Zombi VIII: Urban Decay

"Zombi VIII: Urban Decay" is a 2021 horror flick from filmmaker Dustin Ferguson and the folks at Retrosploitation. It tells the story of a young woman who has been searching for her missing father, and by way of a database that specializes in finding missing people, is able to track him down on the sinister island of Matool. She is successful in finding her father, but it isn't a happy family reunion as he has been transformed into a bloodthirsty zombie. Vowing to get him help, the daughter and two friends bring him back to the states, but all hell breaks loose when he escapes and begins infecting the entire city.

Clearly made as a love-letter to classic exploitation and Italian zombie films, Ferguson creates a well-paced and fun adventure that spans all the way from a tropical island in the Caribbean to the urban jungle of Los Angeles. By creating references to Lucio Fulci's "Zombi" and "Zombi 3," as well as "Return of the Living Dead" and others of the same ilk, the director really succeeds in capturing the feel and aura of those films. What also takes the film up a notch is the superb soundtrack from composer Oscar Fogelström. He creates a sense of urgency to the entire film through his score, and the themes are very stylized and atmospheric. There is also some great location work here, as well as drone footage of the island and the city, which adds to the overall stature of the storyline.

Mel Novak (Bruce Lee's "Game of Death") headlines the cast here as Gov. Hadley, a shady politician who is rooting for the downfall of mankind. Although only featured in a cameo appearance, Novak always adds gravitas to the films he stars in. Other standouts in the cast include YouTube star Shawn C. Phillips in a quirky role as a pothead, Samantha McCullough in a sexy and fun tribute to Linnea Quigley from ROTLD, and the amazingly talented Noel Jason Scott as the film's lead zombie, "Patient 0." Scott was exceptional in his role, snarling and gnawing through his scenes like a champion. Bravo!

I have seen many of Ferguson's films, and it's safe to say that "Zombi VIII: Urban Decay" is my favorite. As a huge fan of this genre and classic zombie and splatter films, this was a real treat!

Since half of the current reviews are obviously written by people involved with the makers of this piece of crap ,I decided to split the difference.

WARNING this isn't even a movie.

Don't waste your time please , and watch anything else with zombies in it , if you are a fan of the genre , and give this crap a pass.

The movie is around 80% stock footage, 5% poorly shot original footage, 15% long shots of people walking to prop up the 70 minute run time, and 100% garbage. The writer/director makes Uwe Boll look like James Cameron.

Highlights include:

Taxi ride with in-camera audio to pick up more bumps than dialogue.

So much Adobe Stock they should get a credit in the film.

Characters walking through foliage between animal stock footage.

C-section stripper in the woods

Getting a bound, hooded, and blood-covered zombie through airport security off screen.

20 minutes of opening and ending credits in a 70 minute movie.

An 8/10 review by a friend or associate of the filmmaker.

I don't know how it was scored 8/10 by another reviewer, maybe linked to the movie?

You only have to check the trailer to see it is badly acted and is a cheap B movie. If it is was made to look like the 70's 80's cheap badly acted movies then it works (back in those days).

Other than that terrible film, just on the trailer! Check it and see what I mean,

Where do you start..is this even a movie,made up of mostly stock footage,this pile of rot should not even be considered film,the acting is nonexistent, FX completely sad and the script is just not there ..the 8/10 review is surly by someone connected to this production (for lack of a better word)

if you are expecting a watchable b movie with some good moments.....you are WRONG..all you will get a time wasted on this utter pile of garbage.