Noite Infernal

O.k so normally I avoid straight to DVD horrors like the plague (I love the old school cheapo video stuff but this shot on video garbage we see today is really nauseating) unless instructed to do otherwise by a trusted source of info. After reading the synopsis I was intrigued I'm a huge fan of zombie cinema (I know there not strictly "stenches" but you've got to take what you get these days) and also a hip-hop head so seeing Big Daddy Kane and E-Fonzarelli in the cast led me to take a risk and watch this film. I must say I was pleasantly surprised, with a little more financial backing and solid acting this could have done the rounds at cinemas everywhere especially after the strong showing of films such as the Dawn remake and more recently 28 weeks later. Big Daddy Kane was a pleasure to watch as the hunter, while Kanes no Brando he glides along on the charisma hes's shown since his rap heyday. The plot is tight and original the blending of genres here mesh well although heist films and zombie films often take on a siege setting so it isn't much of a stretch. The acting is decent and the direction although derivative is of a certain standard. The only real let down of the film is the special effects and make up it's really bog standard and the final scene is really let down by this. The films run time is only around 75 mins so it rarely has the chance to slow down and begin to annoy.

All in all it was a good effort all round maybe 6 is too generous of a rating seeing as some classic films fail to hit that mark on the IMDb but it's early in the A.M i'm tired but happy so what the hell. Long Live The KANE

This movie has its moments. I really like the storyline. Check out on cold and Stormy 1

I don't usually like horror movies about criminals or delinquent types (e.g. "The Wilderness"). I know there is an audience for films where everyone's constantly swearing, threatening each other and generally being unpleasant, but I don't really understand that.

Here, the characters have some motivation for being thieves, one's the admittedly cliché type who's trying to get away from this lifestyle but is required to do one more job. The other members aren't exactly against living like that but this heist will improve their lives. They might have wanted out also, not because of moral reasons however.

However, obviously this plan doesn't quite work - partially because the more moral guy doesn't get along with the other members, but also because there's vampire zombie critters running around.

There's also another character hunting these critters, and, well, the film feels more ambitious than standard zombie films, with some surprising developments occurring throughout. Definitely better than I was expecting.

A bank heist goes horribly bad when (what else) the dead come in for food.

As far as recent Urban Zombie movies go, "Dead Heist" is better than "Zombiez," but worse than "Hood of the Living Dead" and "Gangs of the Dead." That's not saying much, especially when you consider the fact that "Hood" and "Gangs" are bad movies too.

The dead here are cut from the same cloth as the speedy zombies from the "Dawn of The Dead" remake and the infected from "28 Days Later" and it's sequel, only generic instead of interesting or frightening. The gore is nothing new, though the fact that the dead can only be killed by being shot in the heart (and you're to blame...) is a poor attempt at trying something different.

As far as acting goes, Big Daddy Kane does the best job. He's not good, mind you, but he does the best job. Amusingly, while Bone Crusher and E-40 are advertised as staring in it, yet they aren't in the movie for very long-Bone Crusher appears in the beginning as a patron in a strip club so tame it could have passed for MTV's "The Grind", then disappears. Meanwhile, E-40 has less than 5 minutes of screen time as a porn director, and gives a "alright, where's my paycheck already" level performance. The rest of the cast ranges from a dead ringer for Vin Diesel to the white female cop, a white businessman thinking of joining the Nation of Islam (ha ha), and plenty of stereotypical gang banger characters.

While not the worst recent Urban horror movie, there's still nothing worth recommending here. I have no idea whether or not the fact that this reminded me of the "Attack of the Street Pimps" bit from "Hollywood Shuffle" is a good thing or a bad thing. It's probably a bad thing.

In Miami, four smalltime thieves leaded by Ski (Brandon Hardin) decide to rob a bank in the small town of Maysville. The lord Hustle (E-40) demands a 10% commission and sends his experienced bodyguard Ackson (D.J. Naylor) to help the gang in their plan. He goes to the target bank to check the security system, but Ski decides to anticipate the plan for that afternoon. They succeed in the heist, but Deputy Kate (T-Love) activates the alarm and one of the criminals shoots Deputy Duff. When the bank is under siege of the police force, they are attacked by weird creatures. The former government agent Hunter (Big Daddy Kane) comes to the bank and tells that the vampire zombies had been contaminated by an experimental virus developed by the government through the subjects that have escaped from the laboratory, attacking people in the New Moon to feed themselves. The group joins force to survive to the massive attack of the creatures.

The trash and gore "Dead Heist" is watchable without anything special. The story about a deadly heist in a wrong night is not original and should be better developed; the acting is flat, and the dialogs do not help the cast; and the special effects are only reasonable. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Noite Infernal" ("Hell Night")