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60 reviews in total

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27 out of 30 people found the following review useful:
Mantan Moreland is a hoot, 1 August 2005

Author: pam-lunn from United States

This little gem of a movie is actually better than it should be considering it is a Monogram picture with a low budget and unfortunate racial stereotypes which were typical for the early 1940's.

Mantan Moreland is the star of this picture. He was a great comedic actor who was stereotyped into playing the dimwitted servant in most of his movies, but he really shines in this picture. I laughed out loud when he tells his boss that he had been "zombiefied". Every scene he is in he steals. This picture was billed as a horror movie, but it is actually a comedy. There is nothing remotely scary about the plot, which involves a German doctor who has taken over an island and is turning the natives into zombies while trying to get classified secrets from a captured American admiral through the use of hypnosis. I really enjoyed this movie despite the cheap sets, silly plot and racial stereotypes. If you want a good laugh on a Saturday afternoon, then pop some popcorn and sit back and enjoy Mantan Moreland. He more than makes up for this movie's deficiencies.

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27 out of 31 people found the following review useful:
Mantan Moreland was great!, 27 August 2004

Author: Steve Haynie from Easley, South Carolina

Mantan Moreland really shines in this movie. He was a great character actor, and he had a LOT of screen time in King Of The Zombies. He wasn't a supporting character in King Of The Zombies; his part was equal among the main players and his name shared equal billing in the opening credits.

Forget what others say about racial stereotyping and enjoy his performance. The man worked with what he was given and took it to as much of a polished performance as possible. Blame Hollywood, not the actor, if you don't like his performance. His takes and reactions were superb. Smiley Burnette and Lou Costello did the same thing in "scary" situations, but Mantan Moreland had a flair for the comedy take that set him apart. He really was great on screen.

King Of The Zombies itself is not the best for a mystery/adventure movie from the time period, but it has the right feel for the time period if you like old movies. All the right elements are there for a fun movie. Why it doesn't really work better is a mystery. Don't expect too much and you will have a good time watching this one.

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22 out of 26 people found the following review useful:
A Terrific film!, 15 July 2003
Author: norm.vogel@verizon.net from S. Bound Brook, NJ.

This film (along with "Dr. X" & "Night Monster") rank as my all-time fave Top Three! (I own over 1k films)!

Why? That "Master of Scared-Reaction Comedy", Mantan Moreland takes an (other-wise) dull film & adds a lot of "zip" into it! I think this was his finest role! He does MUCH to improve a cast who's acting (especially the two "heros") is as "wooden" as the zombies themselves!

My favorite line is when the "hero" & Mantan are walking through a dark secret passage, holding a torch. Voodoo drums begin to sound. "What's that?", says the Hero. "I dunno", answers Mantan, "...but it ain't GENE KRUPA!". A scream!

This film WILL offend the "Politically Correct" as "degrading Negro stereotypes", but these people have to realise that Morelan was a Comic GENIUS who also played these "scared reaction" comedy roles for BLACK directors, and the Black Movie-Going Community of the 30's and 40's.

You MUST SEE this film, if only for Mantan's marvellous comedy!

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16 out of 20 people found the following review useful:
subversive black cinema, 10 September 2006

Author: (winner55) from United States

implicitly intended for an urban African-American audience, this film is mantan Moreland's masterpiece performance. a wicked parody of the b-movie horror cycle that washed over American screens in the wake of the success of the universal monster movies, Moreland - with blessings from director Jean Yarbrough and writer Edmond Kelso - uses his role to rip, tear, kick, and generally trash all the expectations concerning race in his culture, rightly pinioning it as little better than the racism of Nazi Germany.

the white 'heroes' of this film are completely stupid, especially the Anglo-Saxon guy John Archer as 'Bill Summers', who can't quite figure out how he could be trapped on an island just because his plane crashed and the local Nazi doesn't want him to leave.

although the Nazi's role was clearly intended for Bela Lugosi, Henry Victor does a pretty good job sounding like a slimy spy who doesn't even like Irish people, so we can guess what he thinks of blacks.

but it's the black guy who saves the day - the black guy who solves the mystery - indeed, the black guy who even figures out that there is a mystery, while the hokey white boys scratch their heads. and along the way, he drops a lot of little gags about the African-American cultural experience, especially in Harlem, then de-facto capital of African-America, and how he would rather be there than chasing 'hants' on some dumb Nazi's jungle island.

this is a Jean Yarbrough film, so of course there are a lot of silly goofs and gaffs, and unintentionally funny stuff - i especially like the line about the guy who just got shot through the chest five times getting better in a little while; yeah.

but this is an historically important film because it is not only mantan Moreland's one leading-role star-turn, but because it is clearly designed to subvert the culture that made it impossible for actors and comedians as good as Moreland from getting their fair share of star-turn leading roles - a culture which, sadly, still needs some subverting today, 65 years later.

but like it or not - and i happen to love this film - this is the first, the beach-head in that ongoing underground cultural war for civil rights and justice in all areas of American life, even the Hollywood film.

