Zombies are popular and vampires are popular so the fact that more zombie vampire movies aren’t made may be a surprising one. Until you view something like The Dead Undead.
Directed by Matthew R. Anderson and Edward Conna (who also wrote the screenplay), the fact that these two men have been stuntmen in the movie industry for quite some time is the one major bonus that this film has – a few good stunts.
Anderson and Conna also star in the movie but the headline name is Luke Goss, playing a hardass who comes along with his team of hardass mates just in time to save the lives of some bland teens who have just been attacked while trying to rest in their isolated hotel in the middle of the woods (?????). There’s a plucky girl (Summer, played by Cameron Goodman) who may just last till the end but nobody else really makes much of an impression.
The script, by Conna, is pretty bad. Not a lot is actually said, in between a succession of unenthralling action sequences, but when it is it just ends up being boring and lazy, if not downright laughable. The central concept, the zombie vampires, is explained with an excuse that, I’m sorry, had me laughing out loud instead of applauding any inventiveness that Conna clearly thought he was putting into his writing.
The direction by the two men is just as bad. It’s guilty of something I hate seeing in any film, regardless of budget and resources, and that’s laziness. Even the simple things you think would be necessary – like blocking out the light as sunrise approaches to affect the onscreen vampires – aren’t given any attention and that infuses the whole film with a quality that puts off most viewers. If they haven’t put much effort in making the thing then why put much effort into watching it?
The movie is saved from being right at the bottom of the barrel by those few decent stunts and an attempt at some decent action moments but this is offset by the bad acting and a few risible flashbacks explaining character backstories. Overall, I’ll be nice and generous with my rating.
And Luke Goss, although I never thought I’d say this, deserves better. The man who was so good in Blade II, the second Hellboy movie and the Death Race prequel deserves better material than this. If he doesn’t start being picky soon he will, surely, be working with The Asylum within a year or two. Cameron Goodman is tolerable while many of the stuntmen-turned-actors act like . . . . . . . . . . . . stuntmen-turned-actors.
Oh, and do not be suckered in by the high billing of Forrest J. Ackerman, a beloved figure to horror fans who appears onscreen for about all of 10 seconds.
One to avoid.
The Dead Undead shambles on to DVD on 1st August but there are plenty of other, superior titles to stake your money on.
DIRECTOR: MATTHEW R. ANDERSON, EDWARD CONNA
STARS: LUKE GOSS, CAMERON GOODMAN, MATTHEW R. ANDERSON, EDWARD CONNA
RUNTIME: 90 MINS APPROX
COUNTRY: USA
Film Rating: 
