Found these awesome zombie illustrations on the website for the very talented illustrator Aaron Renier. This zit-zombie is pretty damn funny…

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Things aren’t always as they seem. Originally when I posted about Dead Heist I linked to a less than kind review on Fangoria. I was called out by Adam on Neurotrash for making a snap judgement on a movie I hadn’t seen myself.

Busted. By not reviewing the movie myself I was doing our readers a disservice. So without further ado, here is our full review of Dead Heist.

A group of thugs led by Ski (Brandon Hardin) who are fed up with hustling on the streets decide to pull off a big bank heist worth millions. Hustler (E-40) provides them with the weapons for the job in exchange for a cut of the profits. In order to make sure everything goes smoothly, he sends Jackson (DJ Naylor) along to oversee things. Jackson has had his fair share of run-ins with the law and is one of the few memorable stars of the movie. Ski’s gang is rounded out by a bunch of forgettable characters and poor actors.

The gang arrives in town and Jackson begins to scope things out while everyone else hangs back at the motel. While strolling through the town he meets Hunter (Big Daddy Kane) in a gun store who urges Jackson to stay inside for the night, foreshadowing things to come. Meanwhile, the idiot crew decides they can’t possibly wait another day and decide to just go ahead and rob the bank now by just running in waving guns around. There’s a stand-off with police, and as it gets dark the zombies come out to feed - first on the cops and then (after working their way into the bank) on the robbers. Ski’s crew, Jackson, Hunter, and a female deputy must all work together to save themselves.

Dead Heist is no Oscar-winner by any means, but manages to do some things well. The camera and sound work is much better than anticipated for films of this level. The director (Bo Webb) does a reasonable job of getting interesting shots and following the action. The zombies looked realistic and there are a few really fun scenes where the screen is filled with zombies. It takes a while to get moving, but once it starts the action is decent (but could be gorier).

Unfortunately there are several things that prevent Dead Heist from being a fully enjoyable film. First, the language. I’m far from a prude but this movie tossed around the “N word” more often than it used poorly constructed gangsta metaphors about gambling, hustling, and pimping (and trust me there were a LOT). E-40 seems to just make up his own terminology, saying things like “Give me the 555-1212″ (instead of the simpler “give me the info”). I couldn’t help but groan at phrases like that - no one really talks that way. In fact it was at that moment my wife stopped paying attention and went off to do something that wasn’t a total waste of her time.

Speaking of a total waste of time, there are many scenes in Dead Heist that do nothing to move the story along or provide insight into the characters. Some, like the scene at the beginning of the movie, are so out of place I’m pretty the director started out making an entirely different movie. These should have been stripped out entirely to make time for more zombie killing.

The best zombie movies aren’t mere horror films - they tell us a story about the human condition. As such my spirits were lifted when the zombie action started and the thugs started dying off one by one. Could it be that underneath all this gangsta posturing Dead Heist has a moral story to tell? Crime doesn’t pay, something like that? Unfortunately no - Ski ends up not only surviving but also walking away with the money.

If you can overlook its flaws and sit through the grueling first half of the movie, the zombie attack finale is worth the wait. The zombies look great, the deaths are plentiful (though not gory enough for me), and the scenes with the elevator and never-ending escalator of the dead made me giggle with glee. I’m sure if the budget had been bigger we’d have seen more special effects, but director Webb manages to make the most out of limited resources.

Dead Heist isn’t a home run, but it doesn’t completely strike out either. It’s fun for a while but overstays its welcome quickly.

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Here’s an awesomely funny zombie t-shirt, from FearWerx, available for $16.99. From their website:

We know just how to deal with those pesky zombie infestations — at UNCLE GEORGE’S ZOMBIE EXTERMINATING SERVICE, we’ve been puttin’ ‘em outta your misery since 1968…

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Rue Morgue and Bloor Cinemaare beginning to make me very, very sad that I don’t live in Toronto. First they had George Romero there last weekend, and now they will be having Fred Dekker there on September 20th, showing his cult zombie classic  Night of the Creeps (and for all my fellow film geeks, a 35mm print!). I’ve been a huge fan of Dekker’s for many years. His career as a director was pretty short, three films and one tv episode (for Tales from the Crypt), but he gave us two cult classics - Night of the Creeps and the completely under-rated Monster Squad (so let’s all forgive him for Robocop III). Night of the Creeps is a zombie classic, with aliens (the more recent film Slither owes a lot to it), pure schlock, gore and even zombie pets. Definitely check this out in you are in the Toronto area!

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You’d think that putting a giant zombie movie poster on the side of a synagogue would cause at least some complaints. Apparently not, reports the New York Times. “..it has apparently offended no one in the Orthodox congregation, said the congregation’s rabbi, Jason Herman.”

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Yesterday we reported on the Zombie Walk World Record attempt organized by the marketers behind The Zombie Diaries.  No word yet on if the record was broken or not, but it did catch the attention of CNN.  Follow this link for a video of the crowds at the zombie walk and movie screening (you will have to watch a short commercial before the video starts, unfortunately).

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Yesterday we told you about the George Romero Q&A at the Rue Morgue Festival of Fear. Ryan over at ShockTillYouDrop.com has a first hand account of the evening and more specifically the zombie slaying action.

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The Zombie Diaries is being released TODAY in the UK (no word on a US release date) and to celebrate the marketers are trying to attempt a world record sized zombie walk. Actually due to the time difference it’s probably done already at this point (if you were there send us some pics!)

At this point I’d like to point out the glaring similarities between this movie and Diary of the Dead. Both center on a film crew making a movie (or documentary in the case of The Zombie Diaries) during a zombie outbreak. Predictably things turn and they are forced to find a way to survive. I don’t know if one is stealing ideas from the other, but I don’t think it’s a stretch to think that The Zombie Diaries at least got some inspiration from George Romero. Every zombie movie since Night of the Living Dead owes at least something to him.

That said, based on the trailer below The Zombie Diaries does similar to [REC] which I gushed about two weeks ago and I’ll be looking forward to seeing this one.

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RavensBlight has this neat collection of macabre papercraft toys.  For those not in the know, papercraft is similar to origami (making 3 dimensional objects out of paper) but allows the use of scissors and glue.  Just print out the templates and assemble them together to make the zombie figures (above),  zombie mask, necronomicon book covers, cemetary playset, or my personal favorite the BATTLE HEARSE!

It’s clear the owner of the site has a love for Halloween and also has several zombie-themed video games available for download and a pretty cool art gallery.  I really enjoy some of the photography as it’s somewhat rare to see “horror photography” but it’s a great concept and I love it.

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As part of the Rue Morgue Festival of Fear, going on this weekend in Toronto, there will be a Q&A with George Romero. He will also be showing clips from Diary of the Dead. This is a MUST for any zombie/ horror fans in that area. It takes place at 9:30pm at the Bloor Cinema in Toronto and is $25 at the door.

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