Horror Pick: Rammbock: Berlin Undead (2010)
Long before Warm Bodies attempted to bring sexy back to zombies, Marvin Kren’s Rammbock: Berlin Undead showed us that horror could both be filled with love and riddled with chaos. Asserting itself as a touching zombie love story, Kren is able to achieve emotionality not through a young girl’s disgusting obsession with rotted flesh and cold, dead eyes, but instead through despair, hope, and sacrifice. Love in a time of zombies comes with added risk, as every day human is a blessing, throwing one more wrench into relationship schematics for us to deal with. Zombie cupid, what a dick.
Michael Fuith plays a man, also named Michael, visiting his ex-girlfriend in Berlin during an apocalyptic disaster – but the infection isn’t discovered until his arrival. Managing to barricade himself in a room with a plumber’s apprentice named Harper (Theo Trebs), the two must fight their way to safety while also attempting to locate Gabi. New friends are met along the way, zombies attempt to rip them apart, and Michael is determined to prove that love conquers all – isn’t that horrifically sweet?
I know what most of you are thinking – why the hell should Michael care about his ex-girlfriend and why doesn’t he just high-tail it to safety? Unless you’ve suffered an Old School type breakup (“I’m here for the gang bang?”), you know that human emotions such as compassion always shine through, even for exes, as Michael still believes in rekindling what he once had with Gabi. Sure, there’s plenty of zombie carnage and gore to go around, but Michael’s “knight in shining armor” routine spins a sweetly romantic twist on yet another zombie thriller – giving hope for romance during the end of days.
I won’t divulge any more information, as there’s a wonderful tonal shift about halfway through Rammbock: Berlin Undead that shifts Harper and Michael’s roles a bit, calling on even more lovey-dovey feelings to balance all the people eating and flesh tearing. Gabi plays a major role in Michael’s decision-making, and we feel for Michael’s hopelessly romantic thinking – but don’t think Kren skimps on any inherent darkness. Rammbock is most certainly horror, and the zombie apocalypse is certainly a nasty, dangerous place – something Kren fortunately doesn’t forget.
Running at a brisk 63 minutes, Rammbock benefits from an unconventional heart, focused pacing, and by striking a tantalizing balance between romance and terror. In every sense of the word, Kren has created a soulful “Zom-Rom” (Zombie Romance) that doesn’t hinge on beautiful zombies somehow still being attractive to women. Michael is a heartbroken man somehow trying to use the apocalypse to his advantage – all he has to do is make it out alive with the woman he loves.
Trust me guys, next time your lady wants to watch a good romance, just fire up Netflix and find Rammbock: Berlin Undead – you’ll thank me later.
