Nazi Horror Week: Død snø (Dead Snow)

Dead Snow

2009 91 Minutes

Achtung!

Here we go with another Nazi Zombie flick. 

Whats the Plot?

A bunch of (fairly stupid) Norwegian medial students go to the mountains for a bit of a holiday. The students failed to do research and didn't know that the mountain in question used to be a Nazi controlled area. Nazi Zombie mayhem ensues.

Why do I feel like i've seen this before?

Well thats because you have. As well know, at this point the cabin in the woods movie had been done to death, and it wasn't till the actual movie "Cabin In the Woods" that it was flipped on it's head. The beginning of this movie is a complete choir to watch. Of noticeable blandness is that the beginning clearly looks like it was shot for the new MTV generation - featuring quick edits and non-sense snowmobile jumps. I was honestly very worried from the get-go, it seemed even more pointless than the usual cabin in the woods flick.

Is this about to get good?

Not quite half-way through the movie the set-up (revealing whats going to happen) is provided but some grumpy old man. The movie did not get good at this point either and my worry continued. The set-up seemed like an OK idea, but it really never explains whats about to happen that well.

Am I watching a different movie?

Here is the key to this review, I honestly felt like a different movie started at the 47min mark. It all starts with one gory character death and all of a sudden the tone of this movie completely changes. 

Funny one liners, gore galore and hordes of zombies all of sudden come into the picture and the movie stops taking itself so seriously. This was the movie I had been waiting for.

Were Nazi's necessary?

Nah, not really. I suppose they needed some reason for a lot of zombies to attack these kids, and I will say that their use in this film is actually pretty good once it gets going. 

How is the gore?

For a movie that was clearly shot for a low budget, they did a pretty good job. There are times when you can see more of a mannequin being used, but it doesn't hurt the film as by the point this is happening, it realizes just how absurd it is and has hopefully gotten the viewer to buy into the circus. There is plenty of blood and guts to be seen, so for you gore hounds, you will likely have plenty to enjoy - you just have to sit through a boring build-up to get to it.

How does it look?

I watched this film on Blu-Ray and was very impressed by how it looked. The film appears very clear and even though it looks grainy at times, I suspect this is because they clearly did not have the budget to use the highest quality film.

Final Thoughts? 

I can appreciate what they were trying to do here. My major gripe with this film is just how superior the second half is to the first. 

I really liked that they kept the Norwegian music in the film, but I wish they wouldn't have gone for the quick edits to keep peoples attention. The definite lack of relying on jump scares is also appreciated as It would have further cheapened the film.

There is a big payoff if you can make it to the end of this film, because the final action scenes are both gore-tastic and quite funny. 

Due to this feeling like a half a movie, but that last half being so good, i'm giving this movie 3 klinks out of 5.

Here is the trailer:

Outpost: Black Sun

****disclaimer: Our blog nor it's writers support Nazism****

We're back with our second Nazi horror flick, Steve Barker's "Outpost: Black Sun".

This movie is the sequel to "Outpost". A movie which starred Ray Stevenson(Punisher, Thor). This movie however stars a bunch of people you don't know. Luckily in this movie it doesn't really matter.
The movie starts off initially with the main character Lena, who's in search of and old evil Nazi by the name of Klausener. Klausener has discovered a new technology that will create a race of immortal Nazi super soldiers and with them will bring about the 4th Reich. For some reason she's the only one who knows about this and we're not sure why.

So what did I like about this movie?

The fight scenes in this movie are actually pretty decent and are pretty tense.

For a movie that is made in 2012, there isn't really much use of CGI, at least NOT THAT I COULD SEE!(I'll explain this more). The Nazi zombies look like they are wearing makeup and not computer generated. I always appreciate when film makers do that, I'm so sick of movies where CGI is so easily seen because it just seems like a cheap way to make a movie and make it less natural.

This movie looks like it had a decent sized budget because the effects used in it don't look cheap and they do look rather good.

I half liked the acting.

There's a scene in the movie that looked like a nod to Raiders of the Lost Ark near the end, that was pretty neat and the effects were cool.




So what was not so great?

The biggest problem I had with this movie is that visually its so dark. Seriously I might as well have been watching it wearing a blindfold, because you can't see shit and it only gets progressively worse.

With it being so dark it also takes away from how its filmed. I want to say I actually liked the way it was filmed because from what I could tell it actually looked not too bad, but again..... ITS TOO FUCKING DARK!! Have these guys never heard of brightness/contrast?!?!

The acting in this movie went from not too bad to progressively shit, especially the main character Lena. She was really annoying every line she had was "What about Klausener?", "Where's Klausener?" "How do I find Klausener?". Klausener this, Klausener that. Seriously really repetitive and irritating. Some of the dramatic parts in the acting weren't bad but, there were just parts that were stupid.

