choke on 'em

Sakes alive, I feel so Micki Dahne right now. Yesterday morning I played a little bit of the zombie shoot 'em up Left4Dead while I ate breakfast and it got me thinking about a few things. First, it got me thinking about how many great zombie video games there are...then I started thinking about zombie movies. Are they...well, played out? I was fixin' to post about all this yesterday, but if you go back in time you'll see that I didn't.

Late last night word started to trickle down into my very own ear holes that Left4Dead 2 and Dead Rising 2 had been announced at gaming industry convention E3 (in fact, you can watch the Dead Rising 2 trailer here), and I got all tingly in my video game-loving parts (ie, my brain). The games are loads of fun, and they're shining examples of the merits of the Romero Shuffler style zombie (Dead Rising) as well as the Dawn of the Dead remake-style sprint-o-matic zombie (Left4Dead). They're equally terrifying, really.

See, I was thinking about the games and then later the new games were announced; clearly this indicates that I possess a strong latent psychic ability. This concludes the Micki Dahne portion of our program.

Back to zombie movies. Are they played out? Are you tired of them yet? Every once in a while, something new comes along and breathes a bit of life (or undeadness, or whatever) into the genre, like the recent Nazi zombie flick Dead Snow; at the same time, you can practically hear the collective "Ugh, another zombie flick?" emanating from The Internets on a daily basis.

Like any other genre, the zombie film has its highs, lows, and fetid middles, sure. Just about everyone with a camcorder and $10 has tried his or her hand at telling a tale of the undead. Even George Romero is still plugging away, though I have to admit my faith is waning (Diary of the Dead, man, she hurt me bad!).

Are the kids still calling them "camcorders" these days?

I don't really know where I'm going with this. Actually, I sort of do: what are your thoughts on zombie movies? Have there been too many in recent years? Would you rather puke in your pants than watch another one? Is there a place in our zany, hectic, multitasking world for the simple Romero Shufflers? What about all the gimmicky zombie flicks (Zombie musicals! I married a zombie! Zombie pets!) See, I thought I was over them, too- but then I pop in Left4Dead and I watch the opening sequence and...geezie weezie, it gets me all pumped up for zombie action because it's a great fucking 5-minute zombie movie and I don't care whether or not it's made out of computer.



Earlier I alluded to the fact that most- if not all- backyard filmmakers have a zombie movie in 'em just dying to get out. I'm a backyard filmmaker. I have a camcorder. Alright, so I don't have $10...but someday I hope to, and at that time I may not be able to help myself: I might have to add my own crappy zombie movie to the already oversaturated market.

Now you know. In two years, when said crappy zombie movie is done, you can dazzle your friends with your very own Micki Dahne-like prowess: "I totally knew she was gonna make one!"