Zombies

[Sinfulwolf]

Alright, sure most of the stuff going to be talked about in here could be slotted into other threads, but I figured I've been chatting enough about these rotting little shamblers enough recently that they could have their own thread. Games, movies, books, internet fiction, or even your local Zombie Walk could fit in here easily.

Now, I forgot to mention my thoughts on George A Romero's latest flick 'Survival of the Dead' ever since I said I bought it over a week ago now. I've always been a big fan of Romero's work (not as much good to say about the man himself, the interviews I read on him make him seem a bit arrogant. Only his way goes), even enjoying the oft bashed Land of the Dead, and Diary of the Dead. However, I can't shake this feeling that his work has been going downhill since he peaked with the original Dawn of the Dead.

This newest one I'd say is one of the weakest. He tried to make all the characters kind of dicks I guess, so that you could see one person's point of view over the other, but as the movie goes on I immediately side with the main character (who is actually the National Guard guy that shows up in Diary of the Dead for a moment) and even like him and his three soldier buddies. Everyone else is pretty much an utter douche. I would have killed pretty much everyone in that movie upon meeting them.

I feel the movie is being dragged down by whatever political social commentary that Romero is trying to serve up this time, however the movie is stopped from being crap by the zombies, and Romero's traditional gore fest. He has some real damn good scenes in this one too.

In the end, I couldn't care less about the story or characters, but the zombie action was fantastic and entertaining.


I have also just gotten back from the fourth Resident Evil movie subtitled 'Afterllife'. It is quite good actually. Sure I still think it could have been, and should have been much gorier but it has some good blood shots and good action in it. Story is as ridiculous as ever, however they seem to have caught the fumble they made at the end of the second movie which carried on into the third one: Alice's psychic powers. She is 'cured' of the T-Virus within her near the start. I had almost cheered in the theatre as I thought that was just a ridiculous element to the story.

The movie jumps locations a few times, eventually ending up in L.A. and zombies don't really show up until at least a half hour in, but when they do I was pleased. They've also taken a lot of influence from Resident Evil 5, which one could tell from the trailers, but it's very prevalent when you watch the movie. If you've played the game that is.

Also, if you do go to see it there is another segment halfway through the credits, which is worth it.


For those of you more fans of the written word, I've just picked up a copy of a zombie anthology entitled "the Living Dead 2". I have the first one laying around which has tales from Max Brooks and Stephen King and had some good stories though they were mostly reprints.. The second one is mostly original stories, including the first non-comic book writing of Robert Kirkman (who did The Walking Dead graphic novel series). I'm only on the third story, but the first two were actually quite good. I'll have more thoughts on it once I'm finished.

Another good anthology was "the New Dead" which had some rather interesting stories in it, though not too many were conventional zombie tales.

I'll come back with more when I got it.

 

[Newbie]

Re: Zombies

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, the walking dead.

Also:

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Posted elsewhere, still relevant. Also, Walking Dead is a pretty badass comic book series in it's own right. It's one of the few times you see something resembling actual mental breakdowns in horrific situations in fiction. Usually you just get violent outbursts or total unwillingness to function in your stories. Here, it's all over the place.

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Zombies

Posted elsewhere, still relevant. Also, Walking Dead is a pretty badass comic book series in it's own right. It's one of the few times you see something resembling actual mental breakdowns in horrific situations in fiction. Usually you just get violent outbursts or total unwillingness to function in your stories. Here, it's all over the place.

Walking Dead really did handle all those breakdowns and reactions very well. It's also quite unapologetic about its content, but also doesn't show it just to shock you or try and gross you out, which I think makes it actually shock you.

If that made any sense.

 

[Newbie]

Re: Zombies

It's not shock for the sake of shock, and so the value of the shock increases. At least at first. After a while everything just feels kind of hopeless, and hope is more frightening than anything else because you know the other shoe will drop.

 

[Guyver2216]

Re: Zombies

I watched the new R.E. movie tonight and enjoyed it as well...though i found myself thinking during the battle near the end that i had seem that same action somewhere. i wont say just in case some one feels it a spoiler.

 

[OAMP]

Re: Zombies

Zombies pwn. [/discussion]

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Zombies

It's not shock for the sake of shock, and so the value of the shock increases. At least at first. After a while everything just feels kind of hopeless, and hope is more frightening than anything else because you know the other shoe will drop.

Agreed. Some of the lines crossed in that series are done so well that it has yet to stir up any controversy.

I watched the new R.E. movie tonight and enjoyed it as well...though i found myself thinking during the battle near the end that i had seem that same action somewhere. i wont say just in case some one feels it a spoiler.

Spoiler

The whole movie is pretty much RE5 in LA from what I can tell. That fight with Wesker at the end seemed very much like the fight with Wesker at the end of RE5.

 

[SirOni]

Re: Zombies

I think we all know my views on zombies. And I've still got a crapton of zombie movies I've bought that needs to be watched, including Survival of The Dead. I highly recommend 'Colin'. Sure its a low budget movie, but it proposes an interesting theory; what if zombies could remember stuff from their time alive?

