King Of The Zombies

Starring:Dick Purcell, Joan Woodbury, Mantan Moreland, Henry Victor, John Archer, Patricia Stacey, Guy Usher, Marguerite Whitten, Leigh Whipper, Madame Sul-Te-Wan, Laurence Criner, Josephine Whitten, James Davis (VIII)
Director: Jean Yarbrough
Studio: CineVu, Inc.
Product Type: DVD

Pet Sematary (Special Collector's Edition)

Average customer rating:

Please, Stop Eating My Throat Little Boy!...
"The Soil of a Man's Heart is Stonier" ...
Great scary horror film
You will never let your pets or kids near the road again.
suprising

Pet Sematary (Special Collector's Edition)
Starring: Dale Midkiff , Fred Gwynne , Denise Crosby , Brad Greenquist , and Michael Lombard
Director: Mary Lambert
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000GBEWRU
Release Date: 2006-09-26

Description

For most families, moving is a new beginning. But for the Creeds, it could be the beginning of the end. Because they're just moved in next door to a place that children built with broken dreams, the Pet Sematary. It's a tiny patch of land that hides a mysterious Indian burial ground with the powers of resurrection. Master of the Macabre, Stephen King, will take you and the Creeds to hell and back. (But the Creeds don't have return tickets.) Your tour guide is kindly old Judd Crandall (Fred Gwynne), the neighborhood nice guy who knows the secrets of life, but has seen enough to firmly believe that "sometimes dead is better."

Customer Reviews:

Please, Stop Eating My Throat Little Boy!..........2007-04-28

Stephen King's book PET SEMATARY scared the $#!t out of me! I found the movie version entertaining, but not quite as frightening. I liked Denise Crosby as Mrs. Creed, and the kids were good. Dad was okay as well. Fred Gwynne made a decent Jud Crandel too. I guess I just wanted to be scared $#!tless again! Really, the only complaint I have about the movie is the showing of the resurrected Gage. Seeing his baby face made things far less terrifying than just showing his back, or a hand (like when the hand came from under the bed) or his shadow running past. Anyway, PET SEMATARY had it's moments. Zelda was suitably creepy, as she lurched about wheezing and cackling. The kitty that played Church was great! The actual pet cemetery and the Mic Mac burial ground were well done. I did miss the wendigo though! Oh yeah, and how about the fact that the only traffic on the road seemed to be those speeding ORINKO fuel trucks? Pretty funny! Enjoy...

"The Soil of a Man's Heart is Stonier" ..........2007-04-02

While Romero was the first in line to direct "Pet Sematary" (he was committed to another project at the time), Mary Lambert took her job to heart. (And she readily admits that King loved her because she was close friends with The Ramones ... I respect her for that!!) She took great pains in finding the perfect house (she searched all summer for it), the perfect tree (she had that HUGE tree extricated from somewhere entirely different and planted in front of the yellow house!!), even the perfect cat (there are seven that 'play' Church ... one that excels at scratching, one at jumping, etc..). She attended to every detail with passion. Most importantly, I truly respect her choice with Gage's character. Lambert could have presented the undead Gage as grotesquely mutilated. Instead, she opted for something much more horrific: undead, unclean Gage as reanimated by Louis hubris ... with his cherubic (now daemonic) face intact. It is potent. Likewise, her choice of costume for his undead character was spot-on (and highly controversial). The dress echoes the painting in the Goldman's home and conjures a staggering sense of Freud's definition of "the uncanny." Oddly enough, even though Lambert had to fight for this choice (and King backed her entirely), it is one of the most frightening aspects of the film!!

As many of you may know, "Pet Sematary" was the one novel that King wrote (in 1979) and then hid away for fear of unleashing it dark contents. The text (based on a near-death experience with his own child) frightened Stephen and Tabitha so badly that they deemed it better to keep in a drawer. Only as a result of contractual obligation was it published in 1983. To this date, it is King's pinnacle of genuine horror.

Lambert's Director's Commentary makes this a must-have for horror-film scholars everywhere!! Her interpretation of Jud Crandall and Victor Pascow's roles are a bit unusual ... so listen to her explanation of how she shot these two characters, then watch the film with this in mind.

To this day, people ask Romero what he would alter about the film. His response is: "I would have done it BETTER." Still, I think Lambert did an excellent job of bringing King's masterwork to life. I loved it when I saw it opening day ... and I love it even still today.

I see that Paramount Pictures has a remake scheduled for 2008. I cannot help but to worry ... the director (as of yet, unknown) has a tough battle to create a more earth-shattering piece.

Suggested Readings:

Mackenthun, Gesa. "Haunted Real Estate." Paradoxa: Studies in World Literary Genres. 3, no. 3-4 (1997): 438-55

Reino, Joseph. Stephen King: The First Decade, Carrie to Pet Sematary. Boston: Twayne, 1988.

