counteract its negatives. There is zero internal consistency with what the zombies can do or how they behave, disbelief gets snapped so often that it sounds like a bowl of wet Rice Crispies, and many scenes with the masked military personnel have them lining up like they're almost too tired to walk before lining up to shoot down zombies. (In that heat, wearing overalls, it was entirely possible the exhaustion was real.) In the commentaries I watched after the film, everyone gives Fulci credit for the heart and soul of the film... which, if I were them, I wouldn't want to claim it, either. It should not be possible for a movie with this many explosions and death to be tedious, but somehow it manages it for long stretches. Yet, at the end of the day, it's a *finished* film, and I believe one that made a decent profit.

In my book, this movie is a true credit to Mattei, Fragrasso, and Druidi, and a black mark against Fulci. I am far less impressed by the lackluster film he mostly put together and left to rot than by their herculean rescue of a seemingly-doomed project. Sometimes the ones who get a production over the finish line are not the sensitive artists, but the commercial workmen with a gift at getting things done on time and under budget... no matter how many zombies, actors, and vital plot points they have to blow up to do it. If you see this film, I highly recommend the outstanding release by Severin Films that contains extensive behind-the-scenes commentaries that tell the tale I mentioned above, plus more besides.

Zombi 3 has an interesting history in it's making. Firstly, it is a sequel to Fulci's hit Zombi 2, with Zombi 2 itself being of course a marketing ploy to trick people into thinking it was a sequel to George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead aka Zombi. Confusing enough? Basically, none of the films have anything to do with one another, but who cares when they make money. I guess Fulci himself starting to not care about the production about half way through Zombi 3 when he decided to walk out. Bruno Mattei was brought on board to help pad the film with additional scenes to lengthen the running time.

Zombi 3's plot is your typical zombie fare. Scientists develop a serum on an island in the Philippines, terrorists steal it unleashing a plague, and zombie run amok. The scientists want to create an antidote, while the military is set on mowing down everyone without prejudice. There are also brief inserts of a Radio DJ preaching about how we treat the planet.

Overall, I actually liked this film. I heard horrible things, but I find the goofy dialogue quite enjoyable. The film seems to be an attempt at raising awareness about pollution, corrupted military, Man playing God, etc. I get the feeling this was at one point a serious film, but it veered off in a weird direction, presumably when Mattei came on board.

Besides ripping off other zombie flicks, this was very reminiscent of Romero's The Crazies. You hear the Radio DJ breaking the good news with, "When you see the men in white suits & gas masks, Run to them for Help." This is of course played to the images of the men in white gunning down zombies. Later, they straight up steal a scene from Crazies in which one of the regular, uncontaminated people is killed by mistake.

The gore factor is pretty good in this one with zombie hordes around every corner. How is it cool? Let me count the ways…1. Zombie Birth 2. Flying Zombie Head 3. Zombie Birds. 4. Zombie with no legs swimming in a pool. My favorite zombie was the machete-wielding maniac at the gas station. He was bad ass and nearly tore down the entire building trying to kill a girl.

Favorite Quote – When a sergeant insists on cremating a zombie, the scientists asks, "Don't you think that once the ash is in the air, it will fall to the ground, and contaminate everything?" To which the Sargeant boldly replies, "Now you're talking science fiction." He also continues to mention the "Science Fiction" told by the scientists even at the end when everyone dies.

Extras: Gallery, Trailers, and Interviews, most notably the one with Mattei where he insists he directed 40% of the scenes, yet cannot recall which ones or any other significant details.

Bottom Line: A must see for zombie and Fulci fans.

Rating: 7/10

Molly Celaschi www.HorrorYearbook.com MySpace.com/HorrorYearbook