First of all, "Horror Of the Zombies" (the title of the version I saw) makes it sound like the movie is about something that scares the living dead. This turns out not to be the case. If fact, these aren't conventional "zombies" at all; they are more like undead pirate skeleton mummies; and it turns out that this is actually a sequel in a franchise called "The Blind Dead". Now, if you ask me, "The Blind Dead" is a much creepier (and much less overused) concept and would stand out quite a bit from the usual overexposed run of undead horror flicks, so the distributor was missing on a good bet here.
Apparently this particular variety of skeleton mummy has a predilection for attacking European supermodels (or whoever the producers can afford to hire to pretend to be supermodels) and there is an ugly violent sexual undertone to much of the proceedings. This includes a nasty gratuitous rape scene near the beginning and two excruciatingly extended scenes where young women are dragged, screaming and begging for help, to their doom. None of this is visually all that explicit, but the soundtrack is mixed way up to capture every gasp, sob, and moan from the young women. I realize that this is a "grindhouse" film, and so that is a large reason for the film to exist in the first place, but it still means the film doesn't age very well.
On the good side: cool looking zombie designs, with the skeletal figures, tattered cloaks and empty, shadowy eye sockets; they're nicely framed and shot and the best parts of the movie consist of watching them advance like a wave of human leprosy. They really do look implacable and sinister (as opposed to the normal run of zombies, who are somehow pathetic in their advanced states of decomposition). Also good is the rest of the art direction and the set design for the main set of the ghost ship; the swirling fog and gloomy sets really do give the impression of a pocket version of Hell. And someone had the brilliant notion to accompany the march of the undead skeletons with some disturbing chants and antiphonal choral sounds; these add a great deal of ooomph to the impact of the actual zombie scenes. And the last five minutes or so deliver a nice, grim comeuppance of sorts.
On the negative side, the camera keeps cutting from the viscerally creepy and claustrophobic closed sets to one of the worst miniatures of a ship since...actually, these are even worse than the miniature effects in "Danger! Death Ray", which previously held that title. Looking at these travesties of a so-called "ghost galleon" completely undercuts all the atmosphere and tension, and the effects where coffins sink to the ocean floor are even worse. (Why didn't the director just show the coffins sinking into the water on the surface when he saw how awful the miniatures of the coffins on the ocean floor were? Was he that desperate for usable footage?)
But mostly, the screenplay just doesn't deliver. Most of the scenes leading up to the Undead's appearances drag like leaden galoshes. The characters (with the exception of the professor) are not likable or admirable at all (it was nice that "Supermodel" Noemi was concerned about the fate of her best friend, but I was almost happy when she got killed off after 50+ minutes of watching her). The logic of the film is constantly falling apart - since when does a professor "just know a little bit about exorcisms", and since when did exorcisms involve brandishing a flaming cross? If the zombies only attack at night, why did they rise off the ocean floor in the middle of the day? If the zombies come up from the hold when they attack, why didn't the party find a way to seal the hatch? And the "acting" is barely there - all though I will admit that the dubbing here is not as awful as you would normally expect in a cheapie like this. Maybe the guy who did the sound design for the zombie attack sequences had a hand in the ADR and mixing of the vocals for the English version.
Based on this entry I might conceivably watch the first "Blind Dead" movie if it appeared on a cable channel or something. Mummy skeletons in cloaks are never a complete waste of time...but this one comes close. If not for the final three minutes of the film (which are reminiscent of some of John Carpenter's grimmer tales), I'd rate it even lower.
Apparently this particular variety of skeleton mummy has a predilection for attacking European supermodels (or whoever the producers can afford to hire to pretend to be supermodels) and there is an ugly violent sexual undertone to much of the proceedings. This includes a nasty gratuitous rape scene near the beginning and two excruciatingly extended scenes where young women are dragged, screaming and begging for help, to their doom. None of this is visually all that explicit, but the soundtrack is mixed way up to capture every gasp, sob, and moan from the young women. I realize that this is a "grindhouse" film, and so that is a large reason for the film to exist in the first place, but it still means the film doesn't age very well.
On the good side: cool looking zombie designs, with the skeletal figures, tattered cloaks and empty, shadowy eye sockets; they're nicely framed and shot and the best parts of the movie consist of watching them advance like a wave of human leprosy. They really do look implacable and sinister (as opposed to the normal run of zombies, who are somehow pathetic in their advanced states of decomposition). Also good is the rest of the art direction and the set design for the main set of the ghost ship; the swirling fog and gloomy sets really do give the impression of a pocket version of Hell. And someone had the brilliant notion to accompany the march of the undead skeletons with some disturbing chants and antiphonal choral sounds; these add a great deal of ooomph to the impact of the actual zombie scenes. And the last five minutes or so deliver a nice, grim comeuppance of sorts.
On the negative side, the camera keeps cutting from the viscerally creepy and claustrophobic closed sets to one of the worst miniatures of a ship since...actually, these are even worse than the miniature effects in "Danger! Death Ray", which previously held that title. Looking at these travesties of a so-called "ghost galleon" completely undercuts all the atmosphere and tension, and the effects where coffins sink to the ocean floor are even worse. (Why didn't the director just show the coffins sinking into the water on the surface when he saw how awful the miniatures of the coffins on the ocean floor were? Was he that desperate for usable footage?)
But mostly, the screenplay just doesn't deliver. Most of the scenes leading up to the Undead's appearances drag like leaden galoshes. The characters (with the exception of the professor) are not likable or admirable at all (it was nice that "Supermodel" Noemi was concerned about the fate of her best friend, but I was almost happy when she got killed off after 50+ minutes of watching her). The logic of the film is constantly falling apart - since when does a professor "just know a little bit about exorcisms", and since when did exorcisms involve brandishing a flaming cross? If the zombies only attack at night, why did they rise off the ocean floor in the middle of the day? If the zombies come up from the hold when they attack, why didn't the party find a way to seal the hatch? And the "acting" is barely there - all though I will admit that the dubbing here is not as awful as you would normally expect in a cheapie like this. Maybe the guy who did the sound design for the zombie attack sequences had a hand in the ADR and mixing of the vocals for the English version.
Based on this entry I might conceivably watch the first "Blind Dead" movie if it appeared on a cable channel or something. Mummy skeletons in cloaks are never a complete waste of time...but this one comes close. If not for the final three minutes of the film (which are reminiscent of some of John Carpenter's grimmer tales), I'd rate it even lower.