Great scary horror film.......2007-03-22

"Pet Semetary" is one of the best horror movies Hollywood produced. The lovely Creed family move to Maine, where Louis (Dale Midkiff) has take a job as a local college doctor. He discovers that there is a 'pet sematary' next to his new house. The family cat, Church, dies, and Louis's neighbor Jud Crandall (Fred Gwynne) agrees to bury it in the sematary. Church comes back to life but different. Then the cute infant Gage dies, and guess what Louis is thinking of doing. This is a very scary movie about zombies, and a much more realistic version of it. The movie is based on the popular book by Stephen King; indeed this is one of the more faithful adaptations. The family, much like the family in "Cujo", is very cute and sympathetic. Almost Norman Rockwell gone to Hell. The subject and theme of family and love is strong, and that is what makes the film powerful, these are real people in an impossible situation. The movie also deals with the nature of death (though not as extensively as the book) and people's fear of it. These are feelings most people can relate to, and that is why it's so much scarier when people start dying, and worst when they don't stay dead. All the actors do well, no problem there. Mary Lambert's direction is good, if nothing special. The script is by Stephen King, the first time he adapted his own material, and his love of his own story really shines through. This is a good, really scary movie with heart and brains behind it.

You will never let your pets or kids near the road again........2007-03-14

When I first read Pet Sematary it scared me half to death. I had a hard time reading passed the funeral home scene. Well the same goes for the movie: it is horrifying. GULP!
Stephen King was on top of his game when her wrote the book, and the movie does a good job at delivering the true storyline.

Stephen John Beccia
author of The Treelanders

suprising.......2007-01-09

IT WAS A EXCELLENT MOVIE. IT DEFINITELY KEPT ME ON THE EDGE OF MY SEAT.

The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies

Average customer rating:

Silly campy movie....
If only there was a zero star option
incredibly strange indeed
... at a loss for the appropriate complement
Great Treatment for Steckler's Best Flick!

The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies
Starring: Carolyn Brandt , Steve Clark , Cash Flagg , Son Hooker , and Atlas King
Director: Ray Dennis Steckler , and Ray Dannis
Manufacturer: Guilty Pleasures
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0002JP2V6
Release Date: 2004-09-28

Customer Reviews:

Silly campy movie...........2006-12-07

I've only seen this strange piece of dreck from MST3K when they were on the Sci-Fi channel and they did a real good job,which you can get on one of their box sets.If you like silly/campy/bad acting and directing movies,then this is for you,but otherwise,stay away! It is decent for what it is,but rent it first to be on the safe side..

If only there was a zero star option.......2006-02-23

This has got to be the worst film ever made. When I saw it on television, I actually turned it off. When it was on again, I decided to see if it got better towards the end, but it did not, instead it got worse. The film may be a cult classic, but I keep asking myself whether there was even a script writer (I know that the credits says that there was, but I have my doubts). It just seemed like a bunch of drugged-out amateurs decided to try to make a zombie film, and did not even know how to work a camera, and someone actually funded them.

When I saw it for a third time on television, it was on Mystery Science Theater 3000. Even the jokes made did nothing to plug the stench of the film, but the misery was not as extreme since I had the joking robots and Mike making fun of it to focus on.

If only there was a zero star rating, since one star is being too gratious to this film. It's better to stay away from this film, but if you really want to see it, then best see it on TV, that way you don't spend any money and you can actually flip to something else.

incredibly strange indeed.......2006-01-22

*2 stars
this film is not a horrible movie. its really quite entertaining at times. i do admit, with a title like it has, i was expecting something really really cheesy yet good like a troma film. its still a decent non scary horror film about hypnotism that is worth at least one viewing. i recommend all people who want to get this movie and are expecting evil dead or something zombie pass this one up. it is a horror flick and the zombies are merely hypnotized people. it drags on at times and the sound really quite sucks, but i cant blame them. it was made in 1963. even before the original night of the living dead.

if the title screams weirdo comical mayhem to you, then you may be sadly disappointed. this movie is weird, but moreso in a bad episode of twilight zone way.

all in all, dont get this unless you can find it cheap or someone else shows it to you. i bet you could even catch it on the amc channel at times.

i havent seen it, but i recommend that if anyone purchase this, they do it via the new mystery science theater 3000 set. i am willing to bet that it is ten times more entertaining.

... at a loss for the appropriate complement .......2005-04-15

I remain in awe of this man Steckler ... I am truly humbled by his work ... this is the Holy Grail of entertainment!

Great Treatment for Steckler's Best Flick! .......2005-02-12

Not only is it great to see "Creatures" in such glorious color, but this DVD is packed with really GOOD extras. This is truly one of the more bizarre of all low-budget horror/exploitation flicks of the 60s - and that's saying a lot. It also happens to be among the most fun to watch. Somehow, it's funny, cheesy, incomprehensible and kind of sweet all at the same time. And dig the ladies in those musical numbers!

As for the commentaries by director/star Ray Dennis Steckler and drive-in critic Joe Bob Briggs, I have to say I like 'em both. I do have to disagree with the reviewer who didn't like the Joe Bob commentary. Joe Bob has an amazing depth of knowledge when it comes to movies, and his humor and observations are right on the money. Sure, he points out the inadequacies of "Creatures," but isn't that part of the fun? After all, if you're going to examine a movie like this, how can you NOT mention cheap sets, out-of-step dancers and actors with sky-high pompadours? Joe Bob clearly loves this movie, and his enthusiasm for this sort of cinema is infectious.

If you're even considering buying this DVD, you're probably already familiar with the movie. Rest assured that the extras are a worthy addition...and are just as 'incredibly strange' as you'd hope.