Oh and one of the last things which made it really confusing is one of the characters who switches sides towards the end. You're left thinking "uh OK what just happened?"

Was it scary?
No, not in the least. There were parts that were tense, but not scary.

Who would like this movie?
If you like Resident Evil, Dawn of the Dead. Then this movie will probably cater to you.
Its a decent movie if you find you are kind of looking to kill an hour and a half, it will at least keep you entertained if nothing else.

Final thoughts?
This movie had really good potential. Like I had said before, from how it was filmed and the effects used, the cinematography aspect of it was actually quite decent, but the lighting really messed it up. If they managed to edit that more and fix that problem I bet this movie would have been much better. Also I didn't have any expectations for the actors because they weren't anyone I knew, but I think if the writing would have been more developed they would have done better as well. Would I recommend this movie? Well I wouldn't mind doing so, but I'd be afraid of being badgered afterwards because they complained about not being able to see it, so read this review first and if the idea appeals to you, then by all means have at er.

2.5 zombie Nazi's out of 5


That picture by the way does not accurately depict the lighting in the movie.

Here's the trailer:    

Nazi Horror Week: Shock Waves

*DISCLAIMER* This blog nor it's writers support racism, or nazi's. This is just a theme for this week! 

Shock Waves (1977)

85 Minutes

Welcome to Nazi Horror Week. This week we will be featuring nothing but reviews of movies that have Nazi's in them in some form. 

When life gives you lemon's, you make lemonade.

Apparently in this movie, when life gives you Nazi's, you take those Nazi's and make them Super Nazi's.

So, whats the plot?

During WW2, Peter Cushing was put in charge of a group of genetically modified uber Nazi's who were unfeeling and very violent. To nobody's surprise (except maybe his) they were uncontrollable. Towards the end of the war he took them offshore to escape the allies likely capturing them and revealing the secret. The orders never come and he sinks the boat and takes a self imposed exile on an island. The film revolves around their unexplained return to get their violence fix that the zombie nazi's have missed being stuck at the bottom of the ocean

Is that really the plot?

You would never find my explanation at the back of the box, but yes - that is the main idea.

So, does it work?

Despite how I make it sound, I would actually have to give this a big yes. The main thing I have to talk about here is the two "main" actors they likely shelled out for, Peter Cushing and John Carradine. They are both used very little, but their minimal screen presence is felt and not a single scene is wasted.

I would actually go so far as to say John Carradine's short, short appearance in this film is the best acting you are going to see during the whole movie. While the rest of the actor's are hamming it up and not taking their work seriously, I get the sense John decided he was going to be a professional about thing and actually delivered his hammy lines with some conviction - he doesn't even come across as trying like the other actors surrounding him do.

What also works is the way the film was shot. The use of first person camera and the distance shots work really well here and help to not reveal too much which would have hurt the film had the done the "big reveal" too soon.

A minimal musical score also goes a long way to set the right mood.

Okay, not bad! Now what doesn't work?

My biggest complaint would be the other actors. Of particular note is Jack Davidson who plays Norman, and let me tell you, this guy is a real Norman. His character is so whiny and so annoying and his lines are delivered so forcibly, it's a wonder they didn't force this guy to stay on the boat. 

The other actors really don't do much either. Brooke Adams who plays Rose is great to look at, but everyone else is just there to run away and make poor decisions.

Concerning the plot, I was definitely left with some questions, such as:

Why did the Nazi Zombies suddenly rise from the ocean?

How has Peter Cushing managed to stay alive so long?

What were all those people doing on that boat in the first place?

Why didn't Peter Cushing try to leave?

I suppose some things are better left not known, but they give poor Peter all of two minutes to explain the thing and the characters are off and running before you even know whats going on.

Lastly, it's not really explained what the Nazi Zombies are after. I would even be reluctant to call them Zombies. It seems like they just want to be violent, since the rest of the time all they are seen doing is hanging around in the water lounging. 

Final Thoughts?

One thing this movie really nailed is the running time. This movie is over before the concept wears out it's welcome.

I would definitely recommend this for watching as it does have the making of a classic. If you watch this just for the fun aspects of it, you may be pleasantly surprised. Watching the two veteran actors put on a clinic next to the amateurs is also quite enjoyable.

Shock Waves is getting 3.5 Totenkopf's out of 5

They Live

Well before we get to Nazi horror week, we thought we'd deliver on a real classic. John Carpenter's "They Live". This 1988 film stars "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and Keith David(Requiem for a Dream, The Thing). This movie is all about exposing the gruesome underbelly of the government and society for its truly disfigured face. Roddy Piper's character who in the credits is listed simply as "Nada" is a hard working average joe who like a lot of people wants to earn a decent living. After coming upon some mystic sunglasses he puts them on to discover the veil which has been cast over society and the ugly side underneath it all. The world is not how we see it. Not all human beings are human.

