Director: John Geddes
Looks like Bloody-Disgusting influenced another selection on my list, as John Geddes’ Civil War zombie film Exit Humanity was distributed this year by Bloody Disgusting Selects, the site’s newly started production company. Not all films have been winners thus far, as you can see in my analysis of the first ten releases, but Exit Humanity made a great impression for artistic reasons instead of my typical love for over-the-top B-Movie horror. In short, here’s the movie on my Top 10 that will insight the most comments about me being a pretentious prick who is out of touch with the horror genre and how I have no idea what I’m talking about. Sigh.
Like I said, you have to understand Exit Humanity isn’t about zombies disrupting the Civil War, as awesome as that sounds, but instead about one soldier’s descent into hell as he traverses a land now ravaged by zombies, while simultaneously trying to cope with the damage zombies have done to our humanity. Geddes’ film is very much a slow-burn character piece, displaying a hearty performance by lead actor Mark Gibson, also featuring genre legend Bill Moseley and the iconic voice of Brian Cox as our narrator. For me, Exit Humanity spoke volumes for the moral decay and twisted mentality one has to accept now that the dead roam free, abandoning all notions of “doing what’s right.” Do you foolishly help the girl with a bite mark on her arm like a humanitarian? Or put a bullet between her eyes to hasten the inevitable and bring forward a swift and painless death. New world, new life, new rules.
Director: Alejandro Brugués
The first horror movie out of Cuba? Not sure if I buy it, but that’s how Juan Of The Dead was cleverly marketed, but I can tell you for sure, even if that statement isn’t true, Alejandro Brugués easily could have gone with “The first horror movie out of Cuba you absolutely have to see!” In this silly yet undeniably entertaining zombie flick, Cuba is overrun by the undead, but government officials try to blame the horrific invasion on dissidents. Yes, dissidents more focused on eating people’s brains instead of overthrowing corrupt government rulers.
While one can pick up the undertones of governmental satire and Cuba’s socialist nature, Juan Of The Dead is a riotous horror comedy through and through. Director Alejandro Brugués has created a Cubano equivalent to the UK’s Shaun Of The Dead, which still remains more iconic, but between Juan and his nitwit band of zombie slayers, there’s plenty of poverty stricken carnage to go around – even if there’s no Winchester to kick back in.
If this is the quality product being shipped out, it’s about damn time Cuba got involved in the horror game!
