I enjoyed this movie. It's definitely cheesy, and by no means the best zombie movie made. But overall it's very sincerely written and acted.
The basic story: Curt and Julie are young lovers. Curt's father is a ranking member of the military, involved in a top-secret project. Curt steals his father's pass key and sneaks into the base, with his girlfriend, where they observe experiments which return the dead to life. Later, when Julie is killed in a rather funny motorcycle accident, Curt has the brilliant idea to bring her back to life using the zombie gas. Things get gory from here on.
The love story is a bit silly, as both of the youths are initially represented as being callow and self-centered, and then must be seen as Romeo and Juliet type star-crossed lovers. But the dialogue is rather good, the characters enjoyable, and the story progresses in a way to keep the scenario threatening but believably contained.
However, there are some general problems I have noticed with the way the "Living Dead" series has developed:
Overall I wasn't sure how to take Julie as a zombie. She was remarkably coherent and intelligent (the other zombies grunt and groan, Julie was able to carry on conversations long, long after being turned into a zombie). It seemed a bit contrived.
The low budget was very obvious at times. There is a scene where Curt has to wrestle open a "heavy" door - then bumps into it and it is plainly made of paper. There are a few places like this, but I found it more funny than disappointing.
In the end it's a decent zombie film. Not too much gore, not too innovative in the way the zombies attack their victims. The grossest part has to be when Curt kisses the undead Julie - right after she eats some guy's brains! And she didn't even brush!
When all is told, this is just a heartwarming story about a boy who wants to move to Seattle with his zombie girlfriend. Can anyone ask for more?
The basic story: Curt and Julie are young lovers. Curt's father is a ranking member of the military, involved in a top-secret project. Curt steals his father's pass key and sneaks into the base, with his girlfriend, where they observe experiments which return the dead to life. Later, when Julie is killed in a rather funny motorcycle accident, Curt has the brilliant idea to bring her back to life using the zombie gas. Things get gory from here on.
The love story is a bit silly, as both of the youths are initially represented as being callow and self-centered, and then must be seen as Romeo and Juliet type star-crossed lovers. But the dialogue is rather good, the characters enjoyable, and the story progresses in a way to keep the scenario threatening but believably contained.
However, there are some general problems I have noticed with the way the "Living Dead" series has developed:
- When did they decide to make the zombies invincible? There is no way to kill them, one can only freeze them and lock them up in barrels (no wonder they're so mad!)
- The concept of zombies as a biological weapon is pretty inane, as the zombies would bite their victims ... who would then turn into zombies!
- In the first Return, there was another couple who were just as in love as the couple in this film. Yet in this film love keeps Julie from eating Curt's brain. Surely all fans remember the ending scenes of the first Return, where the zombie boyfriend attacks his girlfriend ("I love you ... that's why you have to let me EAT YOUR BRAINS!!!").
Overall I wasn't sure how to take Julie as a zombie. She was remarkably coherent and intelligent (the other zombies grunt and groan, Julie was able to carry on conversations long, long after being turned into a zombie). It seemed a bit contrived.
The low budget was very obvious at times. There is a scene where Curt has to wrestle open a "heavy" door - then bumps into it and it is plainly made of paper. There are a few places like this, but I found it more funny than disappointing.
In the end it's a decent zombie film. Not too much gore, not too innovative in the way the zombies attack their victims. The grossest part has to be when Curt kisses the undead Julie - right after she eats some guy's brains! And she didn't even brush!
When all is told, this is just a heartwarming story about a boy who wants to move to Seattle with his zombie girlfriend. Can anyone ask for more?