Not the same-old, same-old Zombies in this gory flick from Lucio Fulci
In the village of Dunwich, a minister hangs himself and inadvertently opens the gates of the Underworld with recently dead people manifesting and causing havoc. A journalist and a woman who has visions from the Big Apple (Christopher George and Catriona MacColl) travel to the village and meet up with a psychiatrist and his patient (Carlo De Mejo and Janet Agren) to tackle the supernatural situation.
"City of the Living Dead" (1980) is also known as “The Gates of Hell” with the original Italian title being “Fear in the City of the Living Dead” (translated). It’s a combination of the “Blind Dead” tetralogy, Romero’s zombie movies, “Kill, Baby… Kill!” and “The Fog,” which came out over six months earlier.
Fulci is known as "The Godfather of Gore" or “The Poet of the Macabre” and so you can expect shocking scenes that are for shock’s sake and inorganic to the story, such as a woman’s eye being gouged out by splintered wood in “Zombie” from the year prior, aka “Zombi 2.” Here there’s a sequence that comes out of nowhere involving a drill going through a teenager’s head; yet it could be argued that the father was frustrated about his daughter’s issues and he (unjustly) takes it out on this kid. There’s another sequence where intestines gush out of a woman’s mouth (actually tripe in real life) as her eyes curiously bleed.
I could care less about such scenes, but I’m sure gorehounds will appreciate them. And who can deny that they’re horrific? (Although I busted out laughing at one or two bits that were too over-the-top, the very opposite reaction intended). Nevertheless, the buried-alive sequence is well done (I guess it’s a good thing Mary wasn’t embalmed, huh?); and there’s a creepy Gothic atmosphere with quality locations/sets.
The story feels nonsensical, which I’m sure is due to the low budget (or is it just Fulci’s unique style?), but everything makes sense for the most part if you put the pieces of the puzzle together (except for the bewildering ending). However, I liked the imaginative take on the living dead. Let’s just say: Don’t expect the Romero variety of zombies.
Brunette Antonella Interlenghi is notable on the feminine front as Emily, the psychiatrist’s assistant and girlfriend, but not enough is done with her before, um, you’ll see.
The film comes across too slapdash for my tastes, but there are enough positives for those wanting a movie akin to the ones noted. This just ranks with the least of ’em IMHO.
It runs 1 hours, 32 minutes, and was shot in New York City and Savannah, Georgia, as well as Rome for studio work.
GRADE: C/C+
