Movie Reviews

Blu-ray Review: “Kill Zombie!” Is Planted Firmly In “Shaun Of The Dead” Territory

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The bizarre story takes place in Amsterdam-West, where a virus turns people into bloodthirsty zombies. Although much blood is flowing and many limbs chopped off, there is a lot to laugh at in this bizarre horror comedy.

When “Return of the Living Dead” was released back in 1985, it gave the zombie genre a much-needed boost in the arm. The movie wasn’t just gory, it was funny with some over-the-top performances from Thom Mathews and James Karen. Because of its success we had a slew of inevitable and inferior sequels in the subsequent years before the genre died down again (pun intended). Then, in 2004, Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost reinvented the genre once more with their brilliant “Shaun of the Dead”, which brought the zombie trend back to life (pun intended, yet again).

“Kill Zombie!” takes place in Amsterdam and the plot is not too far off from “Shaun of the Dead”. Our hero Aziz (Yahya Gaier) has just been fired from his job and when he gets home, his brother Mo (Mimoun Ouled Radi) is attending a pool party when they get into a fight with two other guests, Jeffrey (Sergio Hasselbaink) and Nolan (Uriah Arnhem) and all four end up in Jail for the evening. During the night however, there’s a large explosion which rocks the jail. The next morning when they all wake up, the cell door is open and the four make their way outside to see the streets lined with dead bodies and burned cars.

One of the local TV stations is still broadcasting and we are informed that a Russian satellite came out of orbit and crashed into one of Amsterdam’s tallest skyscrapers. A green gooey substance was discharged from the satellite upon impact and anybody who comes into contact with it, turns into a zombie. And of course, anybody who is bitten by a zombie becomes one too. Aziz, Mo, Jeffrey and Nolan meet up with a police officer, the beautiful Kim (Gigi Ravelli) and they all agree to help Aziz save his new girlfriend, who just happens to be trapped on the top floor of the very building that the Russian satellite crashed into.

This movie’s father was obviously “Shaun of the Dead” and “Return of the Living Dead” its grandfather. There is so much slime, ooze and mucus onscreen that the filmmakers are able to get away with the over-abundance of violence exhibited throughout. Had they tried to be grittier and darker and attempted to execute a more realistic approach, the censors would likely have cut it to pieces (yep, another pun there). This movie is great fun and although there are many satirical zombie movies out there, “Kill Zombie!” sets out from the beginning to do nothing more than entertain and make you laugh and it achieves that goal successfully. Pop would be proud.

In stores now

Kill-Zombie-Bluray

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James McDonald

Originally from Dublin, Ireland, James is a Movie Critic with 40 years of experience in the film industry as an Award-Winning Filmmaker. He is also a member of the Critics Choice Association and the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association.