Average customer rating:

Good makeup, but everything else is bad.
Very Bizarre little B-Movie
It's horrible, but not in the way you might think
Sorry, No Skin Eating Here!
Get This One On DVD

I Eat Your Skin
Starring: William Joyce , Heather Hewitt , Betty Hyatt Linton , Dan Stapleton , and Walter Coy
Director: Del Tenney
Manufacturer: Alpha Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00008AOV1
Release Date: 2003-02-18

Customer Reviews:

Good makeup, but everything else is bad........2005-02-16

I Eat Your Skin (Del Tenney, 1964)

To call I Eat Your Skin a bad film is sort of like calling a beagle a dog. You should know simply from the title that you're dealing with a sixties exploitation flick. The problem is, there's not enough exploitation. You've got some very attractive women, none of whom ever actually gets naked, and a bunch of zombies running around who never actually get to eat anyone. (No, despite the name, no skin is actually consumed during the film.) The script is horrible, the fight scenes are hysterical, and the acting is atrocious. About the only thing that kept me watching (and I'll admit, I hit the fast forward button more than once and skimmed) was that the zombie makeup, which was nothing but face makeup and, at times, a little on the chest, was creepily effective for no reason I can put my finger on. Unfortunately, special effects do not a film make, and are certainly not enough to have me recommend this film to unsuspecting movie renters. **

Very Bizarre little B-Movie.......2003-04-02

Well, I would have never seen this little flick if not for two of my friends. They were at a mall, shopping for DVDs and they saw the title... Instantly they thought of me, which really worries me...

But, not one to waste a free DVD, I watched this immediately. It's entertaining, to be sure, but it is really BAD. The acting, the writing, those good ol' "Special" effects. Awful, all of them, which, I think, is the reason it's so entertaining.

The zombies are great. They look as if they're covered in scrambled eggs.

But the best thing, of course, is the score. Why did they give it a "James Bond"-ish score? I don't know but it works!

My only problem is a story point: It's not a musical. If it had been, it would've been a five, easily. Alas, it's not, so it's only a three...

It's horrible, but not in the way you might think.......2003-03-03

Oh, brother. We'd better start with the title of this movie. There is in fact no skin eaten by anyone at any time in this movie; in other words, the title makes no sense whatsoever. Some people seem to like the title; while it certainly gets your attention, I don't think it necessarily makes you want to pick this title up. Even I, a self-proclaimed epicure in the terrible, put off watching this monstrosity of a movie for some time because of the title; now, I Eat Your Heart or even I Eat Your Liver would make me eager to experience a movie; I Eat Your Skin just puts me off. So what's the story here? Well, for no reason I can figure out, Harris, a playboy author of adventure books that read more like trashy romance novels, is invited to accompany his agent to Voodoo Island in the Caribbean-it would make a great setting for his next novel, he is told. The place sounds less than glorious to me: poisonous snakes all over the place, natives practicing voodoo and human sacrifice, so-called zombies running amuck. When Harris' agent gets to the part about a female to male ratio of five to one, though, our hero is all gangbusters to go. After a harrowing beach landing, Harris is attacked by a zombie and watches him slice the head off of a fisherman (there's one good thing about the movie, at least). The gang eventually makes it to the home of a doctor working on a cure for cancer using snake venom. Harris immediately puts the move on the guy's daughter, but then zombies try to run off with his new girl. From that point on, it's man versus zombie.

The ending of this movie, like the rest of it, is quite ridiculous. The sound of airplane tires squealing on sand and the fact that Harris' thoroughly drenched gun fires perfectly well are early clues to an utter disrespect for logic in this script. There are also far too many minutes of natives jerking spasmodically around doing the voodoo that they do so well. The zombies are rather impressive, though (although the transformations from human to zombie we have to watch a couple of times leave something to be desired). Their faces are all scabrous with skin peeling away all over the place, and they really do have bugged-out eyes, looking as if they each have two boiled eggs slapped across their faces.

I'm sure that zombie lovers will find some enjoyment here, but I wasn't overly impressed. All I got out of this movie was some unintended comedy. For instance, with a horde of zombies close on their heels, the men tell the women to stay there at the edge of the jungle while they go down and get the plane ready. Guess what happens to the women? Then there is the inexplicable yet very fortuitous appearance of a boat on the island just when it is most needed; even one of the characters asks "Where'd that boat come from?" Can you say deus ex machina? Between the loopy story and Harris' frequent attempts to woo the ladies with atrocious pick-up lines, I wanted this movie to end before it really even got started.

Sorry, No Skin Eating Here!.......2003-03-02

This is without a doubt, my favorite bug-eyed zombie movie! Del Tenney has done it again! If you are a shlock horror fanatic like me, you'll love this voodoo cheeselog! Plot?? Ok, a pulp fiction writer crash-lands on the beach of voodoo island. He's accompanied by his snobby friend and his annoying, bubble headed wife (who quite astonishingly survives to the end). While going through the jungle, he witnesess a decapitation at the hands of a mysterious zombie who looks like someone stapled his eyelids open.Turns out, there's a mad scientist on the island, who tried curing cancer with radiated snake venom, but ended up with an army of zombies instead. Wait, it gets better! There's a voodoo priest who uses the zombies to murder anyone who gets in his way. The hero of the film is a tough, macho, sex maniac, who smirks his way through the perils around him. I especially enjoyed his "stories by the pool", told to legions of fawning, bikini-clad fem-bots! I won't spoil this classic by giving away the ending. If you like ultra-cheese, this one's for you! Highly recommended...

Get This One On DVD.......2003-01-27

This is a great film. You can get it on DVD as the second feature on the DVD of a Something Weird Video called The Child.
Check it out!!!

