The Inevitable Zombie Apocalypse

A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the RSS feed to your reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

The makers of animated zombie movie A.D. are aiming to make the biggest, baddest-ass, most epic zombie movie of all time. Get ready to pee your pants with joy if they pull it off, and watch them speak about it in a video interview below in the meantime. (ETC)

Zombie and robots in comic book mayhem! It’s Zombies vs. Robots Adventure (that is a title that does not fuck around). More info and a preview here. (Bloody Disgusting)

Here’s an interview with Roxanna Manuel, one of the stars of ’80s direct-to-video zombie movie The Video Dead (review here). (Killer Film)

Are zombie movies racist? That’s what one doctoral candidate at University of California Santa Barbara claims in this article — and he’ll elaborate at a speaking event tonight if you’re in Santa Barbara and want to go. (Daily Nexus)

Need some tips for giving those zombies an ass-whupping? The Zombie Combat Manual, presumably the world’s first guide to hand-to-hand combat vs. the undead, has you covered. (A World on Fire)

When the zombie apocalypse comes, you will still be able to enjoy a nice beverage out of these zombie pint glasses. (Bread and Badger)

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A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the RSS feed to your reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

The first DLC for Left 4 Dead 2 is coming in late March. As was previously reported, it is called “The Passing” and it concerns a meetup between the four survivors from the first game and the four survivors from the second. In the DLC we’ll get a new type of common-uncommon called the fallen survivor, a zombie that used to think they were immune, but weren’t. They will apparently occasionally drop supplies. Also coming are a comic book that should reveal more of the story and an add-on for the original game that will fill in the gaps of how they ended up in the sequel’s DLC. There’s also a bunch of screenshots if you like looking at things. (Kotaku)

Remember that 3D, animated Night of the Living Dead prequel called NotLD: Origins? Yeah, still happening and an image of Ben has been released. (Dread Central)

There will be a special, Xbox 360-only prologue to Dead Rising 2 called Dead Rising: Case Zero. Word is it takes place in the time between the original game and the new one. It should be out right before DR2 is released August 31 (in North America anyway). (Kotaku)

Contrary to reports yesterday, PC gamers will get a chance to kill zombies in space with Dead Space 2. Maybe. (Kotaku)

News on DoubleBear’s still untitled zombie RPG is scant, but if you’ve got the time, there’s a wealth of information to be gleaned from this forum. (Iron Tower)

Because putting any two unrelated good things together must be even better, no matter how ridiculous the combination, there will be a game called Rock of the Dead. You know, like Rock Band. With zombies. (IGN)

If, for some crazy reason, a Resident Evil special edition of Monopoly sounds like a good idea to you, who am I to argue? (Kotaku)

A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the RSS feed to your reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

You lucky bastards in the U.K. are getting a massive, super-deluxe Blu-ray version of George A. Romero’s Day of the Dead. There are too many special features to even hit the highlights here, but I’d say most any fan of Day, or Romero in general, should be happy with it. (Bloody Disgusting)

Author Max Brooks is coming to the Salem, Oregon public library for a presentation on (what else?) zombie survival as part of the library’s “More Brains! A Zombie Survival Drill” film festival February 27 and a local magazine interviewed him for the event. (Willamette Live)

There’s a CG-animated post-apocalyptic sci-fi zombie movie called A.D. in the works (well, planning stages really). Trailer after the break, interview with the people behind it here. (Zombie Info)

Then there’s E’Gad Zombies! a movie with an olde-timey take on zombies. It’s kind of an original Pride and Prejudice and Zombies kind of thing from the looks of it. There’s a trailer after the break, and a brief statement from the director and a few still images here. (Living Dead Media)

Come February 23, you can own Battle Girl: The Living Dead in Tokyo Bay on DVD. But I’d like to remind you that you shouldn’t bother — it’s terrible (review here). (Dread Central)

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A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the RSS feed to your reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

Looks like we’ll be getting an animated adaptation of Gil’s All Fright Diner, a story that pits a vampire and werewolf duo against zombies in an apocalyptic battle. DreamWorks is running the show, Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris are set to write, adapting a novel from A. Lee Martinez, and Barry Sonnenfeld is slated to direct. Could be fun, could be retarded. We’ll see. (Bloody Disgusting)