 

[Newbie]

Re: Zombies

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: In a world where you can carry the zombie infection without dying, those who do are used as scavengers and errand runners for the human colonies. Stuff happens.

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: The apocalypse happens, and we follow a reformed pacifist and her rag tag group of misfits on their adventures.

I did a terrible job of explaining those, but they're good. Check 'em out.

 

[lurker]

Re: Zombies

My first online experience and roleplaying was done in Urban Dead, which it seems is still going strong as it ever was. Not played it in years, but it still high on decent browser MMOs

 

[Sponge]

Re: Zombies

I have also just gotten back from the fourth Resident Evil movie subtitled 'Afterllife'. It is quite good actually.

Holy shit... please... PLEASE tell me you really don't believe that? Not after how they have butchered the entire history of the series.

I watched the new R.E. movie tonight and enjoyed it as well...though i found myself thinking during the battle near the end that i had seem that same action somewhere. i wont say just in case some one feels it a spoiler.

AM I THE ONLY SANE PERSON HERE!?

 

[OAMP]

Re: Zombies

My first online experience and roleplaying was done in Urban Dead, which it seems is still going strong as it ever was. Not played it in years, but it still high on decent browser MMOs

I lament the drop in player base. When I first played (the time I told you bout), there were tons of people IN EVERY BUILDING. Now there's about 3-4 places per suburb people cluster, with little danger outside a major siege.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Zombies

I didn't care for the Resident Evil movies. I mean, they didn't do bad overall as far as the screenplay went, but since it was pretty obvious they were ripping off of the game, I just couldn't find enjoyment in it. I guess what I really wanted was a nostalgic feeling, to smile and think, "Yeah, I remember that," as I think about the game they're using to produce their movie.

Instead, I feel like they would have been better off taking out those little references, and just doing their own scene with the zombie apocalypse. I just saw too little to do with the actual game, other than the costumes, names and special zombies. I honestly can't take it anymore seriously than a spoof of the real thing, which is what kinda turned me away from the whole thing.

 

[Sponge]

Re: Zombies

I didn't care for the Resident Evil movies. I mean, they didn't do bad overall as far as the screenplay went, but since it was pretty obvious they were ripping off of the game, I just couldn't find enjoyment in it. I guess what I really wanted was a nostalgic feeling, to smile and think, "Yeah, I remember that," as I think about the game they're using to produce their movie.

Instead, I feel like they would have been better off taking out those little references, and just doing their own scene with the zombie apocalypse. I just saw too little to do with the actual game, other than the costumes, names and special zombies. I honestly can't take it anymore seriously than a spoof of the real thing, which is what kinda turned me away from the whole thing.

Thank you! I would of been all for it had they used their own separate story, perhaps another individual branch of the Umbrella Corporation that was experimenting with the 'Alice' project. But instead, they tried to mess up with the whole entire series of the game. In the first movie, I thought it was ok. A little bit of change, but not enough to twist the story out of proportion. The SECOND one is where problems started to occur.

Jill Valentine was downplayed as the main character, and Nemesis (while they had a good thing going for him until the VERY END OF THE MOVIE) does not have any feelings! He's a project that was done by the Umbrella Corporation, just like all the other freak monsters. Nothing special. They had to use that as a cheap copout ending. Oh, also if you look at the newspapers at the beginning of the movie when Jill is loading up, one of them says Leon Kennedy is dead..... THAT NEVER FUCKING HAPPENED! He's still alive to this day and this totally fucks up the whole premise of Resident Evil. I'm not saying this because I'm a 'fanboy' of the guy. He was a major role in Resident Evil 2, the discovering of the G-Virus and also later discovering the parasite Las-Plagas in Resident Evil 4. Plus, he didn't die in the mansion, he never WAS in the mansion. He was a cop that was on his first day on the job when the outbreak occurred in the city.

Oh I can go on and on. Oh I can. But I highly doubt anybody cares... I just needed to vent that out... *breaths long and deeply*

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Zombies

Thank you! I would of been all for it had they used their own separate story, perhaps another individual branch of the Umbrella Corporation that was experimenting with the 'Alice' project. But instead, they tried to mess up with the whole entire series of the game. In the first movie, I thought it was ok. A little bit of change, but not enough to twist the story out of proportion. The SECOND one is where problems started to occur.

Jill Valentine was downplayed as the main character, and Nemesis (while they had a good thing going for him until the VERY END OF THE MOVIE) does not have any feelings! He's a project that was done by the Umbrella Corporation, just like all the other freak monsters. Nothing special. They had to use that as a cheap copout ending. Oh, also if you look at the newspapers at the beginning of the movie when Jill is loading up, one of them says Leon Kennedy is dead..... THAT NEVER FUCKING HAPPENED! He's still alive to this day and this totally fucks up the whole premise of Resident Evil. I'm not saying this because I'm a 'fanboy' of the guy. He was a major role in Resident Evil 2, the discovering of the G-Virus and also later discovering the parasite Las-Plagas in Resident Evil 4. Plus, he didn't die in the mansion, he never WAS in the mansion. He was a cop that was on his first day on the job when the outbreak occurred in the city.