Average customer rating:

There's a reason why this is a 'rarely seen' film...
George A. Romero influenced gore cheapie...
Now this is how you make a crappy movie.
Only for true fans of bad movies.
Gutmunching Zombie Horror Comes To DVD

Dawn of the Mummy
Starring: Brenda King , Barry Sattels , George Peck , John Salvo , and Ibrahim Khan
Director: Frank Agrama
Manufacturer: Madacy Records
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ASIN: B0000V48LG
Release Date: 2003-12-09

Customer Reviews:

There's a reason why this is a 'rarely seen' film..........2005-05-31

Well, it's been awhile since I've seen something as bad as Dawn of the Mummy (1981)...and as one of my esteemed colleague mentions `It's not the best, it's not the worst'...to which I would agree, with a clarification...it's a lot closer to `the worst' rather than the `the best'. I certainly don't mind cheaply made exploitation films as long as there's heart involved, but I didn't get a sense of that here. All I got from this film was a sense of someone trying to cash in on the popular genre of the time, and not doing it very well. Produced, written and directed by Frank `Farouk' Agrama (Queen Kong), the film stars Brenda King (SeaQuest DSV), Barry Sattels (Number One with a Bullet), and George Peck (Curse of the Puppet Master). Also appearing is John Salvo, Joan Levy (The Bumblebee Flies Anyway), Ellen Faison (New York Nights), and Dianne Beatty (Hot Heir).

As the film begins some text is shown on the screen informing the audience the year is 3,000 B.C. and the location is Egypt. We see slaves being abused and the abduction of a young boy, neither of which seems to relate to anything as the next scenes involve some pharaoh being mummified, and thus the obligatory curse is spewed forth...you know, the one that states anyone who desecrates the tomb will meet with an untimely end. Fast forward to the present day (must be the 80's as a number of characters are wearing Jordache jeans, or cheap knock-offs)...during which we see some treasure hunters breaking into the tomb. Soon afterwards we see a separate group made up of fashion models and photography crew shooting photos in the desert, they happen upon the newly opened tomb, and decide to use it as a location for their shoot, much to the treasure hunters consternation but since they're probably there illegally, they really can't complain too much. And who the heck sets up a photo shoot in the middle of the desert? If you were going to bother going all the way to Egypt to shoot pictures, I would think you'd want to use some popular monuments, but then again, I'm no expert. Anyway, the mummy comes to life (along with a bunch of slaves buried with the pharaoh), and they begin to wreak havoc on the local population, killing anyone they come across. Now it's the fashion models vs. the undead...who will win? Well, after spending an hour and a half watching the film, I know it won't be the audience...

I'm not going to get into a whole debate on the distinctive differences between zombies and mummies, but in all the films I've seen featuring the latter of the two, this is the first time I've seen them actually feasting on the corpses of the recently deceased (of whom the mummies were the cause of the untimely demise). And I have to say, some of these `mummies' look pretty well preserved for being dead some 5000 years...oh, the pharaoh himself looks appropriate (except for his eyeballs being completely intact and untouched), but his minions look much fleshier that I would have expected. And another thing, as the film progresses, we see the `curse' isn't just limited to those who violated the sanctity of the tomb, but to all in the area, including a small, nearby town. Perhaps this isn't a big deal, as it allows for much carnage to be enacted later in the film, but since the makers of the film when to a lot of trouble informing us of said curse in the beginning, I thought it odd that it should apply in such a random manner rather than specifically to those who were in the tomb. As far as the film goes, you can see I had some problems with the story itself, but compared to other elements, these points are pretty minor. The aspects that hurt the film the most are the incredibly poor acting and equally shoddy dialog. Halfway through the film I begging for more of the characters to turn into victims...and when some of them finally started biting the proverbial dust, I let loose a cheer from within...never was I so pleased to see such annoying characters get what they deserved, which is interesting as generally the intent from the filmmakers standpoint is to draw a sense of empathy from the audience for the characters so we actually care when they are in dire situations. The directing isn't bad (there are some interesting visuals far and few between), but more like passable. There was a sense of continuity and forward movement, but this was hampered by unnecessary and meaningless material (particularly the numerous obligatory shots of the mummies/zombies crouched over a dead body feeding on fleshy items meant to represent internal organs). One aspect in particular I found really annoying was the ineptitude of whoever did the finishing sound work on the film. There was very little sense of perspective and distance between what was happening on the screen and the voices and sound effects. What you end up having is characters in the foreground speaking, and then another in the background who sounds like he/she is right next to the other characters, even though there may be a good deal of distance separating them. I will give credit to whoever did the effects on the main mummy, as they did look pretty good. Also, if you're looking for visceral thrills, you'll find some here, if you don't mind wading through a whole lot of pointless material.

The picture quality of the full screen presentation on this DVD looks like it was taken from a mediocre VHS tape. I think I even saw some minor tracking type issues generally inherent slightly worn videotape. As far as the audio, it's listed on the DVD case as being in Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo, but given the craptacular nature of the original audio, it comes off as so-so. As far as extras, I was surprised to find a director's commentary track. Also included is a trailer for another Agrama film titled Road Ends (1997), but not one for this film.

Cookieman108

By the way, if you watch the end credits all the way through, count how many Agrama's are listed...do you think any of them are related to the director?