More details emerge about Dead Space 2 in a video interview, which I embedded for you after the break. (Game Informer)

Ireland returns to the zombie well with Portrait of a Zombie, a microbudget film about a Dublin family caught up in the zombie apocalypse — and what happens when one of them turn but they insist on keeping him in the family. There’s a teaser trailer after the break and it looks pretty damn good. (Quiet Earth)

Even Gawker is pondering the question of why we love zombies. The real answer, which they overlook, is that zombies are awesome. (Gawker)

In case of zombies, you could do worse than these “in case of zombies” emergency kits. (A World on Fire)

A few details, including screenshots, from “Desperate Escape,” the next batch of Resident Evil 5 DLC. In summary, Jill Valentine and Josh Stone make a desperate escape from a Tricell facility. (Kotaku)

The Mormon/zombie micro The Book of Zombie is delayed into 2010, and they really need help from an AfterEffects wizard who would like to donate his/her time. (A World on Fire)

I think it’s old news but it’s cropped up a few places recently so I am willing to reiterate — the excellent Pontypool will be available for DVD purchase come January 26, 2010 (there’s images of the cover art at the link, if you want to see what you will be spending your money on. You can already rent it from Blockbuster, by the way, so there’s no need to wait to see it. (Dread Central)

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A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the RSS feed to your reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

Bill Moseley and Mos Def have joined the cast of Night of the Living Dead: Origins (as voice talent, it’s animated, remember?). (Bloody Disgusting)

Bloody Disgusting asks the all-important question, “Are you adequately prepared for the coming zombie apocalypse?” (It’s a story about zombie videogames, in case you were wondering.) (Bloody Disgusting)

The UK got a kickass launch party for Left 4 Dead 2. Zombie Command went, drank and reported. (Zombie Command)

The latest episode of Geek in the City Radio deals with Left 4 Dead 2, among other less-zombie topics. (Geek in the City)

British people who enjoy Wii, you can win a copy of Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles. (Dread Central)

A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the feed to your RSS reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

The reliably hilarious folks over at Cracked deliver unto us a list of five zombie survival tactics that will get you killed. (Cracked)

REC 2 is not even out yet, but REC 3 is apprently on the way. (Bloody Disgusting)

Are you ready for a 3D CGI “origins tale” type prequel for Night of the Living Dead? Get ready, because it is happening. George Romero is not involved and, presumably, is not amused. (Bloody Disgusting)

Several zombie redoubts made io9’s list of cities you can never leave. (io9)

A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the feed to your RSS reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

Well, my prayers have finally been answered. A company called DoubleBear Productions is working on a turn-based, single-player computer zombie apocalypse RPG focused on survival and interactions between the survivors. As one of the designers puts it, “Unlike other games that are just about blasting zombies, the difficulties in this game stem from dealing with the other personalities in the group, the threats from outside the group, and the dangers of daily existence in the absence of law and the presence of desperate humans and persistent undead. It’s more about the humans than the zombies.” Oh.Hell.Yes. (The Escapist)

Speaking of prayers? The excellent Walking Dead comic series is in development as a TV series for AMC. If any series could make for compelling zombie TV, it’s this one — I couldn’t be more excited (Oh.Hell.Yes.Pt.2). Frank Darabont is set to write and diect, Gale Ann Hurd to produce (less exciting, but workable). (Variety)

In honor of I Sell the Dead hitting VOD today (check your local cable listings), how about a making-of video and statement from the director? It’s not embeddable, sorry. (Fangoria)

Spend $10 at ThinkGeek, get a free, ten-year anniversary zombie monkey shirt? Yes please! (Zombie Examiner)

Curious what’s going on with Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated, the collaborative animation/film project that reinvents George Romero’s OZ classic? Well, there’s a buttload of news — coloring contests, calls for comics, screening info, the works. (Dread Cental)

More zombie ants? Sure, you can never have enough. (Live Science)

A daily roundup of all the undead news that shambles into view… Bookmark the home page or add the feed to your RSS reader for your daily dose of walking dead. Got news tips? E-mail me at cory.casciato[AT]gmail.com.

