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Zombie Flesh Eaters 2

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Zombie Flesh Eaters 2 (1988)

June. 01,1988
|
4.9
|
R
| Horror Action Science Fiction
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When a terrorist's body, infected with a stolen chemical, is recovered by the US military, the corpse is cremated, unintentionally releasing a virus and bacteria into the atmosphere over a small island.

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Reviews

SpuffyWeb
1988/06/01

Sadly Over-hyped

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Platicsco
1988/06/02

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

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Invaderbank
1988/06/03

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

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Juana
1988/06/04

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

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Mark Turner
1988/06/05

The movie most know as DAWN OF THE DEAD was released elsewhere as ZOMBIE. Because of that when director Lucio Fulci made his own zombie film it was called ZOMBIE 2 but released here as ZOMBIE. That film was original in its own right and had some nice effects and some gut churning moments. Fulci had already made a name for himself with several films before and after that one and when the chance came to make a new zombie film he hesitated. Knowing that writers Claudio Fragasso and Rossella Drudi were working on the screenplay and wanted his input into the production he welcomed the chance. The movie went into production shooting in the Philippines and almost immediately ran into problems. The biggest of those was the fact that items promised to Fulci by the directors were not provided which angered him. Next was the fact that the location itself was harsh and took its toll on all involved. Lastly was the fact that Fulci himself was ill at the time dealing with cancer among other things. The end result wasn't approved by the producers and they brought the writers back in to rewrite part of the film using the footage already shot by Fulci. In addition to that they brought in director Bruno Mattei to shoot some sequences as well as Fragasso. The end result is a conglomeration of items that combine for a decent Italian zombie film but kind of a mixed bag at the same time. Knowing all of this helps when watching the film.At a top secret government location tests are being conducted on a program called Death Note. The end results are unsatisfactory at best and deadly at worst. After the scientists behind the project cancel it and are about to transport their findings and a vial of their formula to be disposed of their attacked by spies. One of the spies escapes with the case it was all in and is shot, breaking the case and exposing him to its contents. Wounded and infected he runs through the jungle until he finds a hotel and checks in.The military sets out to find the spy who by now has infected a worker at the hotel. Deciding the best way to be safe is to take over the hotel the military does so, taking everyone captive and later killing them all. To dispose of the body they cremate it. The head scientists chastises them for this noting that it will release the virus into the air which the commander considers "science fiction". Apparently animating dead bodies isn't. Of course the virus makes its way into the atmosphere and a large number of people and animals are infected. One is a couple out for the weekend who come across infected chickens on the road, one of which bites the man and infects him. Another is three G.I.s on leave and the RV full of girls they come across, infected when a flock of birds breaks into the RV after going mad and pecking one of the girls. Eventually their stories come together and they unite.As the virus spreads everyone seems to be under attack by the infected, zombies whose only goal is to eat the flesh of the living. All of those flesh eating moments are seen on glorious color with some well used gels, goos, goops and plenty of torn flesh. The zombies are inconsistent in that some are the meandering, slow moving zombies while others have the ability to run and fight like they've mixed it up before. Whether or not anyone will survive is anyone's guess until the final reel rolls.Like many of the Italian horror films to come out of the 70s and 80s this one is filled with dialogue and segments that make little sense. I'm not sure if that's because something is lost in translation or that they just tend to shoot stories differently than anyone else. In any event it makes some things that happen seem incredibly stupid on the parts of the characters involved and will leave you scratching your head as to why anyone would behave this way. The military leader thinking one thing is science fiction while the other is accepted is a good example. People surrounded by zombies who take shelter and decide the smartest move is to separate and search an area is another. The end result is a movie that feels like exactly what it was, a movie that had a script that was well put together and then twisted into something completely different. Fragasso notes in an interview in the extras the problems that they had with the producer and the fact that most of the issues had with the film stemmed from problems he created. Fulci was so angered that he shot over 20 minutes of footage of the actors doing nothing more than rowing a canoe. Conditions were so bad that when asked to return for reshoots to fix the film all of the actors involved refused, one going so far as to say she'd never return to the Philippines. For myself I thought the movie was entertaining enough and one that horror fans can easily enjoy. Fans know exactly what to expect when it comes to Italian zombie films and this one delivers on all counts, the biggest of those being the gore content. One of those moments is also one of the funniest when a refrigerator door is opened and an unattached head flies through the air to begin gnawing on a victim's neck. It's sure to inspire groans and laughter for those watching who will then rewind it repeatedly to watch again and again. Another great scene involves one of the women falling into a hotel pond. Watch and see what happens, a great effect.Severin has done a fantastic job with their release of the film. I've noted before with their release of SHOCKING DARK and in the past about other companies who bring films like this to blu-ray format that movies no matter how good or bad they are need to be preserved for future generations before they are lost forever. Severin has done just that with this film offering the film in a new 2k scan. Considering the original condition of the film and negatives it looks great.Not only that they've packed it full of extras as well. They include THE LAST ZOMBIES an interview with co-director/co-writer Claudio Fragasso and co-writer Rossella Drudi, TOUGH GUYS an interview with actors/stuntmen Massimo Vanni and Ottaviano Dell'Acqua, THE PROBLEM SOLVER an interview with replacement director Bruno Mattei, SWIMMING WITH ZOMBIES an interview with actress Marina Loi, IN THE ZOMBIE FACTOR an interview with FX artists Franco Di Girolamo and an audio commentary track with stars Deran Sarafian and Beatrice Ring. The combined movie and these extras make the film a must have for fans of horror, those who particularly love Italian horror and movie fans looking for something different. The fans will want to forgo those old versions of the film and pick this one up from Severin. It's the best version now available.

