Dead Snow (2010)

This is the fifth Nazi Zombie movie That has been made, and it's one of the better ones. Of course if you are not a horror fan then you wouldn't like any of them. And the effects of the three earlier films can't compete with the last two but that doesn't matter really. The first was the classic 'shock waves" (1976) followed by the french low budget effort "zombie lake" (1980) and jess franco's 'oasis of the zombies" (1983) and then by the excellent 'outpost" (2007) and now by "Dead Snow" (2009). This movie has far more gore than the three early efforts; but that was different era; although "outpost" has more interesting characters than "dead snow" which is your typical in the know young people who are the target of the Nazi Zombies wrath. The acting is very good though and this is a professional movie.

Unlike the first time efforts of the many ultra low budget horror zombie flicks shot awkwardly and sometimes on video tape.

We are told that they killed villagers and then had to battle their way into the mountains when the vengeful Norwegians came for them. They died there and have been there ever since. This movie is part ghost story in that the zombies are protecting their loot rather than just killing people for no reason. And that's a good twist to this very good horror movie. The film has a english dubbed soundtrack (in stereo) and the original Norwegian soundtrack (with english subtitles in 5.1) to choose from as well. The best thing about the more modern flicks (outpost and this one) is that the movies prints look fantastic and are without blemishes. The three older movies while decent prints needed some cleaning up. This is a great entry into the Nazi Zombie genre and it's well shot and has a 'evil dead" type of humour to it which is fun enough. This movie is good enough to be made in America which shows how far some low budget filmmakers have come since the early 1980's. Not that "zombie lake" doesn't have it's own low budget charms; it's not on this level and couldn't be. So a hearty sieg Zombie to this

solid fun horror feature.

Hands down one of my all time favorite movies! The latest offering in the micro zombie nazi drama and its a good one, particularly on Blu Ray. A group of Norwegian (yes, its in that language subtited in English) kids head out to the mountains for some skiing and fun, only to find themselves the appealing target of nazi zombies. This is a fun movie. Its a horror/comedy, with somewhat equal emphasis on both genres. Where Shawn of the Dead was almost exclusively comical, this movie does attempt to pull off a few good scares, and some are actually pretty effective, albeit mild. It also does a good job of slowly unveiling the monsters similar to Alien; it takes a while before we fully see one, and the anticipation is well structured. The comic elements are good too; they're mostly not over the top, but good and will likely appeal to a wide viewer audience (i.e., not just those who find the sophmoric humor of american pie worthwhile). Some great scenery too; its filmed in an absolutely beautiful set of snowy mountains. It is also worth noting this movie presents a slightly modified version of a zombie. Similar to how the new Friday the 13th turned Jason into a hybrid olympian sprinter/weight lifter, so too these zombies are quite amped up and able to hunt down their prey with impressive alacrity. Don't expect to see Shock Waves-like zombies; these guys are out for the quick kill. Further, the Blu Ray audio/video content is outstanding. It has a surprisingly good video quality and ranks near the top of my collection in that rating. Very highly recommended.

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Nazi-zombie horror isn't a new idea. For decades, horror filmmakers have attempted to capitalize on the greatest tragedy in modern history by giving the dirty Nazis their comeuppance. . . in undead form. The only bad thing about the cinematic destruction of Nazi brains is that most of these Nazombie flicks are just plain awful. The French, for example, did it a couple times with appalling flicks like 'Oasis of the Zombies' and 'Zombie Lake'. I guess they were still angry about losing Paris so they didn't even want to give Nazombies the benefit of a quality movie. A rare diamond buried in the pile of rotting Nazi flesh, however, is the new Norwegian zomcom 'Død snø' aka 'Dead Snow'.

In 'Dead Snow' a group of twentysomething medical students head up to a mountain cabin for an Easter vacation ski trip. After only a short while, the inevitable happens: A crazy old man barges his way into their lives and bores them with a ridiculous tale of evil Nazi curses and stolen treasure. When have crazy old men in horror movies ever been right? Not too long after that, those wacky Nazis show up seeking the gold that, well, wasn't really theirs to begin with, but they still want it back anyway.

With films like 'Zombieland' and 'Shaun of the Dead' being released over the past few years, it is very difficult to gain any kind of recognition in the zombie-comedy subgenre since every zomcom will undoubtedly be compared to one or both of them. 'Dead Snow', however, can definitely withstand the comparison. From the wicked fun opening scene and all the way through, the Nazombie horror-comedy is hilariously gross and grossly hilarious, it even has some good scares to go with it. From a technical standpoint, Tommy Wirkola's direction and Matthew Weston's cinematography very well capture the beauty of the snow-covered mountains, but the shakicam got a bit frustrating in a couple scenes. The gore is fantastic and over-the-top, especially the excellent little 'Dead-Alive' moment (maybe to go along with Vegard's t-shirt). The writing is fresh and well paced, leaving most of the characters one-dimensional enough so that it's not too much of a worry when they're executed by the Nazi horde. Sometimes shallow characters are useful. It does have some clichéd elements; but, the film seems self-aware of them, even mentioning a few of them in their references to other films. What will be more frustrating to horror fans than the clichés is the ridiculous statement made about 'Evil Dead II' being a higher-budget remake of the original. But, this is neither the time nor place to get into that.

Overall, 'Død snø' is a fine addition to the zomcom subgenre. If you want a fun zombie romp with some laughs and scares, check this one out. . . then check out 'Shock Waves' for, really, the only other worthwhile Nazombie film.

Final Verdict: 8/10

-AP3-

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"Dead Snow" is a Norwegian comedy horror film, directed by Tommy Wirkola. In the film a group of medical students take a holiday in the mountains at an isolated cabin. They're meeting a friend who is traveling cross country, but she never makes it. In the hills, lying in wait, are the dead from WWII. We never really learn how these Nazis became zombies, but they're out for revenge on anyone who disturbs their burial grounds. "Dead Snow" will make you jump, and at times chuckle. It's campy fun, and the Nazis zombie's look great.

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Sorry but this movie was just barely entertaining. Is it because it has nazi zombies? Is it because the characters are not your average Americans on a road trip (but average Europeans on a road trip)? Yes it is barely interesting due to these two factors but otherwise there is nothing much left to talk about aside from a couple creative gore scenes. Nothing original or even well executed here. How did this movie make it so far aside from skillful marketing?

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