"Zombie" We are Going to Eat You!

Director: Lucio Fulci

Starring: Tisa Farrow & Ian McCulloch

The year was 1979 and George A. Romero just released what many believe to be his best film, "Dawn of the Dead." Shortly after the release of "Dawn," popular Italian horror film director, Dario Argento, took Romero's "Dawn of the Dead" and cut out the comedic relief scenes, re-scored it with a bit more darker music, and released it over in Italy as "Zombi." "Zombi" was greeted with huge success.

So in 1980, to cash in on "Zombi's" success, Italian horror film director, Lucio Fulci, released a zombie movie of his own and titled it "Zombi 2."

Having nothing to do with Romero's "Dawn" or Argento's cut "Zombi," Fulci released a zombie movie that proved good enough to stand alone.

In "Zombi 2," Anne Bowles goes looking for her father, on the island of Matool, after her father's boat sails ashore in a New York harbor without him on it (Matool is where the father was last seen). When Anne finally reaches Matool, along with a newsreporter named Peter West and another couple she brought along, they learn that the island has been taken over by flesh-eating zombies due to some voodoo curse.

"Zombi 2" is basically a gorehound's dream. With several memorable goreshots, there is even one in slow-motion. Lucio Fulci is actually known by some as the "Godfather of Gore."

You would think, even in '80, that the zombie genre would be tired. However, that is not the case for Fulci's "Zombi 2." The gore is amazing, the zombie make-up is great (no yellow faces), and the score is superb.

If I had to pick a favorite scene is Fulci's "Zombi 2," it would have to be a scene in which a zombie and a shark wrestle. Yes, you read that right, a zombie and a shark wrestle. You may be sitting there wondering, "Why would a zombie and a shark wrestle?" But wouldn't a better question be, "Who wins between the zombie and shark?"

Fulci's "Zombi 2" has been released several times with different cuts and different titles. However, Fulci's "Zombi 2" can now be picked up uncut on DVD under the plain Jane title "Zombie."

Highly Recommended
For Fans of Zombie, Italian, and Gore Cinema
8 out of 10

Trailer for "Zombie:"

"Cannibal Holocaust" Ripout! Barbeque! Devour! How long can you take it?

Director: Ruggero Deodato

Starring: Robert Kerman



Cannibal Holocaust is one of those films, I think, that you just have to watch to see if it actually lives up to all of it's hype.

Did the director really go to jail upon the film's release?
Were the actors really killed?
Did they really kill real animals?
Is the film really banned in several countries?

To keep the hype level high for those of you that have yet to watch "Cannibal Holocaust," I will tell you that the answer is yes to three of the four questions above.

Cannibal Holocaust is about a documentary crew that heads deep into South America to film a documentary on a cannibalistic tribe. The thing is, the documentary crew never returns. So Professor Harold Monroe of NYU sets out to find them, but only returns with their footage. The majority of the film is the "real" footage of the documentary crew.

Possibly too much for sensitive viewers, Cannibal Holocaust may have you sitting on pins as you witness murder, rape, and cannibalistic rituals.

Upon the completion of my first viewing of Cannibal Holocaust, I felt like I should have been awarded some type of award for making it all the way through it. The second time I watched it, I saw a cut, censored version of it and it did not have that same impact on me like after my first viewing. I decided to watch it a third time and since I own the "Deluxe Edition" of Cannibal Holocaust (from the fine folks over at Grindhouse Releasing), I decided to watch it uncut (the Grindhouse Releasing version gives the option to watch it censored or uncut). I still found it to be brutal, but I guess I wasn't shocked since it was my third time going into "Cannibal Holocaust."

There is probably worse out there, but make up your own mind and watch "Cannibal Holocaust" at least once.

Recommended
For fans of Italian, Cannibal, and Gore Cinema
7 out of 10

Trailer for "Cannibal Holocaust:"

"Pieces" You Don't have to go to Texas for a Chainsaw Massacre!

Director: Juan Piquer Simon

Starring: Christopher George & Linda Day George



Pesky serial killer at your university?

Rest assured, the fine folks at the Boston University that "Pieces" takes place at, had to deal with the same thing.

At the start of "Pieces," a child putting together a puzzle of a nude woman is caught by his mom only to be slapped and asked something among the lines of "Do you want to end up like your father?!"

Apparently the little boy does. When sent from the room by his mom to bring a trash bag to throw away the rest of his pornographic goodies, he returns with an axe and shows her how much that puzzle meant to him.

Fast forward 40 years and now there is a madman (with a yellow chainsaw) roaming a Boston College campus, killing girls and only taking the body parts he needs to make his own female body.

As a movie, "Pieces" can work two ways.

In order for it to work the first way, you have to be a fan of the genre. If you are into the genre, you will light up with glee every time you watch it. Nudity? Check. Gnarly Gore? Check. Terrible dubbing? You bet!

The other way "Pieces" can work is as a party movie.

Call up a few friends, buy a twelve pack of Dr. Pepper, and just have fun watching "Pieces." You and your friends can laugh at the terrible dialogue, gawk at some boobies, or cringe at the gore.

Is it the overly male student that finds it easy to get laid?
Is it the homosexual anatomy professor?
Is it the all-to-eager-to-help Dean?
Or is it the creepy maintenance man (with a yellow chainsaw)?

Watch "Pieces" and find out. With several "OMG WTF?!" scenes (particularly the very end), the only thing you stand to lose by not watching "Pieces" is a good time.


Highly Recommended
For Fans of Exploitation, Sleaze, and Cult Cinema.
8 out of 10

Trailer for "Pieces":