People are voting emotionally.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The movie most know as DAWN OF THE DEAD was released elsewhere as ZOMBIE. Because of that when director Lucio Fulci made his own zombie film it was called ZOMBIE 2 but released here as ZOMBIE. That film was original in its own right and had some nice effects and some gut churning moments. Fulci had already made a name for himself with several films before and after that one and when the chance came to make a new zombie film he hesitated. Knowing that writers Claudio Fragasso and Rossella Drudi were working on the screenplay and wanted his input into the production he welcomed the chance. The movie went into production shooting in the Philippines and almost immediately ran into problems. The biggest of those was the fact that items promised to Fulci by the directors were not provided which angered him. Next was the fact that the location itself was harsh and took its toll on all involved. Lastly was the fact that Fulci himself was ill at the time dealing with cancer among other things. The end result wasn't approved by the producers and they brought the writers back in to rewrite part of the film using the footage already shot by Fulci. In addition to that they brought in director Bruno Mattei to shoot some sequences as well as Fragasso. The end result is a conglomeration of items that combine for a decent Italian zombie film but kind of a mixed bag at the same time. Knowing all of this helps when watching the film.At a top secret government location tests are being conducted on a program called Death Note. The end results are unsatisfactory at best and deadly at worst. After the scientists behind the project cancel it and are about to transport their findings and a vial of their formula to be disposed of their attacked by spies. One of the spies escapes with the case it was all in and is shot, breaking the case and exposing him to its contents. Wounded and infected he runs through the jungle until he finds a hotel and checks in.The military sets out to find the spy who by now has infected a worker at the hotel. Deciding the best way to be safe is to take over the hotel the military does so, taking everyone captive and later killing them all. To dispose of the body they cremate it. The head scientists chastises them for this noting that it will release the virus into the air which the commander considers "science fiction". Apparently animating dead bodies isn't. Of course the virus makes its way into the atmosphere and a large number of people and animals are infected. One is a couple out for the weekend who come across infected chickens on the road, one of which bites the man and infects him. Another is three G.I.s on leave and the RV full of girls they come across, infected when a flock of birds breaks into the RV after going mad and pecking one of the girls. Eventually their stories come together and they unite.As the virus spreads everyone seems to be under attack by the infected, zombies whose only goal is to eat the flesh of the living. All of those flesh eating moments are seen on glorious color with some well used gels, goos, goops and plenty of torn flesh. The zombies are inconsistent in that some are the meandering, slow moving zombies while others have the ability to run and fight like they've mixed it up before. Whether or not anyone will survive is anyone's guess until the final reel rolls.Like many of the Italian horror films to come out of the 70s and 80s this one is filled with dialogue and segments that make little sense. I'm not sure if that's because something is lost in translation or that they just tend to shoot stories differently than anyone else. In any event it makes some things that happen seem incredibly stupid on the parts of the characters involved and will leave you scratching your head as to why anyone would behave this way. The military leader thinking one thing is science fiction while the other is accepted is a good example. People surrounded by zombies who take shelter and decide the smartest move is to separate and search an area is another. The end result is a movie that feels like exactly what it was, a movie that had a script that was well put together and then twisted into something completely different. Fragasso notes in an interview in the extras the problems that they had with the producer and the fact that most of the issues had with the film stemmed from problems he created. Fulci was so angered that he shot over 20 minutes of footage of the actors doing nothing more than rowing a canoe. Conditions were so bad that when asked to return for reshoots to fix the film all of the actors involved refused, one going so far as to say she'd never return to the Philippines. For myself I thought the movie was entertaining enough and one that horror fans can easily enjoy. Fans know exactly what to expect when it comes to Italian zombie films and this one delivers on all counts, the biggest of those being the gore content. One of those moments is also one of the funniest when a refrigerator door is opened and an unattached head flies through the air to begin gnawing on a victim's neck. It's sure to inspire groans and laughter for those watching who will then rewind it repeatedly to watch again and again. Another great scene involves one of the women falling into a hotel pond. Watch and see what happens, a great effect.Severin has done a fantastic job with their release of the film. I've noted before with their release of SHOCKING DARK and in the past about other companies who bring films like this to blu-ray format that movies no matter how good or bad they are need to be preserved for future generations before they are lost forever. Severin has done just that with this film offering the film in a new 2k scan. Considering the original condition of the film and negatives it looks great.Not only that they've packed it full of extras as well. They include THE LAST ZOMBIES an interview with co-director/co-writer Claudio Fragasso and co-writer Rossella Drudi, TOUGH GUYS an interview with actors/stuntmen Massimo Vanni and Ottaviano Dell'Acqua, THE PROBLEM SOLVER an interview with replacement director Bruno Mattei, SWIMMING WITH ZOMBIES an interview with actress Marina Loi, IN THE ZOMBIE FACTOR an interview with FX artists Franco Di Girolamo and an audio commentary track with stars Deran Sarafian and Beatrice Ring. The combined movie and these extras make the film a must have for fans of horror, those who particularly love Italian horror and movie fans looking for something different. The fans will want to forgo those old versions of the film and pick this one up from Severin. It's the best version now available.

