Zombie Flicks that Will Keep You Awake

 It seems that zombies can be found almost everywhere lately. From films and television to video games and flash mobs, they have staggered their way into every nook and cranny of our culture. Over the past few years, AMC has capitalized on the zombie phenomenon with its hit cable television show, The Walking Dead.

Meanwhile, major Hollywood stars like Brad Pitt have further popularized the genre with big-budget films like World War Z. While this horror subgenre can be dated back to at least the 1930s with classics like White Zombie, starring Béla Lugosi, the modern film portrayal of zombies was first brought to life by George Romero’s 1968 masterpiece, Night of the Living Dead.

Although the “walking dead” in Romero’s movie are never referred to as zombies, Night of the Living Dead provided the template for zombie behavior in many subsequent films in the genre. While some zombie flick aficionados might argue that the horror provoked by Night of the Living Dead will never be topped, here are five other zombie flicks that will keep you up at night.

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Zombie Studies Now on Campus

Kyle Bishop figured it was risky when he applied to a University of Arizona Ph.D. program in English eight years ago by proposing a dissertation on zombie movies.

He was dead wrong.

The program approved Mr. Bishop’s proposal, and he is now chairman of Southern Utah University’s English department. The 40-year-old has been invited to give zombie lectures in Hawaii, Canada and Spain.
“It’s clearly now acceptable to study zombies seriously,” he says.

Just as zombies—those mythical revived corpses hungry for living human flesh and gray matter—have infiltrated pop culture, they have also gotten their hands on our brainiest reserves: the academy.

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‘Doc of the Dead’ and a Zombie Wedding

Have you ever officiated at a zombie wedding? Of course you haven’t. But do you know who has? Bruce Campbell! The Evil Dead star and all-round horror icon recalls his lead role at some deliberately nightmarish nuptials in a new film, Doc of the Dead. Directed by Alexandre O. Philippe (The People vs. George Lucas), the documentary tracks the rise of the zombie phenomenon and, in addition to Campbell, features contributions from Shaun of the Dead actor-writer Simon Pegg, Walking Dead makeup overlord Greg Nicotero, and George A. Romero, among others.

Doc of the Dead premieres at SXSW onMarch 10, and then screens on Epix on Saturday, March 15, as part of an all-day “Zombie-thon,” which will also boast World War Z and a Max Brooks-introduced showing of Romero’s classic Night of the Living Dead.

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Mullet, the Zombie Magic Cure?

The Walking Dead may have changed the game completely in last night’s episode. The new trio revealed at the end of last episode bring a surprise. Michonne makes Carl bearable through the power of canned cheese. And Rick gets stuck in a cheesy ’80s college sex comedy turned deadly!

“Claimed” isn’t epic, but for concentrating 80% on Rick, Michonne and Carl (mostly Rick, who actually spends most of the episode in one room) and 20% on Glenn, Tara and the newcomers, it’s got tension, we learn about the characters organically, Carl isn’t too terrible, and there’s a major twist. It’s exactly what I want out of a regular TWD episode.

We begin with Rick, Carl and Michonne at the house. Carl and Michonne share a bowl of cereal, and a wistful Michonne wishes she had soy milk. Carl does not care for soy milk, and recounts an anecdote where soy milk made him barf, and laughingly recounts all the other fake milk products he’d rather have than soy milk until he includes to Judith’s formula, and makes himself super-sad. As awkward as this all is, Rick is just grateful to hear Carl laugh, even for a second.

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‘Grandpa and the Zombies’ Go Crazy

Some games just embrace their inner silliness, and they’re better for it. In an era of an increased saturation of serious zombie games, I enjoy it when some developers embrace the theme but add their own sense of charm to it. Grandpa and the Zombies [$0.99] is one such game.

As you could probably surmise from the title, Grandpa and the Zombies has a funny little setup. “Grandpa” (the hero of the tale) wakes up mysteriously in a hospital with a broken leg, only to find that the apacolypse has apparently started. Zombies are slowly filing into the building, and knocking at his door — so he has to scram, immediately. The only problem is he’s in a wheelchair. From there, the game pretty much just rolls with the premise.

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Cool ‘Walking Dead’ Zombie Cameos

I think it’s pretty safe to say that The Walking Dead wouldn’t be The Walking Dead without Greg Nicotero, a guy that was born and bred to bring the zombies from Robert Kirkman’s comic series to life on the small screen. Nicotero began his career as a special makeup effects artist, cutting his proverbial teeth on the sets of films like Day of the Dead and Evil Dead 2, and not only is he in charge of the zombie makeup on The Walking Dead, but he’s also become an executive producer and even occasional director of the show.

Nicotero has been given a lot of freedom when it comes to designing the walkers that Rick and the gang are perpetually on the run from, and he’s had a whole lot of fun with that freedom over the years. It’s not uncommon for him to throw in little Easter eggs for us horror fans, giving us quick glimpses of walkers that will undoubtedly look quite familiar to those who are big time horror fans, particularly of the zombie cinema that inspired guys like Robert Kirkman.

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‘Life After Beth’, ‘Parks and Recreation’ Gets the Highlight

During the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, Aubrey Plaza dished on everything from her new movie “Life After Beth” to “Parks and Recreation” season 7, which was just announced.

The comedy starlet says she was attracted to playing Beth in “Life After Beth,” written by boyfriend Jeff Baena, mainly because of the relationship in the story.

When The Vulture asked Plaza if she’s been waiting to play this role all her life, she replied with her typical dry humor.

“No, it has not been a dream of mine, but it’s a nightmare of mine now … okay, let’s talk normally. I’m not obsessed with zombie movies or anything. I was more interested in the story of the movie. The relationship between Beth and Zach [Dane DeHaan] made me love the script because it reminded me of my high school, college relationships.”

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