Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

Undead has nothing in common with Crocodile Dundee, except for the fact that they are both Australian movies.. oh and Crocozombie Dundee sounded funny the first I typed it (oh well...)

The fact that Australia has produced a genre film is a point of excitement; it's a refreshing change from dreary melodramas or drearier comedies. Now known as the Spierig Brothers, Brisbane's Michael and Peter have gone 'all out' with their take on the zombie films of a few decades ago.

The action starts right away...you're not five minutes into this movie and already the gore is starting to fly and the zombie action starts nearly immediately into it. There is really no character exposition that needs to be explained between all the players, as the town of Berkeley, where it is set, is such a small town that everyone already knows one another. The key players, are Rene, who was known as the town's "Catch of the Day" one year (their version of the Miss USA pageant); Marion, a dude who has guns everywhere (and I mean, everywhere, you'll see), always cool and in control; and Harrison, a *very* anal retentive cop who has power struggle issues and a bad case of Tourrette's Syndrome. Marion, in particular, is a fun character and a joy to watch. The rest of the main characters include the Harrison's new partner and a husband and wife who is very pregnant. What's frustrating is that it takes them a while to work out that shooting a zombie through the head (or some other way of smashing its brain) is the only way to kill an undead being (how typical).

The sky grows increasingly gloomier and the tension rises. The comedy works even if you have no idea who George A Romero is; but of course, the references to zombie classics made the audience laugh just that bit more. The fact that aliens are intimately involved with the narrative takes the movie in a slightly different direction to orthodox zombie films. The special effects are self-conscious and at no point does the film take itself seriously. This might, of course, upset genre purists, however I did enjoy it.

Given their meagre budget, the Spierigs have created an Australian horror flick with tinges of local in-jokes. It's also interesting to note that the film rose out of obscurity through Sydney and Melbourne film festivals and has achieved a nation-wide release. The film is actually entertaining. If you liked Bad Taste, Braindead, Evil Dead then you are going to like Undead too. Any underlying moral message that earlier films carried has been shaved off Undead. It is just a fast-paced stay-alive-or-else horror comedy with its highest aspiration being to make the audience giggle unstoppably in their seats. And at this, it succeeds, for the most part.

Before Spiderman, Sam Raimi made Evil Dead. Before Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson made Bad Taste and Braindead. Judging by their feature film debut, Michael and Peter Spierig also have a bright future. If the Brisbane twins managed Undead for less than $1 million, goodness knows what they'll come up with when they get their hands on a proper budget.







Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age