Rating: B-
Dir: Jonathan Straiton
Star: Michael Merchant, Felix Cortes, Jason Delgado, David E. McMahon
There have been no shortage of Asian films to mix the walking dead with martial arts, most obviously the straightforwardly titled Kung Fu Zombie. But it’s something the West have never particularly embraced. This movie might change things, containing what are perhaps the best hand-to-hand fight sequences I’ve seen in an American zombie movie. While it’s occasionally a little too reliant on clichés – from both the genres it combines – this does manage to feel like a fresh and interesting combination. Considering how we’re close to twenty years into the zombie renaissance (roughly beginning with the Dawn of the Dead remake), anything even approaching originality is quite an achievement.
It begins with the escape of a semi-zombie, Subject Z (Merchant) from the laboratory where he has been confined. For his blood is potentially the key to an antidote to the radiation infecting the world, and he has basically been being “milked” by Evil Corporation Inc. He is found by Jonray (Cortes), a zombie hunter who is intrigued by the new captive, naming him Johnny, after Jonray’s late son, who was killed in a previous zombie-related incident. Jonray ends up teaching Johnny martial arts skills – cue the almost inevitable training montage. However, Evil Corporation Inc. want what they regard as their “property” back, and are prepared to go to any length to recover Johnny. This basically involves sending a lot of faceless minions, before realizing the futility of that, and breaking out the big guns.
Cortes is a long-time stuntman, and you can kinda tell by his performance. I don’t mean it in a derogatory way, just it’s an approach to acting which relies mainly on physical elements. The same goes for Johnny, whom I don’t recall saying a single line in the whole movie. Yet both men manage to put over a decent sense of personality and character into their roles. The verbal side is instead largely delegated to Jonray’s sidekick, Crisanto (Delgado). Weirdly, it feels a bit like watching Jean-Claude Van Damme team up for a movie with Guillermo del Toro. Takes a bit of getting used to, and in general, the film does require a bit of time before finding its footing.
It’s when this is in motion the results are most effective, which may mean Jonray agreeing to take on zombies in a fight club, in exchange for information, or his kata-like exercises – basically reliving the death of his son on a daily basis. Some of the effects did remind me this is a low-budget effort, such as blades clearly not going through their target. Though given the sheer volume, it’s likely inevitable some will come up short: there will be another along in a moment, so no worries. I did feel the ending might have been trying too hard for a sequel that may never happen, and should have concentrated on providing a complete experience, first and foremost. Yet this is certainly good enough to entertain, and I wouldn’t rule out the prospect of a further movie.