GL84
Heading up to a local lake, a group of friends having a party on the property realize that a meteor shower has unleashed a series of zombies from the ground and decide to make a run before they're caught and changed into zombies.This one here was a rather fun and enjoyable zombie effort. One of the best things about it is the rather fun and enjoyable atmosphere created throughout here, as this one here is the epitome of brain-less fun. This is best shown in the kind of great cheesy action to come from this one, including the one-shot sequences of the zombies running through the countryside after being resurrected as scenes of them attacking the oblivious fisherman, appearing at the security guard or the camping couple in the motor-home start this off rather well in getting to the action. As well, the redneck hunters who appear out of nowhere and begin taking them out with assault rifles, machine guns and rockets is even better as while it's quite stupid this one has a great sense of fun. There's even more enjoyable camp outside the action as the whole plot pretty much given away in a toss-away joke, the characters repeatedly make references how to behave in a horror film and the kind of attacks popularized by the zombies all give this a goofy, cheesy atmosphere that's quite funny at times. There's some great action to this, from the action on the boat-rental dock to the camp-ground battle that is full of action getting out of the cars with the dead pounding alongside them and the fights at the end with the second party getting attacked at the campground are quite enjoyable. Using one of the most logical and inventive methods of defense against zombies ever devised, a clever get- away plan that comes along and all the fun and suspense once it gets to the cars parked outside, it manages to make the film rather fun and entertaining, and there's also the fact that these different confrontations with them really manages to make this one so much fun since all the different ones allow for a great pace with plenty of big scenes throughout. Along with all the action, there's plenty of blood and gore in here, which while cheap-looking, all of these here make the film enjoyable as this did have a few small problems holding it down. One of the biggest is the self-censoring the film has towards the nudity. This one has plenty of opportunities to let it loose but comes up with ways to get around it, from a nude driver on the street filmed only at shoulder level, the in-car flashing is done the same way, changing into bathing suits is done under their shirts, a topless swim session is taken place off-screen but not seen and a later changing scene is done, admittedly humorously, by having a branch in front mimic the bobbing and weaving to keep it all hidden. The fact that it goes to such great lengths to keep it hidden is where the film comes under fire as it would've been fine had there been none at all. The other part to this is the terribly low-budget to it. From the terrible look of the zombies to the obviously fake blood to the weak CGI, this one doesn't have much to its effects at all. Overall, these are the only things wrong with it.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Language and Brief Nudity.
pascalsimons
It's amazing what you can do with just a couple of friends, some cheap makeup,camcorder and some obviously fake torn off body parts which must belonged to some dress-up doll. I'm sure they must have had a lot of fun making it. It must have cost a lot of effort and time. All of these components put together can help in creating an awesome movie, a blockbuster even. There's always that possibility. But not in this case. The parts I've already seen (I still have to see over an hour of this movie) show me it's still infinitely better then the witches of the Caribbean, a similar low budget movie. Thats still part of my 'looking on the bright side' philosophy. What prevents this movie from being a worthy horror movie; is the crappy sound, the actors who don't seem to know how to act, the 'special' effects and the entire lack of horrific ambiance (lighting and all of that stuff).
John_Forkner
Review, `Zombie Campout' By John ForknerCamp: [noun:] 1. A place where a group of people is temporarily lodged in makeshift shelters. 2. Artificiality of manner or style, appreciated for its humor, triteness, or vulgarity. (American Heritage Dictionary)I'm going to come right out and say it: While `Zombie Campout' may not redefine low-budget zombie horror, it's the stuff cult classics are made of.