George A. Romero influenced gore cheapie..........2005-03-08

First saw this film on VHS in the mid-eighties when it was released by either Vestron video or Thorn/EMI, and due to a combination of my young, impressionable age and the over the top violence of this gore classic it left a huge mark or should I say scar on me.
Is the film any good? I would venture yes, in a 'so bad it's entertaining, Lucio Fulci (Zombie, Gates of Hell) or Joe D'Amato (Beyond The Darkness, Anthropophagus)' sort of way. Frank Agrama, the man responsible for this travesty is guilty of helming some of filmdom's worst and most embarrassing moments-need I mention 1976's Queen Kong?
This film is about Rick (one of the hammiest actors these eyes have ever seen) and his band of merry, but not so bright tomb raiders. They stumble upon a cursed (aren't they all?) Egyptian crypt containing a very big and angry mummy who is justifiably upset that these nitwits have interrupted his ancient slumber to plunder his gold. A group of pretty american models soon decide to use the defiled crypt for a magazine photo shoot. If this sounds ridiculous and implausible, imagine the implausibility of an early eighties gore flick featuring sexy female models but no nudity at all. What was Agrama thinking? The dormant mummy soon rises to avenge this indiscretion and summons his hordes of undead, cannibalistic followers to assist him, the scene where the undead legions rise from the sands is very creepy and effective indeed. This allows the film to degenerate into a 'Dawn of the Dead' type bloodbath with gore galore recalling special effects maestro Tom Savini's pioneering work.
The film is slow at times, but so were the original black and white Universal Mummy movies of yesteryear. All in all, this is a good updating of the mummy legend, and has the distinction of being one of the only mummy 'gore' films I have ever seen.
For a cheap, discount dvd Madacy has done a pretty good job even supplying a commentary track with Agrama. The film is presented full screen and the transfer pretty much looks like it was lifted directly from a VHS tape. Still the quality is pretty acceptable in spots, be forewarned there is a constant hiss in the audio present throughout. Nevertheless until Anchor Bay decides to release a region 1 version of this, this will have to do. Another gripe is the crappy cover art which is no match for the original with the imposing Mummy, eyes aglow, superimposed upon a desert landscape.
In closing, this oddity is certainly worth seeing..once. Though once may be enough.

Now this is how you make a crappy movie........2005-02-06

Now this movie has a brilliant concept: A zombie movie, but with mummies instead. The execution of it all is, um, flawed, but it's good campy fun anyway.

Lots of people out there who are horror fans are unable to take horror movies seriously- they just like them as camp or whatever. I am not one of these people, and while I certainly can enjoy good-bad movies, I prefer them to be genuinely good. Sadly, 'Dawn of the Mummy' cannot be taken seriously, at all. It's just way, way too amateurish and silly. So make no mistake, you aren't getting any Romero or Fulci here.(`City of the Living Dead' falls into the good-bad category, but it's still a cut above this.) Frankly, I cannot imagine why anyone would be expecting anything above about D-grade stuff, but I've read a lot of complaining, so I figured I might as well clear it up.

Alright, the plot's like this: There's a bunch of models who go to Egypt for a fashion shoot around some pyramid's, where there are also some grave robbers out to make it rich. Both groups end up in the actual tombs, which upsets the mummies, which eventually leads to a veritable mummy apocalypse. I say eventually cause it takes quite a while to really get going. I was worried that it was going to be a bit padded at 95 or so minutes, and I was right. Most of the film consists of the models standing around and complaining, or the grave robbers looking for the gold in the tomb, and complaining. They coulda clipped 20 minutes or so and lost nothing of particular interest. Still, most of it is reasonably amusing, particularly due to some outrageously over the top acting on the part of some of the graverobbers, and the later stuff is amusing enough to make it worth the wait.

This film does not look very professional, as you'd imagine. Each individual shot looks passable enough, but it doesn't flow right and doesn't exactly feel like a movie. Kinda like a TV movie. A cheap one. Still the eventual mummy massacre is entertaining enough. The mummies actually look better than you'd anticipate. Well actually, they're mostly henchman, who may or may not be actual mummies, but whatever. They're cheap with a hard, crunchy look like what you'd see in 'The Beyond' but I think they look pretty good, particularly their ragged outfits. Their rising out of the sands is one of the few genuinely effective moments in the film. The head mummy is more conventional, with bandages and all, and he's pretty damn cool. He's also real damn tall.

Well, after all the silly, campy crap we get to the final showdown, which is quite amusing. Mummies run amuck in the city, ruin a wedding, and eat lots and lots of guts. There's not much more to say about it then that. If that description intrigues you, you oughta check it out.

Oh yeah, it's also got a brilliant titular line, which is given during the prologue telling us about the tomb which will soon be invaded. It goes something like, `Those who violate this tomb will die on the dawn of the mummy!' Now that is awesome.

Only for true fans of bad movies........2004-11-21

One thing I seriously do not like is a page of reviews recommending that I buy a bad movie. I bought the DVD of 'Dawn of the Mummy' only to be seriously disappointed. I can take bad acting, a dumb plot, and even poor make-up effects; but not when it is this boring. This is the story of an archeologist who ignores the warnings of the locals regarding a tomb he blasts open and the models who discover his dig and think it would be an ideal place for a shoot (every fashion models dream). At least when the mummy finally rises (which takes way too long) the pace picks up; alas, not the same for the intelligence of the script. There are of course scenes that are just outright laughable: one where the mummy is after one of the models as she keeps running at a good pace as the mummy walks slowly after her and she is still not able to outrun him: another is a meat cleaver to an obviously fake head. If someone likes bad movies, they may well like this. This is not a 'Classic' and certainly not something I would irresponsibly recommend to others.-Bob

Gutmunching Zombie Horror Comes To DVD.......2004-05-03

I saw this on TV back in the 1980s and while it takes too long to get going, once it does (about 38 minutes in when the mummy finally rises from his tomb), you are in for some fun gore and zombie action. The mummy leads a horde of flesh-eating zombies on a rampage through the streets of an Egyptian town. We get a meatcleaver to the head, gut-munching, biting chunks of flesh, and a fiery climax. The soundtrack is especially good.