Oh I can go on and on. Oh I can. But I highly doubt anybody cares... I just needed to vent that out... *breaths long and deeply*

No offense, but you are coming across as a major fanboy. You're entire basis of hatred towards the films is because of the games. Here is why I can enjoy the Resident Evil movies: I view them as a completely separate entity from the games. Two rather different story lines, a parallel universe if you will.

Yes they are loosely inspired by the games and have ripped a bunch of things from said games, but to me, they are separate, so I find it not hard to enjoy the films.

I found the biggest flaws of the film series to be the ending of the second movie (when Alive got her damn powers), most of the third film, and to me they fixed what they fucked up with the fourth one. I should not be slammed because I can enjoy a film series separately from the game series.

Also, the first had a really bad ass ending. If you deny that the final shot was cool, then I know it is not I who am insane, whether or not I appear so to you.

 

[Sponge]

Re: Zombies

No offense, but you are coming across as a major fanboy. You're entire basis of hatred towards the films is because of the games. Here is why I can enjoy the Resident Evil movies: I view them as a completely separate entity from the games. Two rather different story lines, a parallel universe if you will.

Also, the first had a really bad ass ending. If you deny that the final shot was cool, then I know it is not I who am insane, whether or not I appear so to you.

Eh? No no, the first movie I said was rather ok. I understand Hollywood needs to change some things to attract a bigger audience, as well as the people who know nothing of the game series. The first was the best one of them all in my opinion. I was ok with the character Alice, I don't mind a little bit of change to the story. The problem is at the beginning of the 3rd movie, it butchers the whole entire universe of Resident Evil.

Yeah, I'm a fanboy of the series. Because it's one of the best horror game series I ever played. I remember playing the first game, with all the horrible voice acting and everything, still scared of the random moans down the hallways. People usually become fans for a good reason. ((Note: I used to be a fan of Nintendo too... until they killed off the entire gaming market for low quality games.)) Because it was GOOD. The fact they say the name "Resident Evil" is pretty much stating this is supposed to be the game. Like I also said, had it been in an entire different area with entirely different new people, I'd have no problem. But the T-Virus does not give people fucking psychic powers. Closest thing that did that was the T-Veronica virus. You can't just slap a guy with black glasses and say "This is Wesker from the Game." I know game to movie transistions are bad, but this is by far the worst ever. Silent Hill at least made you feel like you were in Silent Hill during the otherworld scenes. They messed up the story quite a bit, but the atmosphere, the biggest part of Silent Hill they hit on the dot, pointless pyramid head cameo aside. The Resident Evil movies don't feel like Resident Evil. That's the reason it's an entire insult to ANY gamer who has played it.


((I don't remember the final shot in the first movie, haven't watched it since I first saw it.))

 

[OAMP]

Re: Zombies

I've never played the games, but enjoyed the movies. I don't have anything meaningful to add, but enjoy causing people to rage

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Zombies

I didn't get a chance to watch Silent Hill, but I heard it did a better job at making fans of the game happy than Resident Evil did. Course, I'm mostly only a fan of Silent Hill, so it works out.

But the whole reason I don't like it, is probably because I felt misled to believe that I'd feel a connection between the game and the movie. I mean, the name of the movie IS Resident Evil. But like sin said, it's a completely different universe. That's what makes me think, "Why did you even call it Resident Evil? When it really isn't?" Especially after seeing trailers of the movie that made me think, after seeing familiar monsters, characters, and brand names such as the T-virus, "A Resident Evil movie based on the game?" Followed by the big, red title of the game, now displayed as a movie, right in your face.

I'm not saying I was disappointed, the first movie was great, I just felt misled to believe I'd be watching something that actually had anything to do with the game of the same name. All I can think, is that they had an idea for a movie, and what kind of action it would have, but had no clue as to what they should name anything. Until it came right down to, "Eh, we'll call it Resident Evil, and use various names from the games because coming up with our own is beyond us."

It makes just about as much sense to me, as calling 28 days/weeks later Resident Evil. Replace the main character with Chris, the little boy with Sherry, and Claire with... Whoever the girl was that was with him at the end, I forget. It just doesn't make any sense, and seems really like a really lazy thing to do.

 

[Sponge]

Re: Zombies

Damn straight. Anybody know of Phelous? He can explain it better than even I can.

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The beginning is slow, but when the review hits, it's pretty damn funny. Anybody who's played the game will understand all the references he makes.

Oh wait, did I forget to mention, GEORGE A. FUCKING ROMERO OFFERED TO THE THE RESIDENT EVIL MOVIES AND THEY TURNED HIM DOWN!

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Zombies

Oh wait, did I forget to mention, GEORGE A. FUCKING ROMERO OFFERED TO THE THE RESIDENT EVIL MOVIES AND THEY TURNED HIM DOWN!

Eh, George A Romero is very very set in the way zombies are. I don't know how well he would have done Resident Evil.

And it's funny you bring up the psychic powers, because this whole thing started when you thought I was being crazy for being happy when they removed them in the fourth movie.