Monday 27 February 2012

DVD review: The Zombie Diaries (2006)


In the early part of the 21st Century, an unknown virus began spreading amongst the populace. Within weeks of the initial outbreak, the virus had engulfed the entire planet: from the smallest rural communities to the greatest cities. Soon the earth was infested with a new threat - the undead. Three compelling video diaries explore the horrifying and dystopian world that was left behind - charting the early days of the plague, through to the terrifying last days of the apocalypse. The Zombie Diaries is written and directed by Michael Bartlett and Kevin Gates. The film shows you the zombie outbreak from different points of view and at different times of the outbreak. It´s broken into three "diaries" that come together in a neat twist climax that provides some conclusion. During the film focus shifts from one group's story to the next, it unravels in a fragmented and episodic fashion. The film uses the camera's point of view. A tense and creepy atmosphere dominates, from the ghostly silent. littered streets to the growing number of walking dead on the horizon. Some of the acting is pretty decent, there are a couple of talented actors. The special fx while nothing to special, is well done. The gore is surprisingly restrained. The zombies are of the slow moving George Romero variety. The sountrack is haunting and very effective. The overall pacing of the movie is very well done, it is a bleak, savage, and uncompromising film. There are some disturbing and brutal scenes that were handled really well.
This review is based on the region 2 DVD released by Revolver Entertainment in the UK.
Rating: 3 out of 7. The Zombie Diaries a good film, it's worth a watch if you are a fan of the genre. I think the non-linear narrative is a refreshing change. It´s  pretty disturbing, it is claustrophobic and intense.

/JL



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