SUSPIRIA / ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS (aka ZOMBIE aka ZOMBI 2)

A couple of weeks ago I went to the movies to see a double bill of Suspiria and Zombie Flesh Eaters (aka Zombie aka Zombi 2) at one of my favourite places in Melbourne – the awesome Astor Theatre. I hadn't seen either movie so it was pretty cool to go see both on the big screen, and too good of a double bill to pass up.

First up was horror maestro (and his being Italian I feel that it’s an appropriate use of the word) Dario Argento’s most renowned work, Suspiria. Telling the story of Suzy Bannion, who goes to study at a prestigious German dance academy, only to soon discover the school is run by a coven of occult practicing witches. Although looking a bit dated in places, Suspiria was generally successful in creating a rather unsettling mood. The famous Goblin soundtrack and Argento’s use of bizarre sets in vivid colours, lent an uneasy vibe to the proceedings. The effects and shocks hold up very well and it executed (pun intended) a corking set piece within the first 5 or 10 minutes or so. Addressing its criticisms, it certainly WAS a bit slow and muddled in places, but it was certainly an enjoyable watch. The set pieces were very well done and the disturbing Goblin soundtrack was well worthy of its reputation and played a huge part in creating the disconcerting mood of the film. Its general all round creepiness wins out in the end for me though.

Lucio Fulci’s notorious Zombie Flesh Eaters was up next and was generally a lot of fun. Banned in the UK throughout the 80’s as a ‘video nasty’ (alongside the utterly peerless The Evil Dead and the dismal Driller Killer to name but a couple) it ain't winning any plaudits for its bad dubbing but it is an enjoyably hammy gorefest that’s mostly worthy of its fandom. Although large parts of it involved a lot of wandering about and terrible expository dialogue in order to pad out the movie around 3 or 4 action scenes. The scene in the airport departure lounge where they discuss the length of their flight(!!) was, for example, totally unnecessary! So although it felt at times like they were filling space around the set pieces - what set pieces they were!

The story involves the discovery of a zombie on board an abandoned yacht in New York and the subsequent search by the yacht owners daughter and a British journalist, for her father’s whereabouts. Their search takes them to a mysterious Caribbean island. Needless to say the island is discovered to be in the grip of a zombie epidemic and chaos ensues.

In contrast to the rest of the film the major action scenes were handled with an invention and sophistication that was unfortunately lacking elsewhere. The famous zombie vs shark sequence was surprisingly well handled. The infamous eyeball v splinter interface was a grisly delight. TOTALLY gross, but REALLY well done; and the zombies climbing from the earth, smothered in worms, featuring zombie POV shots as the soil slides from view were highly entertaining. It also featured a pretty good atmospheric soundtrack during the zombie sequences. Overall it was a heap of gory pleasure and well worth seeing if like me, you’ve never had the chance to see it before.

So to conclude, both Suspiria and Zombie were very enjoyable, and there are certainly worse ways to spend a Monday evening than educating yourself on classic Italian horror.

Cool Zombie Flesh Eaters posters by Jock, via Mondo (again!)