Os Mortos

"The Dead" was really quite a surprise. And it is also a zombie movie way out of the ordinary; it is set in Africa, something you don't see every day. But if you have read David Wellington's "Monster" trilogy, then you will love this movie.

Let me say that the African setting was really a nice breath of fresh air in the zombie genre. It worked so well, because it was miles after miles of savanna and badlands. No big skyscrapers here, no high-tech underground facilities, no narrow and winding dark alleys. A couple of villages though, so it was cool.

However, one thing that puzzled me in "The Dead" was the amount of zombies that were shambling about in the savanna. I would have assumed that there wouldn't be that many walking around in the middle of nowhere. Near the villages, yes, but in the middle of the savanna, no! And oddly enough every time the two main characters in the movie stopped somewhere, there were suddenly (and always!) a group of zombies shambling in to attack them. That was so stupid. But I guess it was the simplest way to work in a heap of zombies into the story.

Basically the story revolves around two people only. But it works out well enough, despite the movie moving ahead at a fairly slow speed. But that was not a bad thing, because the movie was far from boring. Just don't expect speed, action and lots of adrenalin, though.

The cast in "The Dead" was nice and they did good jobs with their roles. And the two lead roles were well cast.

One thing that could have improved the movie for me, was if the zombies had glazed over milky eyes instead of those weird white eyes; it just didn't really make them have that classic zombie/dead person look. But hey, it was a minor thing. It is just me that pays attention to the small details.

All in all, "The Dead" was really a great movie and it was really nice to see this type of approach to the zombie genre. So thumbs up for the movie makers. And if you are a zombie aficionado like me, then you definitely want to check out "The Dead".

this movie is great. i briefly recall seeing the poster for it a while back but i'd since forgotten about it up until the other day when i took a gamble on watching it and was happy within the first 10 minutes after seeing the style and effects.

like another reviewer stated, the movie is shot on 35mm film, not on digital like modern Hollywood flicks. this gives it a very classic look and feel, reminiscent of the George a Romero film like dawn of the dead in '78 and day in '80.

the zombie effects and makeup as far as i could tell used no CGI whatsoever and the gore, though not too frequent, looks great when it's on screen.

the undead are also nearly always on screen, and combined with their excellent makeup, great camera work and complete lack of unnecessary music, have a very menacing feel as they creep up on the films 2 protagonists.

the films setting is beautiful and a fantastic change from the norm's of busy city streets and urban environments. it is shot in west African locations such as Burkina Faso and Ghana, as well as the Sahara desert. it really is a breath of fresh air in the zombie movie genre.

the story is fairly simple. an American military engineer washes up on the coast of west Africa after his evacuation flight crashes. as the sole survivor he attempts to reach a northern military air field to re-attempt his escape, and runs into a soldier of the African military who is trying to find his son during the chaos.

overall i give this movie an 8 out of 10. and that's only because i wasn't keen on the acting by the American protagonist played by Robert freeman, and a couple small sections of the movie are quite slow.

the film does leave itself open for the possibility of a sequel and i would be more than happy to watch it if it mirrors the quality of this.

The dead are returning to life and attacking the living. After surviving a plane crash American Air Force Engineer Lieutenant Brian Murphy teams up with a local army Sgt. Daniel Dembele and they try to stay alive in dead infested war-torn Africa.

It's well filmed with the competent naturalistic visual style reminiscent of Monsters, less is also more in The Dead's case. Imran Ahmad's music score complements the on screen deeds and while not particularly memorable it is subtle and effective enough.

The African setting is a welcomed change, the on location shoot gives it an eerie real feel. The costume design appears authentic. Dan Rickard's special effects and Max Van De Banks' makeup are first rate, bones sticking out of legs, wounds, bites and the dead getting hit and shot at are executed perfectly. The traditional shambling sluggish dead are creepy enough and retain an air of menace.

The zombie/virus market has been saturated with countless sub-par films. There have been a few welcomed additions arguably - the Dawn of the Dead remake, cross genre Australian film Undead, 28 Days virus flicks, comedies including Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland and actioner Le Horde, Eaters, Mutant to name a few. I personally I like sober zombie films and The Dead is probably the most grounded undead film since Romero's original trilogy. Director and writer team Howard and Jonathan Ford manage to give their zombie offering scope, emotion and anxiety that arguably lacked in Land and Survival of the Dead respectively.

Due to the constraints of the story there's little dialogue. That said, what there is rings true and the characters are given time to develop. The acting all round is of a high standard, with fitting performances from both leads Rob Freeman and Prince David Oseia.

My only grumble is that there's been so many zombie films lately it mars the freshness that The Dead delivers. Intentional or unintentional as with Romero's films there is indeed a social commentary running though The Dead and the African setting is debatably no accident. The Dead may lack comradely wordplay but it doesn't try to reinvent the wheel.

Overall, The Dead gives the viewer a much needed solid piece of realistic zombie entertainment. Recommend.

I love me a good zombie flick, and I try to support independent cinema whenever I can. But I'll be the first to admit that the words "independent low-budget horror" can send me running for the hills. But after hearing some of the good buzz around this one, I thought I'd give it a shot at a midnight screening last night. I'm really glad I checked it out. The co-director was in attendance for last night's screening, where he spoke of his adoration of the early Romero films, and that influence shows. It's an endless stream of slow-walking, omnipresent zombies. It's the opposite of the hyper-stylized, fast-cut, fast walking zombie movies of recent years. Most of the action takes place during daylight hours in wide open spaces. Africa can be a harsh and brutal place without zombies, so you can imagine the difficulties that the survivors must endure. I thought the pacing was decent, and the acting was very solid. There are some really nice stylized shots in places. I'll remember that striking final scene years from now. I thought the sound design and the minimal score were very effective. Because the survivors are mostly out in the wild, there's this constant chatter of insects throughout. It's like a buzzing fluorescent bulb that always keeps you a little off- kilter. A refreshingly stark entry into the sometimes crowded zombie genre. Highly recommended.

The Dead is a stunningly shot zombie movie with some notable differences. The most obvious is the African setting, but that's not all. The zombies themselves are haunting and macabre: many were played by locals, some of whom were amputees. They seldom make any noise but are present throughout almost all of the film, often seen in the distance wandering in somnambulistic trances without any of the over-acting that's usually associated with these films. They are understated, and scarily so. However, once they get close they are as gruesome as anything in a Romero film.

At times the feel of the film reminded me of Zombie Flesh-Eaters. Some of that was down to the edits - none of that "blink and you'll miss it" MTV generation editing here. This had the epic feel of late 60s and early 70s movies (think the original "Planet of the Apes"). The vastness of Africa was captured wonderfully, and this only added to the typical zombie existentialist theme of there being no exit: no one ever gets out alive (or do they?)

Rob Freeman does a great job in the central role and there were some terrific supporting actors. The only slight gripe I had with this film was the dialogue. Mercifully there wasn't much of it, but such lines as we got to hear were rather stilted. The characters were used more as "talking heads" to explain things to the audience, and were always weakest when speaking.

It's hard to believe this was shot on a low budget. The directors have done a great job generating remorseless tension (another slight issue is that there is no lightness in the film - it piles tension upon tension and never lets go; it's not an easy ride). The cinematography is first rate and the soundtrack is haunting, evocative, and never obtrusive.

As a zombie movie, this is right up there with the 2005 Dawn of the Dead and the excellent Quarantine. One of the best zombie films I've seen, and (dialogue aside) up there with the TV series, The Walking Dead.