The new Madacy DVD release is a nice, clean but slightly dark print. The only bonus feature worth mentioning is a surprisingly fun and informative audio commentary with director Frank (Farouk) Agrama, who obviously had a lot of fun making the film (this was his final directorial effort, and he wistfully talks about making a sequel now). Listening to the commentary really increased my appreciation both for the film and for the director. For under $10, you won't do much better for 80s flesh-eating zombie horror on DVD. I would have liked to see a trailer for Dawn Of The Mummy, but as it was never released theatrically in America, I suppose hunting down the foreign trailers was too much to ask. A poster or image gallery would have been nice (even if just a few images), or the inclusion of the excellent Shuki Levy soundtrack (which was originally released on LP). Maybe we'll get lucky and have a Dawn Of The Mummy: Special Edition someday!

By the way, Dawn Of The Mummy was not the first mummy gore movie. That dubious honor goes to Paul Naschy's 1973 film La Venganza de la Momia ("The Vengeance of the Mummy"). The only other mummy gore movie I've seen is WAVE's shot on video Mummy's Dungeon from the early 90s.

Average customer rating:

Very nice
So bad it's ..... still pretty bad
You've got to own this movie
Zombietown, Indeed.
Why did Troma pick this movie up?

Chopper Chicks in Zombietown
Starring: Jamie Rose , Catherine Carlen , Lycia Naff , Vicki Frederick , and Kristina Loggia
Director: Dan Hoskins
Manufacturer: Troma
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00006G8IV
Release Date: 2002-11-12

Description

Troma Entertainment unleashes the Tromillennium Edition of cult favorite CHOPPER CHICKS IN ZOMBIETOWN! Digitally remastered and restored, featuring Academy Award® Winner BILLY BOB THORNTON (Monster's Ball, A Simple Plan, & Sling Blade), Chopper Chicks In Zombietown comes complete with Zombies, Rock N' Roll Music and tough, hard bodied biker beauties! Meet the Cycle Sluts, a rebellious & free spirited gang of female bikers made up of tough-as-nails lesbians, a former homecoming queen, and a mute. The Cycle Sluts leave their troubled lives behind to go on a tour of America only to encounter a town overrun by Zombies created by the local Mad Scientist (Don Calfa - Weekend At Bernie's, Return of the Living Dead, "Barney Miller") to mine nuclear radioactive material. The Cycle Sluts refuse to be run out of town by anyone, including Flesh Eating Zombies! Ganging up with local outcasts, including a school of blind orphans and a dwarf, and armed with black leather, whips, chains, machine guns, chainsaws, and dynamite, the Cycle Sluts know how to fight until the end! A true feminist cult classic, Chopper Chicks In Zombietown literally offers hours of DVD entertainment!

Customer Reviews:

Very nice.......2005-07-14

With a name like "Chopper Chicks in Zombietown" it should be good...and it is. It was alot better then I expected it to be. After all it has alot of the essential elements that make a good movie- a dwarf, cheezy music and effects, blind kids, biker chicks, and meat-eating zombies. What more could you want? And Hal Sparks (gotta love the guy) always seems to get the best lines in all of his movies, such as "A dwarf, blind kids, d*kes on bikes- we could start a side show!" Anyway, this movie is definatley worth atleast a rent. Enjoy!

So bad it's ..... still pretty bad.......2004-01-19

When the zombie motif has already been self-parodied with such class and black humour as Romero's Dawn of the Dead and Peter Jackson's hilarious Braindead, any movie trying to follow in those famous footsteps has to be pretty special. And special, Chopper Chicks in Zombietown ain't.

Ok, it's got a few inspired moments - I liked the ice-cream van chiming out "Dance Macabre", the zombie transfixed by the CCTV was amusing, and the Uzi weilding kid bemoaning the zombie attack on their school bus by grumbling "what rotten luck - going blind, being orphaned and now THIS!" has to be the best line by far in the movie. The townsfolk are reasonably well observed 1950's B-movie caricatures, and the choice of weaponry by the chicks in the final showdown with the zombies was quite amusing.

The overall impression however is dull, tedious and lacking the usual Troma gross-out but stylish trademark. Even at only 83 minutes, it feels overlong and the absence of any outtakes or any other bonus material on the DVD makes poor value for money.

I got my copy for just £3-99 in a high street clear-out sale. With a total of three half-chuckles throughout the movie, I don't feel like I got a bargain.

You've got to own this movie.......2003-12-13

I went to a private showing of this film with Oakland's Harley Owners Group years ago at the Pizza Hut after a Berkeley theater decided to cancel the showing.

This film brings new meaning to the designation "low budget". The "Cycle Sluts" are a pack of tantalizing beauties who ride hard across the desert on shiny new hogs by day and sleep around a campfire each night. However, in every scene the girls appear as though they have just stepped out of the beauty salon.

When the biker women come across a small town and find that the dead are coming back to life,... Sound familiar? This flick doesn't try to hide the fact that it's "The Wild One" meets "Night of the Living Dead". The only way to kill a zombie is by burning it, and just before they burst into flames, the zombies turn to motionless manikins. The plot and the actors get dumber by the minute.

