Forgotten Zombies

Zombies don't die easily. These days, the lumbering undead are featured in commercials, a TV series and countless movies including the upcoming "Zombie Apocalypse" premiering Oct. 29 on SyFy.

Of course, zombie flicks have been around for decades. According to Wikipedia, 1932's "White Zombie" starring Bela Lugosi is the very first horror movie to feature zombies. In that movie, the slow moving creatures aren't undead at all. They're actually drugged slaves.

It seems, however, that the same old dead man walking movies are always on TV: 2004's "Dawn of the Dead," "Resident Evil," etc. Several pretty cool zombie films should be aired more often including these gems:


Zombi 2 Lucio Fulci 1979 TRAILER by soulpatrol

"Zombie" (ake "Zombi 2"): Like gore? You'll love this gross out extravaganza from Italian schlockmaster Lucio Fulci. This was actually billed as a sequel to George A. Romero's original "Dawn of the Dead" (retitled "Zombi" in Italy) across the pond. It's not connected to that movie, but it still rocks. The action takes place on the cursed island of Matool, where the dead are rising and eating/infecting the living. Look for Mia Farrow's sister, Tisa, as the lead heroine. The zombies are pretty creepy. The guy featured on the movie poster (with worms in his eye) freaked me out when I was kid. VERY graphic!!! Lots of blood, guts and gore, so keep your finger on the fast-forward button if you're squeamish. Also, look for a pretty cool shark vs. zombie battle.



"Shock Waves": This is a super low budget 70s flick. The zombies are actually Nazi super soldiers that have been preserved and living on an island. They're all blond, pale and wearing giant goggles. Brooke Adams is the heroine and stars opposite horror vets John Carradine and Peter Cushing. I loved this movie as a kid! I have not seen it in years but can recommend it. Love the tagline on the trailer: "The faster you run...the quicker you DIE!"



"Night of the Comet": This is a very underrated 1980s movie. It's kind of like a low rent John Hughes movie crossed with "The Omega Man." A comet flies over the earth and disintegrates anyone in its path. Only a handful of people who were shielded from its flyover survive. A few unlucky fools, however, have been transformed into murderous zombies. A pair of teen babes are among the survivors and have to fend off the comet killers, as well as raid the mall. A few other non-zombies also show up. Look for Robert Beltran of "Star Trek: Voyager" and B-queen Mary Woronov (Principal Togar in "Rock n' Roll High School). This has been running on THIS TV...but not very often.