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focus1753
1988/06/06

Zombi 3 has absolutely nothing in common with the Zombi 2 (Or Zombie Flesh Eaters in the UK) which was a slow burning masterwork of suspense, mystery and zombie horror which is what made it so good. Zombi 3 takes a different approach, seemingly aspiring to be more of a zombie action film and in the process losing everything that made the original a classic. What makes this film so poor can be broken down into several areas.Acting: The acting in Zombi 2 while not Oscar worthy was better than expected from a low budget Italian horror film and helped add to the film's creepy atmosphere and likability. However, the acting in Zombi 3 is nothing short of painful. The intonation of the actors is often bizarre and unbelievable and brings the realism and horror of the film down drastically. The actor for the doctor is particularly poor causing me to wince every time his character had dialogue. Overall, the acting basically devalues the film massively.Direction and cinematography: One of the most appealing aspects of Zombi 2 was that it featured some amazing shots of the Island that were framed beautifully, especially for a low budget film, and served to improve the film's production value drastically. Camera movement and angles were also carefully planned to create maximum impact. Zombi 3 has lost this entirely with the direction being uninspired and unimaginative. There are also no stand out shots like the film's predecessor.Diversion from the original: This film is not linked to the original in any way except for the title and the appearance of zombies.This is a massive error considering how successful the original film was and leads to some bizarre new ideas in this film that do not work at all. For example, changing the cause from voodooism to an epidemic seems pointless and random, having zombies that move quickly and run is even more bizarre and nonsensical and worst of all a scene featuring a flying severed zombie head is just simply kitschy and awful.Overall: Shoddy acting, boring direction and strange deviations from the original formula make for a truly inferior sequel to a really high quality horror classic.

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Scott LeBrun
1988/06/07

A follow-up rather than a sequel to "Zombi 2", this film was begun by "Zombi 2" director Lucio Fulci, who had to leave the production due to a stroke. Second unit director Bruno Mattei and screenwriter Claudio Fragasso were then asked to step in and finish what he'd started. They cut his approximately 70 minutes of film down to about 50 or so and then added about 40 minutes of their own. Once again, apocalyptic events abound, due to the actions of a terrorist, who'd tried to abscond with a biological weapon. He gets infected, and when his body is later cremated, it allows the virus to spread and infect other innocent people, who die and return to life as crazed, ugly killers. A group of uninfected survivors struggle to make it to safety.As you can see, this is a rather routine plot, but the directors do what they can to at least make it entertaining. One good thing is that the gore is lots of fun; few people can do splatter and zombie makeup as well as the Italians. The movie begins its life as being agreeably cheesy and comical, to alter its tone somewhat in its second half and become more atmospheric. What's interesting to note is that at one point we actually hear a zombie talk, a zombie with whom one of the main characters is all too familiar. A hilarious and memorable highlight is seeing a severed zombie head fly out of a refrigerator and attack someone. Horror fans will roar with laughter when they see this. This would seem to indicate that the movie is never meant to be taken too seriously.One thing that really makes "Zombi 3" entertaining is the utter absurdity of the performances, especially Robert Marius as Dr. Holder. His delivery is just riotous. Adding some flavour is the presence of a DJ character somewhat like Super Soul in "Vanishing Point": Blueheart, a really cool cat. Deran Sarafian, who just so happens to be the son of director Richard Sarafian, who did "Vanishing Point", stars as good guy soldier Ken, and he'd go on to direct Hollywood action pictures such as "Death Warrant" and "Terminal Velocity". Lovely lady Beatrice Ring co-stars as the determined Patricia who keeps moving and doesn't let a limp stop her. It's also great to see Ottaviano Dell'Acqua, the worm eye guy from "Zombi 2" and the lead in "Rats: Night of Terror", as another of the soldiers.Ultimately, "Zombi 3" isn't destined to become iconic like its predecessor did, but it's perfectly acceptable entertainment while it lasts.Seven out of 10.

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amesmonde
1988/06/08

Not really linked to its predecessor zombi 2, a virus outbreak (similar to Return of the Living Dead) causes the dead to rise and the military must stop the contaminated. Trapped in the zone are a few soldiers and civilians that must fight to survive.Although billed as directed by Italian directing maestro Lucio Fulci who supposedly shot approximately 70 minutes of footage, second unit director Bruno Mattei and writer Claudio Fragasso took over and only used 50 minutes of Fulci's footage. On viewing this lovable travesty it is very debatable how much of Fulic's footage really appears. There only appears smudgings of the Italians magic as it feels more like Mattei's Hell of the Living Dead/Night of the Zombies/Zombie Creeping Flesh. Like its follow up, zombi 4 there's talking zombies, jumping undead and zombies that want to fight rather than attack and eat flesh. Also there's two crazy standout scenes, a flying head and a baby zombie birth. It may all sound like fun but it's zombie scenes with the civilians and regular soldiers fighting the government's hazardous white suit army that stand out, sadly not the wacky ones. The zombie gore, blood, make-up and effects are inconsistent, sometimes effective and at other time revealing poor. There's overuse of a fog machine, laughable dialogue especially from the scientists and military personnel. The synthesised soundtrack is great but like the broadcasting DJ ill-fitting at times. As a sequel to Zombie Flesheaters it's below average, meandering from one silly setup to the next but it's still plenty of fun. Zombi 3/Zombie Flesheaters 2 at times is more a virus flick, reminiscent of The Crazies or Nightmare City than Fulics cult film Zombi 2. Overall, with its gooey opening restored despite it's short falls Zombie 3 remains none the less entertaining.

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