You've got to own this movie. Only one thing -- just don't want to watch it sober.

Zombietown, Indeed........2003-06-01

Well, at least the title is right. The Chopper Chicks come to Zombietown, and...well, that's about it. I loves me some Troma, so I figured "CC in ZT" would at least entertain me for 90 minutes, but nope. This one's a stinker.

Apparently "CC" wants to be a parody. We can tell it's a comedy by the goofy, Candyland-style music that plays when the zombies attack. But what is it a parody of, exactly? Itself? The filmmakers provided themselves with mad scientists, lesbian bikers, midgets, blind kids, and zombies...but they forgot the screenplay. Billy Bob and Martha Quinn should provide some entertainment, right? Well, Martha tries, but Billy Bob is just dull. Don Calfa is in it...he's usually good for a larf or two, right? Nope. The flick is boring, slow-paced, dimwitted, and boring. But hey - you take your chances with Troma, right?

Why did Troma pick this movie up?.......2003-05-04

Chopperchicks in Zombietown, what an awesome title eh? i really expected way more. let it be known that i am an avid troma fan and know what troma fans like. i bought this movie on a whim because the title sounded so cool, i really wish i hadnt bought it. if youre a billy bob thorton fan, dont even bother his part isnt that big. the movie was just downright boring. if you want a good troma movie get tromeo and juliet, the toxic avenger, or an out of house production like killer condom. this movie is a true disappointment and i wish i could give it no stars at all.

Average customer rating:

King of the Zombies
Starring: John Archer , Lawrence Criner , Mantan Moreland , Dick Purcell , and Mme. Sul Te Wan
Director: Jean Yarbrough
Manufacturer: Westlake
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000GFRDVS
Release Date: 2006-06-27

Average customer rating:

Neither of these zombie B-movies are about "real" zombies
MANTAN MAKES THIS FUN MONOGRAM FARCE GO
Zombie Film with Humor
dull vintage horror movie, but Mantan MORLAND is fun
Get Zombified With Laughter!

King Of The Zombies
Starring: Dick Purcell , Joan Woodbury , Mantan Moreland , Henry Victor , and John Archer
Director: Jean Yarbrough
Manufacturer: CineVu, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0002CK812
Release Date: 2003-11-10

Customer Reviews:

Neither of these zombie B-movies are about "real" zombies.......2005-05-15

"King of the Zombies" is a 1941 zombie comedy from director Jean Yarborough set during World War II. James "Mac" McCarthy (Dick Purcell), his servant Jefferson "Jeff" Jackson (Mantan Moreland) and his pilot Bill Summers (John Archer) are in a small plane that gets blown off course. Picking up a radio signal they crash on an unknown island (there is no money for special effects so the three throw up their arms in front of their faces before a quick fade out to represent the crash). There they are welcome in an appropriately strange manner by Dr. Mikhail Sangre (Henry Victor). Making things even stranger is Momba (Leigh Whipper), the butler, Samantha (Marguerite Whitten), the maid, and Tahama (Madame Sul-Te-Wan), who is not only Sangre's cook but the local High Priestess.

Yes, there are zombies walking around in this one, but Dr. Sangre is also into hypnotism and one of the strangest mad scientist experiments for getting secret information from a person you have ever seen in a B-movie. You see, it turns out there is also a missing admiral, a damsel who may be in distress, and strict rules about how much salt a zombie can have in their diet. As others have noted, the best part of this movie is Mantan Moreland, who walks a fine line as the comedy relief in this movie. Granted, he is conforming to the stereotype of the black servant, but he manages to avoid playing his fright an anything close to a Stepin' Fetchit caricature. If only the white characters would listen to him they would not have problems like having a pistol full of bullets pumped into their bodies while walking around like zombies.

Believe it or not, "King of the Zombies" received an Academy Award nomination for Edward J. Kay for Best Musical Score of a Dramatic Picture (there were 20 film scores nominated that year, including the ones for "Citizen Kane," "How Green Was My Valley," "Suspicion," and "Sergeant York," with Bernard Hermann winning for "The Devil and Daniel Webster"). Bela Lugosi was apparently supposed to play Dr. Sangre, but that would have been a minimal improvement and really would have worked against Moreland's comedy.

"Revolt of the Zombies" is a 1936 film from director Victor Halperin (who made "White Zombie" four years earlier) that actually is set during World War I when a priest (Teru Shimada) from French Cambodia insists his god requires him to raise a zombie army to fight the Germans in the trenches. The allied generals are impressed by the idea and want the secret of creating zombies but the priest refuses to share it and is murdered shortly after being imprisoned. So an expedition is sent to the fabled lost city of Angkor to find the secret, but the problem is that a love triangle breaks out between Clifford Grayson (Robert Noland), his fiancé Claire Duval (Dorothy Stone), and Armand Loque (Dean Jagger, young and with hair!). As the odd man out, Armond discovers the secret and instead of using it to stop the Huns from overrunning his homeland raises the zombies to make Claire his own.

There is lot of scenes where actors walk in front of footage of Angkor and other exotic actions, but mostly there is a lot of talking in this one and giant zombie eyes superimposed over the action. But the real problem with "Revolt of the Zombies" is that it has this great idea of using zombie soldiers in war that gets forgotten once the love triangle becomes more important than the expedition, so you feel like you took a wrong turn someplace in this one. Then again, the whole idea that zombies are from Cambodia, where the Aspara figures, the heavenly dancers of Hindu mythology at Angkor Wat, are turned in zombies, is a step in the wrong direction. There is also some cloak and dagger nonsense that only complicates the increasingly bad situation.

