For many, AMC’s The Walking Dead may have been the cultural turning point that started the zombie wave, but the genre has deep roots in cinema for decades past. Long before Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) picked up his Colt Python, the horror genre used zombies for real-life analogies.
The trend continues to this day, reveling in the fascination of the living dead. From the icon George Romero’s horror classics to more modern fare, viewers are always tempted by the metaphors of post-apocalyptic terror.
10. Resident Evil
Video game purists may balk at Paul W.S. Anderson’s 2002 film, but there is much to appreciate when you let go of what an unfaithful adaptation Resident Evil is. Anderson is the mad mind behind one of Sam Neill’s best films, Event Horizon. The visceral horror film is a masterclass in terrorizing your audience. Resident Evil doesn’t quite reach that level, but it is a compelling original story separate from the games.
After the nefarious Umbrella Corporation accidentally releases a contagious virus, it is a race against the clock to ensure it doesn’t spread. Part action film and part mystery, Resident Evil follows Alice (Milla Jovovich), who joins the effort to stop the zombies as she pieces together her missing memories. The audience learns what is the truth and what isn’t in a film that the sequels failed to replicate. But the first one is a wild ride.
9. Pet Semetary (1989)
In regards to the adaptation of one of Stephen King’s scariest books, the term zombie may need to be taken with a grain of salt. The ghouls in Pet Semetary aren’t the brain-munching, slow-moving monsters we’re accustomed to. No, they are far worse. After Louis Creed (Dale Midkiff) moves his family to rural Maine, devastation rocks them unexpectedly. His young son, Gage (Miko Hughes), plays too close to the road one day and is hit by a truck. Unable to move past his grief, Louis buries Gage in the nearby pet cemetery, which has been known to raise the dead.
What follows is a story so scary that even the King didn’t want to see it published. Gage returns, but a mere shadow of who he was before. A ghoulish corpse of pure evil, Gage terrorizes the family until no one remains. This spin on zombification is an experiment of what grief does to a family and how sometimes it is impossible to come back from.
8. Zombieland
In 2009, zombie mania hadn’t quite taken ahold of pop culture, which is what made Zombieland so refreshing. Using a humorous tone to explore the genre, the film follows Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), one of the last people you would expect to survive a zombie apocalypse.
He does so by penning several rules to abide by to stay among the living. While Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) scoffs at the practice, these rules ultimately keep everyone alive. An admirable addition to the horror-comedy pantheon, Zombieland uses the chemistry among the cast to tell an engaging and hilarious story.
7. Evil Dead II
The Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell partnership has become a classic in the eyes of horror fans and there is nothing better than the film that started it all. Evil Dead II is essentially a soft reboot of the first film but with more camp and a more concise story. Contributing to the horror trope of a cabin in the woods, the film commences as Ash Williams (Campbell) takes his girlfriend on what should be a romantic getaway.
Those who have seen the first film know that Linda is not long for this world. After reading from the Necronomicon, a host of Deadites are released taking control of bodies and making them dance. The evil power even takes hold of Ash’s hand, which he has to sever. As Ash says, the film is groovy.
6. Dawn of the Dead
George Romero’s zombie sequel might be a classic, but the remake from the mid-aughts has received cult classic status. An incomparable union between James Gunn and Zack Snyder as writer and director respectively, the film makes us anticipate a time when the two can team up again.
Taking place in contemporary (at the time) Milwaukee, Ana (Sarah Polley) finds herself with a ragtag group of survivors at a local mall. Over the months the group spends together, they form connections leading to a last-ditch effort to escape somewhere that is zombie-free. As you may expect from the writer-director duo, the film is equal parts humorous and devastating, with a killer (pun intended) soundtrack. Don’t sleep on this one. You won’t regret it.
5. It Comes At Night
The zombie movie for a nihilistic generation, It Comes At Night takes the zombie genre and makes the audience just as anxious as the characters. If that isn’t enough of a warning, be aware that this movie is not for the faint of heart. Not for the deadly virus that has corrupted the world, but the emotional trauma the family encounters.
Paul (Joel Edgerton) has learned how to survive by isolating himself and his family from the world. But after the death of his father-in-law, the family becomes more desperate. The arrival of Will (Christopher Abbott) throws everything into chaos as everyone involved wonders who they can trust. More a film about how far you are willing to go when put in dire situations, It Comes At Night uses the horror genre to its benefit.
4. Train To Busan
In recent years, Korean cinema has proven to be a hot contender in genre films, no more than Train To Busan. A proud zombie film, the events of the story make clever use of its surroundings.
As the title suggests, the film takes place mainly on a train from Seoul to Busan, which is probably the worst ride of all time. After the train departs, a zombie virus breaks out and the passengers try to survive the ride. For beginners, the film is a great entrance into not only foreign films, but horror in general.
3. Shaun of the Dead
As only Edgar Wright can pull off, Shaun of the Dead is a proper love letter and parody of genre films. An obvious reference to Romero’s film, the British movie teams up Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in yet another priceless Cornetto Trilogy film.
The brilliance of Shaun of the Dead is its tongue-in-cheek humor, poking fun at how humanity is — to coin The Walking Dead phrase — pretty much dead already. Shaun sleepwalks through life, his relationship, and his job, before the zombie apocalypse forces him not to take things for granted. Pristine humor and editing are Wright’s hallmarks, and Shaun of the Dead does it better than most.
2. Night of the Living Dead
Acknowledged as the first zombie film to break into the mainstream, Night of the Living Dead spawned an entire genre. At a time when social commentary and self-reflection were not the order of the day, Night of the Living Dead is a cut-and-dry allegory for racism. A message that is sadly still relevant in modern times, you can’t deny the impact that the film had on the entertainment industry.
1. 28 Days Later
The precursor to all fast-moving zombie fare, 28 Days Later is beyond reproach. The film that combined the talents of Danny Boyle, Alex Garland, and Cillian Murphy — among many others — the film is a harrowing and realistic look at what makes an apocalypse so terrifying. Jim (Murphy) wakes up in everyone’s worst nightmare after landing in a coma following a bike accident.
Zombies have ravaged the world for a lunar month, and Jim quickly has to adjust to his new reality. Difficult choices have to be made in a society that no longer exists. 28 Days Later also depicts gross misuse of power, as Jim and his group are picked up by the military. A look into what could happen in that scenario, the movie foretold what a successful career everyone involved would go on to have.