The plot is paper-thin. Four friends go on a campout looking for a little action, when radioactive meteorites crash into a nearby cemetery, causing the corpses to come to life. These `things' (you can't say `zombie' in a zombie movie) make short work of the other campers, adding them to their perpetually marching, moaning horde of the undead. Can Bunny, Tammy, Trevor, and Steve escape this zombie campout and still have time to make out?Zombie horror has been a staple of filmmakers for decades. From the pop-culture phenomenon, `Evil Dead' (and its two subsequent sequels) to the recent `Resident Evil' and upcoming `28 Days Later', zombie films have enjoyed a considerable following. But none of these is sacred when a spoof like `Zombie Campout' comes along, cramming in every zombie/horror movie cliché it can think of and lampooning them into oblivion.Writer, producer, director Joshua D. Smith has his work cut out for him; and while it's not hard to appreciate his vision as a director, his real talent lies as a writer. The script is brimming with cheesy dialogue and clever gags, many of which are mercifully subtle (one of the funniest involving two blonde babes tying their hair back with trashy 70's porno music playing in the background), and include a handful of self-effacing asides (as yet another blonde babe observes, `This is like something out of a bad zombie movie'). Perhaps most praiseworthy is Smith's understanding and masterful use of the element of surprise. Just when I was starting to sink into my chair, another gag I wasn't anticipating was thrown at me, keeping me on my toes and into the film; something most recent big-budget comedies have real trouble pulling off. Bravo.The acting is a bit of a mixed bag and in a campy movie such as this, where stilted dialogue and under-energized performances abound, it can sometimes be difficult to tell what's supposed to be good and what's supposed to be bad. While the entire cast seems a bit reluctant to jump on the collective `act scared' bandwagon, it's ultimately Steve (John M. Davis) and Trevor (Jeremy Schwab) who are the only ones who convincingly pull off `fear' (to be fair, the two lesbian campers have the only truly frightening moment in the film and pull it off nicely). But where the film really bogs down is in Director Smith's tendency to trap his heroes in cars and cabins surrounded by zombies and have the `What do we do now?' discussion. Everything screeches to a halt and the pacing is thrown, thanks, in no small part, to the ladies who, with zombies closing in on all sides, somehow manage to remain completely nonchalant. What happened to the urgency?Aside from this tricky issue of acting scared in a horror movie, the four leads are fine. Jeremy Schwab's transformation from the ever-smiling `smart kid' to protective "stud" boyfriend feels perfectly natural. And when John M. Davis lets go and commits to his part, his face lights up and.is it just me, or does he bear a slight resemblance to `Evil Dead's' Bruce Campbell? The lovely Misty Orman, as Bunny, brings some nice energy to the screen, particularly in her kick-butt action sequence where she takes on a horde of the undead. Tiffany Black plays the uncomfortable Tammy (whose last boyfriend was a `total poophead') nicely, but those late-night shootings must've taken their toll on her because she seems a tad sedated. Other standouts are Deborah Png as the shotgun-toting, Vietnamese-spouting camper, and Larry Purtell as the Park Ranger whose so-bad-they're-good line readings are worth the price of admission.The picture, though filmed in widescreen with digital video, is rather grainy and low quality, but with a low-budget film, that's to be expected and it really doesn't detract from the enjoyment of the movie as a whole. The editing is a tad choppy at points and there is a bizarre little intermission stuck in about halfway through the movie when nothing is happening. Why not put it at a cliffhanger moment?Special effects are used throughout, many of the caliber that would make Ed Wood proud. Never mind that the CGI clip of falling meteorites shows them landing off the coast of Mexico when we've established that the story takes place in Texas. It sure looks cool and that's clearly all that matters. There's also a great use of explosives when two rednecks attempt to blast a mob of zombies away with pistols, shotguns, uzis, and finally.well.I won't give it away. The zombie effects range from simple black shadows around the eyes to detachable limbs and rotting faces that squirt blood. The film even pokes fun at its own limited effects when zombies attack a fisherman and begin to pull off his arms and legs, only to discover that all of his limbs are prosthetic.With the characters often referring to the script for advice, takes to the camera, shots of guys reading super-macho magazine `Trucks and Boobs', and an army of bikini-clad blonde babes, `Zombie Campout' knows exactly what it is and never lets the audience forget it. The combination of off-beat humor, campy dialogue and performances, and B-movie quality special effects make this film quite a nice surprise and a gory treat for fans of zombie horror and anyone else with a sense of humor, living or dead.