In terms of double-features movies for Saturday night viewing this one is really bare boned. You get the movies, one on each side of the DVD, and frames for the cast, filmmakers, and a couple of paragraphs on the history of the film from an actual film scholar. Of these two bad movies "King of the Zombies" is a shade better, but in the end neither of these zombie movies is really about real zombies (to wit, animated corpses raised from their graves) and that is the final disappointment. We will try for better lucky with out next set of offerings, "The Killer Shrews" and "I Bury the Living."

MANTAN MAKES THIS FUN MONOGRAM FARCE GO.......2004-12-07

During WWII, a Govt, Agent Bill summers (John Archer) is searching for an admiral whose plan went down somewhere in the Caribbean. He's accompanied by the search plane pilot "Mac" (Dick Purcell) and his servant Jeff Jackson(Mantan Moreland).

While searching, their own plane goes down and crashes into a cemetary on an island. They are taken into the residence by Dutch Dr. Sangre who claims to have fled there from the Nazis. He's accompanied by his wife who walks around in a trance-like state.

Not only that, but there's several black zombies skulking about the creepy house that only Jeff ever seems to encounter. It's soon revealed that Dr. Sangre is a nazi conspirator who has the Admiral captured and is using a voodoo priestess to try and get sensitive military info out of him.

Along the way Jeff get's "Zombie-fied" by the doctor in the movie's funniest bit. This film really seemed to be a vehicle for Lugosi in the role of the mad doctor Sangre but Henry Victor does an admirable job.

Mantan steals the show with his one-liners and really brings some life to the film. Purcell is ok as the pilot but Archer is REALLY wooden as the would-be hero.

Yes it is a bit racially stereotyped as Jeff his told that he cannot stay in a guest room and must instead stay with the other black servants. But instead of running it down lets rememeber the era that the film was made in. No one should much feel sorry for Mantan Moreland as he steals virtually every scene he's in.

The film is no gem but has some fairly atmospheric creepiness and better than average Monogram film.

Zombie Film with Humor.......2004-03-17

I thought the movie was entertaining and humorous. It was a typical zombie movie of the era (Caribbean Island with old house,and a sinster character controlling the zombies) with a plus--humor provided by Mantan Morland (he also starred in some Charlie Chan movies).

dull vintage horror movie, but Mantan MORLAND is fun.......2004-03-03

Although I am not a fan of vintage horror films I purchased KING OF THE ZOMBIES because of a very favorable review in a German movie magazine.
The plot has an US secret agent, a pilot and their black servant crashland on a small Caribbean island. It turns out that the island is ruled by a German expatriot, who has kidnapped an American general and uses black magic Voodoo Mumbo Jumbo to get some military secrets out of the unfortunate high ranking officer. Of course the zombies of the title are not the flesh-eating ghouls of today's splatter films, but the living dead of Voodoo magic, will-less slaves of the Nazi, who uses them for his sinister plans. Will our heroes succeed in thwarting the Nazi's evil plan? Well, I do not want to give it away, so watch for yourself...
Despite the unusual storyline involving espionage, a sinister Nazi, Voodoo and zombies, I found KING OF THE ZOMBIES rather dull and talky. (I am aware that fans of vintage horror will have a different view and likely rate it higher than I did.)
Despite the brief running time of a little over an hour it drags in places. However black actor Mantan MORLAND was fun and his many funny lines will make you laugh throughout. While I am usually not into comedy, I found his performance a real joy to behold. Be aware that KING OF THE ZOMBIES shows his age. This is evident not only in the choice of the baddie as a German (owing to the propagandistic needs of the time), but also in a few of MORLAND's jokes, which are of a racial nature (like commenting his appearance, when he looks into a mirror, "the tropics sure gives a man a colour"). Don't watch, if you dislike such jokes. However there is no doubt that MORLAND was a great actor. Were it not for him, this film would have been a complete waste of my time. I also liked actor Victor HENRY, who played the baddie. As usual in these films the heroes are bland and boring.
The DVD is a bare-bones release, with no extras whatsoever. And don't expect picture quality to be as good as of a recent blockbuster movie. This is only natural given the film's age.

Get Zombified With Laughter!.......2003-08-15

When it comes to Poverty Row horror classics of the 1940s, King
of The Zombies has to rank right at #1, personally that is.
Yet King of The Zombies is not really "horror", it is actually
a comedy with Mantan Moreland as the TRUE STAR of this picture.
The Roan Archive DVD edition of this film is beautifully
restored to crystal clarity. Other DVD versions of this film
I have seen were either too dark or the source material was of
a bad VHS transfer to disc variety. Now, enjoy the film.

Average customer rating:

Dead Men Don't Die
Starring: Elliott Gould , Melissa Sue Anderson , Mark Moses , Philip Bruns , and Mabel King
Director: Malcolm Marmorstein
Manufacturer: Platinum Disc
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008G84F
Release Date: 2002-07-30

Average customer rating:

Neither of these zombie B-movies are about "real" zombies
MANTAN MAKES THIS FUN MONOGRAM FARCE GO
Zombie Film with Humor
dull vintage horror movie, but Mantan MORLAND is fun
Get