Zombie Lake (Jean Rollin, 1981) Review

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“We better face the fact that zombies have declared war!” Originally to be directed by Jess Franco (Sadomania, Oasis of the Zombies), this cheap-as-chips slice of Eurociné cheese was, for many years, disowned by its replacement director Jean Rollin (A Virgin Among The Living Dead). In a remote French town, several years after the end of World War II, something deadly – and bright green – is rising from the so-called 'lake of the damned'. Zombified Nazis, bare boobs galore, and a complete disregard for the laws of continuity dominate this movie, which was destined to be a drinking game only for those with the hardiest of livers...

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Galaxy of Terror (B.D. Clark, 1981) Review

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“ALIEN Was Just The Beginning … Hell Has Just Been Relocated!” Produced by Roger Corman – on a relatively handsome budget of $700,000 – if Battle Beyond The Stars (1980) was New World Pictures' answer to 1977's Star Wars, then Galaxy of Terror was clearly their less-than-subtle take on Ridley Scott's Alien (1979). Swapping out H.R. Giger's iconic xenomorphs for – among other things – a giant and rapacious worm-thing – and sticking with the basic setup (oblivious crew sent to a hostile planet to investigate suspicious goings on), Bruce D. Clark's sci-fi horror nonetheless throws up some pleasing surprises...

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Evil Dead (2013) – an all-out stream of fan thoughts...

As a huge fan of the original 1981 movie – it is one of my most cherished formative cinematic experiences – I was frustrated to hear that it was going to receive the remake treatment. However, the news that the original producers – Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, and Bruce Campbell – were going to be involved softened the punch. If the progenitors were offering hands-on guidance, then perhaps this remake could steer clear of offensive trash like the 2010 remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street, and aim for worthwhile and respectful endeavours like the 2010 remake of The Crazies.

Well, I've finally been able to check it out (on Blu-Ray) and here's the essential meat of my view – I like it, but I don't love it. Mercifully it avoids the ANOES2010-like level of abusive suckage, but there are a few too many awkward quirks and overly-slick problems for it to match my respect (perhaps, even, love) for the likes of The Hills Have Eyes 2006, or Maniac2013 (admittedly, the 'worthy remakes' club is a rather exclusive one).

Rather than a straight review, I'm going to dive into the film from an obsessed fan's perspective, picking through the movie – my loves, my likes, and my hates – piece-by-piece – and go for some horror nerd analysis.

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Evil Dead 2013 remake trailer analysis...

Read my reaction to Evil Dead 2013 here.

Remakes are a funny old game, as I've remarked before, most recently when stating that a flick which would make for a good remake is Drive-In Massacre. One of the biggest problems with remakes that I find, however, is that they can never live up to the vibe that the original exudes. The scope of the remake is far larger, the production design is through-the-roof comparatively, and in-place of discovering a long-established classic during your formative years with fellow-minded classmates, you've got the big marketing push with the inevitable appearance at a Comic-Con.

 

This brings me to the 2013 remake of The Evil Dead – as first shown to us at the 2012 New York Comic-Con – and it has my fanboy mind all over the place. I'm a huge admirer of the original movie (which I first saw aged 14 after buying a VHS copy – which was at the time still severely cut by the BBFC – from my local post office), so the first mention a while back of the film being remade, sent we horror fans into a right old tizzy. The announcement that Diablo Cody would be heading up screenwriting duties was controversial enough in itself, but on the other hand – under the banner of Ghost House Pictures – the original creators of the The Evil Dead were actively involved, and had picked an unknown (Fede Alvarez) for directing duties (an offer that no sane aspiring filmmaker would turn down).

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