Review: Dead Snow 2

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So tonight I wanted to watch me some zombie flick, and after looking at what options I had, I decided it would either be Dead Snow 2 or The Dead 2. I was honestly more excited about The Dead 2, but since it wasn't on Netflix, Dead Snow 2 it was.

The flick was a lot like the first installment, filled with pretty big positives and a fair number of negatives, but overall a fun way to spend 90 minutes on a Saturday night. Just like the first film, it's zombie gore at its very best and bloodiest, and the film possesses a tone that doesn't take itself too seriously.

Of course, like most sequels, it's not quite as good as the original. I think the main difference is that it doesn't have the darkness to it that the first film had. The first film was solidly in the black comedy genre, with a number of moments that were truly terrifying or disturbing. The second film tries, but it's really just a straight up comedy, even as the film is killing off children, the elderly, priests, etc.

The killing actually was my major complaint. Maybe I'm just getting old and boring, but I felt like the film was trying too hard to be "edgy" by killing off children in a sandbox, two people in wheelchairs, and two women with their infants in strollers. At first it was kind of funny that they were not holding anything back. A scene early on depicts a young boy being killed in a way that is legitimately both awful and completely hilarious, but from there some of the kills just seem like they're trying way too hard to be "shocking", and it distracts from the film.

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That said, the gore was visually very strong. For a movie that doesn't have an enormously large budget, they do a good job of being inventive with their gore and also making things look realistic. Like in the first film, most of the characters are bathed in a delightful coat of blood and dirt for the majority of the film which gives the film a strong aesthetic. You can't hate too much on a movie in which a Nazi zombie uses a dead man's intestines to siphon gas out of a tour bus and into a World War 2 era tank. I mean...that's just damn good cinema.

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The acting is probably a little better in this sequel than in the original, but it's hard to compare the two since the sequel is in English and the original has subtitles. I was worried about this decision, but it was fine. Much like the original film, however, the actors were all kind of strangely cast. I feel like many of the characters were too old for the characters they were portraying, and the two female American zombie nerds seemed extremely fake and were honestly pretty annoying. I love Star Wars as much as the next girl, but the one character's constant references to Star Wars seemed out of place, inauthentic, and distracted from the rest of the film. The local gay guy in the film was funny and endearing, but they made too big of a deal about him being gay. Maybe it's a bigger deal to be gay in Norway, but him trying to hide it seems a little silly and played for a film released in 2014.

Other than that though, the writing was probably one of the major strengths of the film. There are some witty moments, and the plot is interesting and original. Most of the characters have entertaining lines and deliver them well. The cinematography, like the original, is also pretty good and enhances the comedy of a lot of the scenes.

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The ending of the film is a bit rushed, but the final battle is well executed and fulfilling. The very last moments of the film are kind of bizarre, but not horrible, especially considering how poorly most movies seem to end nowadays.

So, should you watch it? Totally. Don't expect to be laughing out loud, but it will give you some genuine chuckles and will keep you engaged for an hour and a half. Go in just expecting a fun little indie movie, and you'll be pleased. Just remember that, like the original, this is film is very loosely defined as a zombie flick. These zombies talk and use weapons. They're more like corporeal ghosts in a lot of ways except that their look is very "zombie", so if you are a zombie purist, I suggest that you stay away.

Review: Dead Snow

From the opening sequence, you know Dead Snow is going to be a good movie. The film opens against the stark white backdrop of Norwegian mountains and snow on a lonely arctic night. A woman is running through the trees, pursued by what? We don't know. Music from the Nutcracker blares in the TVs speakers as you struggle to discern what's happening...and just as you do and the woman meets her untimely end? Opening credits roll. Genius. I'm instantly engaged.

After the credits, Dead Snow begins like many movies of its type. You are introduced to a number of stock characters of varying levels of acting ability. They're all supposed to be college students, but they all look they could have been guests at my late-twenties Halloween party. The girls are too attractive for the boys, but hey...it's film. I was wary for a little bit at the beginning, as the dialogue pirouetted around sex jokes and cheesy puns, but this film won back my allegiance very quickly.

Dead Snow is a gore-lover's dream. The filmmakers were certainly not shy with their karo syrup and red food coloring, and they seemed to hold a special place in their hearts for intestines and other internal organs. By the end of the film, every character is shellacked in a lovely coat of fresh blood, and every stab wound seems to hit a vital vein...sending pumping and squirting blood everywhere...even on to the camera. Yum. Definitely not for the faint of heart. That being said, the effects are actually quite nice and realistic looking (with a couple reasonable exceptions). For a small budget flick, they made some pretty involved gore look pretty damn realistic. You'll be screaming and squirming the whole way through.

From a zombie standpoint, I'm a little on the fence. The movie was certainly a good horror movie, but it's hard to title it a straight, classic zombie flick. The monsters are clearly dead, they're referred to as zombies, and the makeup artist certainly intended for you to think that the are the living, brain-eating undead. But here's where I get a little iffy. They're nazi zombies, which of course means they are still in full nazi regalia, but these zombies also use binoculars, lead organized charges, and stab, punch and kick like actual, living soldiers. My only other complaint would be that they don't seem to eat their victims at any point, although they do disembowel them and dismember them like true zombie pros. So don't expect a whole lot of zombie gluttony here, but as long as you go in with that in mind you'll be fine.

From a film making standpoint, this film usually gets it right. The narrative is clear, focused and honest. The cinematographer was original and gutsy, but everything he tries really tends to work. Sometimes his choices seem a little out of place stylistically, but they really do help to tell the story. My personal favorite is a moment when one character is buried under the snow...you'll know what I'm talking about when you get there. Great camera work. Also, while the film is foreign and is therefore subtitled, you get used to it very very quickly. There isn't much dialogue in the final 1/3rd of the film, so it isn't too distracting even if you don't watch many foreign flicks. My only filmmaking complaint would be the editing (both sound and video). It seemed too abrupt and actually impeded the story telling at times. There were a few moments in the film where I was left like "wait...what just happened?" because of the editing, and I don't really feel like that was intentional.

Overall, it was well worth the 90 minutes I spent watching it. It had a sort of Shaun of the Dead vibe, and I both gasped and laughed numerous times during the film. It has a good handle on the balance between black comedy and horror. Also, the backdrop certainly adds to the creepy factor in a very The Descent kind of way. You keep thinking, even if they can avoid the zombies...how the heck are they gonna get out? On the first really snowy day of the year here in Chicago, it was a perfect choice.

You can check it out on Netflix (it's available on streaming), or you can purchase it for $14.99. After watching it, I may have to add it to my amazon wishlist. Until then, here's the trailer...