Zombi 3 has absolutely nothing in common with the Zombi 2 (Or Zombie Flesh Eaters in the UK) which was a slow burning masterwork of suspense, mystery and zombie horror which is what made it so good. Zombi 3 takes a different approach, seemingly aspiring to be more of a zombie action film and in the process losing everything that made the original a classic. What makes this film so poor can be broken down into several areas.Acting: The acting in Zombi 2 while not Oscar worthy was better than expected from a low budget Italian horror film and helped add to the film's creepy atmosphere and likability. However, the acting in Zombi 3 is nothing short of painful. The intonation of the actors is often bizarre and unbelievable and brings the realism and horror of the film down drastically. The actor for the doctor is particularly poor causing me to wince every time his character had dialogue. Overall, the acting basically devalues the film massively.Direction and cinematography: One of the most appealing aspects of Zombi 2 was that it featured some amazing shots of the Island that were framed beautifully, especially for a low budget film, and served to improve the film's production value drastically. Camera movement and angles were also carefully planned to create maximum impact. Zombi 3 has lost this entirely with the direction being uninspired and unimaginative. There are also no stand out shots like the film's predecessor.Diversion from the original: This film is not linked to the original in any way except for the title and the appearance of zombies.This is a massive error considering how successful the original film was and leads to some bizarre new ideas in this film that do not work at all. For example, changing the cause from voodooism to an epidemic seems pointless and random, having zombies that move quickly and run is even more bizarre and nonsensical and worst of all a scene featuring a flying severed zombie head is just simply kitschy and awful.Overall: Shoddy acting, boring direction and strange deviations from the original formula make for a truly inferior sequel to a really high quality horror classic.

I am not kidding, I freaking love this movie. I love the back story, plot, and character development. Each character is different. It is one of the greatest epic masterpieces of all time. Both in the action and zombie film community. Well the reason I love this movie so much is basically just that there is no other movie like it. The idea is just one of the most original ideas ever. While some people think this movie flat out sucks, the first time I saw it, I was literally blown away by this movie. Let's look at the stats. Entertainment-10 Dialogue-10 Plot-10 Pace-10 Acting-10 Loopholes-10 Special Effects-10 Less is More-10 Believability-10 Overall it's the perfect zombie film!

From the word go, Zombie Flesheaters 2 (AKA Zombi 3) makes very little sense, but thankfully it's one of those trashy 80s Euro horrors that is so shoddy in virtually every department that one cannot fail to have some fun with it.Just one look at the film's pedigree is enough to give a pretty good idea of how crap (and therefore how enjoyable) this film actually is: Lucio Fulci, fast approaching his end-of-career worst, directed some of the action before a stroke forced him to hand over the reins to Bruno 'Hell of the Living Dead' Mattei; actor turned TV director Deran Sarafian leads the incredible no-star cast; and Claudio Fragasso, the man responsible for Troll 2 (considered by many to be the worst horror film ever made), provided the derivative, nonsensical plot that gleefully rips off a variety of zombie/infection classics, including Romero's The Crazies and Dan O' Bannon's Return Of The Living Dead.The cause of the zombie plague in Zombi Flesheaters 2 is a top secret genetically engineered virus called Death One, which is accidentally introduced into the atmosphere after a victim is cremated (on the orders of a contemptuous general, who ignores warnings from concerned army boffins, accusing them of "talking science fiction!"). Pretty soon, the area is not only crawling with flesh hungry reanimated corpses, but also squads of haz-mat suited soldiers who have orders to contain the virus by any means necessary—which isn't exactly great news for the small group of survivors trapped inside the contaminated zone (which, within a single day, has become inexplicably derelict and overgrown with vines!).Lacking any sense of logic, the film stumbles awkwardly from one daft scene to another in a shambolic manner that makes its mouldy walking corpses seem positively well coordinated in comparison. For connoisseurs of extremely trashy horror, this can only be good news, with the complete absence of rationale resulting in some mind-bogglingly bonkers moments: zombie birds attack a bus full of babes; a severed zombie head, shrouded in an eerie green light and smoke, flies from inside a fridge to chow down on a man's throat; a survivor discovers a box full of weapons in an abandoned building ("I found a crate full of guns downstairs," he casually declares); a lady is attacked by an unborn zombie baby that tears its way from its mother's womb; and a hand grenade, conveniently found under a truck, not only knocks down several of the undead but also destroys an entire building!Factor in some truly awful acting, unconvincing gore, dreadful direction, zombies that can talk, jump, fight, and use weapons, and a jive-talking radio DJ who joins the ranks of the living dead, but still carries on hosting his show, and what you have is one hell of a mess—but one that really needs to be seen to be believed.It doesn't really deserve it, but I'll give Zombie Flesheaters 2 a rating of 5/10 just for being a genuine one-of-a-kind experience.