There’s a new, R-rated trailer for Zombieland. Naturally, I embedded it for you after the break. (Sci Fi Wire)

I hadn’t seen anything to make me think so before, but the Dylan Dog comic-to-film adaptation Dead of Night will have zombies, says this Q&A. (io9)

Japanese fantasy/zombie/martial arts epic Versus looks to be getting remade as an animated series. Quiet Earth has a few details and some concept art. (Quiet Earth)

The packaging for the Blu-ray edition of Shaun of the Dead has been revealed. It looks a lot like the DVD packaging, only with that funky Blu-ray size/shape and blue edging. Whoopee. Some details on extra features, too, which look suspiciously similar to the special features on my years-old DVD release. (DVD Active)

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The entirely CGI-animated Resident Evil: Degeneration was, for my tastes, far better than the live-action Resident Evil. Admittedly, I have only seen the first RE movie – I was so disappointed I didn’t bother with the others, though I will eventually. In Resident Evil: Degeneration you have a typically (for the franchise) convoluted plot that centers around the efforts of another company to pick up the pieces of the Umbrella Corporation’s research and profit from it, even if that means their market is terrorists. The main event is a release of the zombie-making T-virus in an airport and pure zombie mayhem is the result. Franchise heavyweights Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield are the main characters and they lead a rescue mission from inside the airport, before tangling with a corrupt corporate executive (is there any other kind?) who’s concocted an elaborate plot to test the G-virus, which creates a weird reptile/insectoid hybrid demonic-looking mutant that is all but unkillable. There’s also a romance sub-plot between Kennedy and a new character, and the new character’s brother is involved in the release of the G-Virus, as revenge. Oh, and he is being manipulated by the corporate executive who’s linked to the senator trapped in the airport and, uh, … did I mention it gets a little convoluted?

The movie looks great at times and horrible at others, depending on what the scene portrays.  The zombies themsleves and the action scenes typically look great, and the fires looked nothing short of amazing (the film makers knew this, and used the effect as much as possible). Unfortunately, any kind of  emotional scene or anything that required a facial close-up was way too much “Welcome to Uncanny Valley!” to be anything but off putting. The pacing is generally tight but it does drag at moments and the story is convoluted enough to be difficult to follow at times. Those two things conspired to make my attention wander at several points. Luckily the dialog is nowhere near as bad as the games’ famously bad writing — at its worse, it’s just kind of stiff and unrealistic, but no worse than many a live-action zombie epic I’ve sat through.

For fans of the RE games, this is definitely a worthy exercise, if only for the additional insight into the characters and back story of the games.  For fans of the RE live action movies it’s probably little more than a curiosity at best and utterly confusing at worst (“Uh, how does this relate to Alice now?”). For general zombiephiles, it’s an interesting, if flawed, work that’s worth a look (especially if you enjoy anime, which it strongly resembles in many ways: pacing, story and dialog in particular).

The animated City of Rott is something of a curiosity, as one of the very few animated feature-length zombie movies in existence — the only other I am aware of is the CGI-animated Resident Evil: Degeneration. Unfortunately, its one-of-a-kind status is its only real appeal. It’s bad. Real, real bad. The art and animation is strictly student-film quality, and bad student-film quality at that. More to the point, it’s like the scribblings on a junior-high math notebook come to life, or undeath, or whatever. The main story — about an old man looking for new shoes in the midst of a zombie apocalypse — is nonsensical and meandering.  Compounding the issue is the fact that a whole new set of characters and plot points are introduced over halfway through, and none of them made much sense either. It was all done by one guy — art, animation, writing, voices, everything — and it shows. Especially noteworthy are the female voices, which are achieved by speeding up the creator’s voice — very clever. At only 78 minutes, the movie feels like 178 minutes. Apart from some vaguely interesting ideas (brain-infecting worms cause zombies) and one or two mildly amusing moments, CoR is without redeeming qualities. Do Not Watch.