Now I'm a huge John Carpenter fan, but this is the very first time I've seen this movie so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. The one thing I've always liked about Carpenter's films is that his intro's are usually not explained, so there is usually a bunch of events that happen at the beginning of the film but you're left wondering "Why? How? WTF?". Now for those of you who need to know every detail, everything explained then you may not like that, but if you can just sit back and watch this movie for what it is then you should enjoy it.

What did I like about this movie?

This movie is packed with action, from the beginning of the movie right to the very end, it's actually more of an action movie I'd say then Horror, but the two mix very well.

The acting isn't spectacular but for what this movie is, you won't hate it. The script writing makes the acting a little bit better. Nada isn't a big talker but when he does its the kind of cheesy one liners that make these movies enjoyable.  Does anyone remember Duke Nukem?

John Carpenter does his own music for all of his movies, in this movie its a jazzy blues style and it suits the movie pretty well, especially while....... Chewing bubblegum and kicking ass.

So  what did I not like so much?

Keith David's character of Frank isn't really necessary, I mean yeah he kicks ass alongside Roddy Piper but the two of them are so similar and so he's a bit lost.

The special effects in this movie are decent, but some of the aliens in the film just look so outrageously fake that its laughable. You can tell one of them is wearing a mask because when he starts speaking the mouth doesn't move but the jawline behind the mask does. You can also tell some of them are dummies, when they get shot they don't look real and look more like puppets on strings.

The one female character played by Meg Foster in this movie is also pretty useless. There is no romance in this movie whatsoever and who she turns out to be in the end has you scratching your head,

Who will like this movie?

Any fan of John Carpenter should like this movie, in particular those who like "Assault on Precinct 13". This movie relates closest to that one and the style is very similar. Also if you're a fan of 80's action films then this will be a nice addition to your collection.

I give this movie 3/5 Duke Nukem's 

And now the trailer: 

Nazi Horror Week

Gutten Abend,

Next week will see the launch of our next full theme of reviews: Nazi's in horror.

We will be reviewing new movies as well as a couple of classics.

It should also see the launch of our first video review!

If you have a request for a theme week you would like to see, let us know on Facebook or simply comment here.

Pet Sematary

"Sometimes dead is better"

That has to be one of my favorite lines in any horror movie ever made.

Rather than review this movie, I mostly just wanted to spend some time talking about how I think this movie is seriously underrated.

Whats so good about this movie?

All right! The plot for one is, in my opinion, excellent! Now, i'm pretty up to date about how Stephen King even scared himself by writing this book - as a person who does not have a child I can't really relate. I would imagine for those who do though, that this movie takes on a whole new meaning with the idea of losing your child and there being nothing you can do to stop it.

Overall though, the idea of putting something in the ground and having it come back not quite the way you put it in was a great device and something I found drove the movie (and the book quite well)

I also found the idea of Victor Pascow coming back and trying to help the family both interesting and a bit freaky.

The Acting (for the most part) is quite good as well. Surprisingly the lead actors leave a bit to be desired, but I will never be able to say enough good words about how completely awesome Fred Gwynne is in this movie. I can't read the book without hearing him talk, and he conveys all the fear and the "friendly neighbor" attitude that this character is supposed to.

Special mention goes to Church, the cat. Obviously the editing department had a big role in what he had to do, but the cat was cuddly and lovable at one point, and a complete monster the next - very well done and I haven't seen a cat that enjoyable except for the movie Hocus Pocus.

The Pacing in this movie seems quite brisk as well, and that is definitely in a good way. The book did tend to drag at certain points, and the movie (written by Stephen King) did away with any of the filler that would have taken away from the flow. This movie always ends before I want it to.

Okay, thats all well and good. Is there anything you don't like?

Just one thing really, and this is only a half complaint. And thats the ending with Gage. Now I don't actually think there is a convincing way that this could have been done to make it seem completely over the top like a circus, but thats why this is only a half complaint.

What I would have attempted myself though is to take the Jaws approach and maybe not show Gage. This would have given it more of a Black Christmas vibe and left what Gage looked like up the viewer, which might have been much creepier.

How does it stack up to the book?

Pretty good. Like I said before, the movie cuts out some of the parts that did not need to be there, although the movie could have benefited from the digging up Gage's body part (too morbid?) and the lengthier funeral part of Gage (too long?) but thats just my opinion. Considering I saw the movie before I read the book, I was pleasantly surprised with how much other stuff was in the book to keep me going. I'm not sure why they had to change the whole Norma situation in the movie, but it does not suffer because of it.

Final thoughts?

Maybe it's because I really like cats, maybe it's because I like Herman Munster out of make-up, but this is one movie I can't recommend highly enough. Now that this movie is out on blu-ray, (and it looks damn good too), now would be the time to either re-visit, or watch for the first time.

Here is a trailer for those unfamiliar:

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