Starring: Tisa Farrow, Ian McCulloch, Richard Johnson
Though
Lucio Fulci’s Italian horror classic Zombie Flesh Eaters, aka Zombie (1979),
has received several special edition releases over the years, beginning with
the Anchor Bay 2-disc DVD Anniversary edition and, more recently, Blue
Underground’s superb Blu-ray edition, it seems the film has received its best
release to date with U.K. label Arrow Video’s special edition Blu-ray version.
Fulci’s gory video nasty looks absolutely beautiful, allowing all its eye-ball
ripping, flesh tearing, maggot squirming glory to shine through with all its
dripping, uncut detail intact.
An
abandoned boat drifts into the New York harbor and is investigated by a pair of
cops, who are attacked by a zombie on board. Anne (Tisa Farrow), whose father
owned the boat, travels to an island called Matoul to follow her father’s final
footsteps and try learn what happened to him. A reporter, Peter (Ian
McCulloch), has been assigned the story and journeys to the island with Anne,
hoping to learn the truth. They team up with a vacationing couple (Al Cliver
and Auretta Gay) on a boat and meet the mysterious Dr. Menard (Richard
Johnson). Soon after, an undead plague is set loose upon the island.
Known
affectionately as the Godfather of Gore, Zombie is probably Fulci’s
most famous and accessible film. Its fame is due in part to Italian producers
jumping on the band wagon of George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, released in
Italy as Zombi. The script, initially penned by prolific horror
screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti (Bay of Blood, The Beyond, Demons), was
re-written by his wife, Elisa Briganti, and the title was changed to Zombi
2 to cash in on Romero’s success. Zombie is Fulci’s most accessible film
because although it tells a straightforward story and includes his trademark
gore and suspense, it lacks the stubborn surrealism of his later works like City
of the Living Dead, The Black Cat and The Beyond.
Zombie is
also one of Fulci’s goriest films, and what it may lack in character
development or a complex plot is made up for with scene after scene of iconic
violence. The oozing zombies are horrifying due to their obvious level of
decomposition, making Romero’s undead shufflers seem cartoonish by comparison.
Moments like the telltale sequence of ocular trauma and the zombie vs. shark
fight scene are some of the most beloved in Fulci’s career as a director. Zombie was
shot at the height of his career and includes participation from some of his
most effective collaborators, such as cinematography from Sergio Salvati and
one of composer Fabio Frizzi’s most memorable scores.
As
with every Fulci film, there are some flaws, but these are easily forgettable.
Despite Zombie’s tension and sense of mounting nihilism, some of the pacing is
off, leaving dissatisfying sections in the second act. There are not a lot of
terribly strong performances here, but McCulloch and Johnson ably carry the
film. The lovely Tisa Farrow – obviously less comfortable in front of the
camera than her more famous sister Mia – looks convincingly bewildered and
uncomfortable for nearly all her screen time. The beautiful Olga Karlatos is
particularly memorable for her part in the signature scene of the film, which
demonstrates Fulci’s skillful use of environment, as well as his talent for
manipulating the audience’s sense of dread.
Both
Arrow and its most direct competition -- Blue Underground’s Blu-ray release -- provide different, new 2K scans of the film from the original negative and
both are very impressive. Arrow’s version was overseen by James White, and
looks like a completely different film than the VHS version I saw growing up. A
lot of the dirt and scratches have been cleaned up, damaged frames were
repaired and colors pop. This is surely the finest looking print of Zombie currently
available, even blowing the Blue Underground release out of the water. Despite
the fact that I have seen this film roughly 30 times over the years – as many
Italian horror fans probably also have – an amazing amount of background detail
is clear for the first time on this new 1080p transfer with a 2.35:1
presentation and MPEG-4 AVC encoding. Arrow also kindly provides the option to
choose between U.S., U.K., or Italian opening and closing sequences.
The
Dolby Digital English and Italian 2.0 audio tracks have been almost equally
restored, providing clear, distortion free dialogue and sound effects. There
are a few slight sync issues due to the overdubbing common for films of this
period, but that’s unlikely to distract any seasoned Italian horror fans. There
are optional English subtitles for both the English and Italian versions of the
film, and the Italian subtitles are newly translated. The iconic score from
Fabio Frizzi sounds absolutely fantastic, probably better than I have ever
heard it.
Another thing that sets the Arrow Blu-ray apart are the sheer amount of new special features. There are two great commentary tracks, the first from screenwriter Elisa Briganti and the second from Fulci biographer and film writer Stephen Thrower and horror expert Alan Jones. This second commentary alone makes this release worthwhile, in my opinion. For those unfamiliar with Thrower, he wrote the best book on Fulci available in English (or probably any language), Beyond Terror: The Films of Lucio Fulci, which comes highly recommended.
There
are a large number of featurettes, beginning with star Ian McCulloch’s
exclusive introduction to the film. In Aliens, Cannibals and Zombies: A
Trilogy of Italian Terror, McCulloch reflects on Zombie Flesh Eaters, as
well as Contamination and Zombi Holocaust. A number of horror
notables are interviewed about Fulci and Italian horror in From Romero to
Rome: The Rise and Fall of the Italian Film, such as Dardano Sacchetti, one of
the most important screenwriters in Italian horror cinema, writer and critic
Kim Newman, directors Luigi Cozzi and Ruggero Deodato, and many more.
The
Meat Munching Movies of Gino de Rossi examines the work of special effects
artist de Rossi, and Music for a Flesh-Feast presents an interview with
composer and regular Fulci collaborator Fabio Frizzi. Dardano Sacchetti
discusses his original script for Zombie in Zombie Flesh Eaters – From
Script to Screen. Also included are trailers and TV spots. There is a lovely
collector’s booklet with artwork from Graham Humphreys, essays from Stephen
Thrower and Craig Lapper, an interview with Olga Karlatos, a Fulci CV from Jay
Slater, and excerpts from Sacchetti’s original script.
The
Arrow Blu-ray really is the best available release of Zombie Flesh Eaters to
date. This iconic horror film, probably the most important zombie movie after
Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, looks as perfect as it is likely to get. For those
who already own one (or more) editions of the film on DVD, this Arrow disc is
still worth it, for its impressive transfer and a litany of special features.
For U.S. viewers, keep in mind that this is a region B Blu-ray, so you will
need a multi-region or region B player to watch this edition. Also keep your
eyes peeled for the alternate versions of this release, available in either a
steel-book case with exclusive artwork and a limited edition poster, or a
regular Blu-ray without the poster.
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