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11 out of 12 people found the following review useful:
Fun cheeziness, 29 October 2003
Author: one4now4 from Ft. Worth, TX, USA

I agree with what was said of Mantan Moreland, because this really is his show. He was really good at what he did and could have been in many, many better movies. With that aside, this movie is a schlocky laugh riot, combining Moreland's intentional humor with everyone else's unintentional humor to make a horror-comedy classic. One of the greatest laughs is an unintentionally hilarious moment where the "Irish" guy gets into a fight with some less-than-alive assailants. The oh-so-diabolical Henry Victor character blames the attack on over-zealous guards, but the "Irish" guy aggressively comes back with, "Are ya sure it wasn't a zombie?!" I also love it when Victor is given lines like, "That's nonsense, zombies don't eat... meat." Aside from Victor, Moreland seems to be the only real actor out of all of them. Some of the intentional humor is hit-or-miss ("Look out, admiral, here we come"), but Moreland carries nearly every joke with comic flair. I don't consider "King of the Zombies" a total classic by any means (as schlock or otherwise), but it is fun and more than worth the four bucks I spent to buy it.

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7 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Whitten ..., 30 September 2006
Author: Weretuna from United States

This movie was as much Whitten's as it was Morelands. She was beautiful. Had she been active during the 90s, with her talent and beauty, she could have ruled Hollywood. Moreland, given his delivery and timing, would give Murphy a run for his money. This movie is a comedy classic. Being dated as it is, and altogether politically incorrect by todays standards, it actually gave Whitten and Moreland a lot of space to show off their talents. It may seem backwards NOW but for that day and time it was really very progressive. The other actors, well ... The Doctor was cool, and I think was trying to play off Lugousi. The rest? Hey, some one has to play "third through the door".And they did OK. If nothing else they made Whitten and Moreland look even better. But they didn't really need that kinda help. ;-)

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Move Over Boys I'm One Of The Gang Now, 11 April 2004

Author: sol1218 from brooklyn NY

****SPOILERS**** Campy movie from Monogram Pictures about zombies on the loose on some uncharted Caribbean island. With the head honcho Dr. Sangre, Henry Victor, of the Isle trying to use the power of Black Magic through the chanting of Island High Priestess Tahama, Madam Sul-Te-Wan. In order for him to get the brain of the captured US Admiral Wainwright, Guy User, transferred by the miracle of "Transmigration" to his niece's Barbara Winslow, Joan Woodbury, skull. This is Dr. Sangre plan to get valuable military information, from Wainwright, about the fortifications of the Panama Canal Zone.

The movie "King of the Zombies" was made as a comedy but for some strange reason was nominated for an Academy Award as best musical score for a dramatic picture? HOW ABOUT THAT! Dr. Sangre obviously in league with his fatherland Nazi Germany even though the country is never mentioned in the film? Maybe the makers of "King of the Zombies" were afraid that if Hitler ever saw the movie and how it portrayed his Aryan Supermen he would get so mad he'd order his Luftwaffa to bomb Hollywood.

Dr. Sangre who learned from the natives, mostly from High priestess Tahama, of the island how to "Zombify" people and use them in service to the Third Reich seemed unable to "Zombify" one of his subjects Jefferson "Jeff" Jackson, Mantan Moreland. Jefferson in fact turned out to be the hero of the movie and saved the day for the good guys by getting the ball, as well as his eyes, rolling. In him getting his two naive and unsuspecting friends who crashed on the island with him Mac & Bill, Dick Puncell & John Archer, to see what was really going on with Dr. Sangre and his evil experiments.

Getting the zombies to revolt against Dr. Sangre, probably because of the bland and salt-free food that he served them, the doctor trying to get the info from the admiral via his niece's brain, dressed up looking like Dracula with a weird wooden Halloween mask, ends up being chased by the zombies into a pit where he gets a giant hot foot. In a last and desperate attempt Dr. Sangre tries to shoot the rebellious dead walkers not knowing, or forgetting for a moment, that you can't kill someone who's already dead!

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10 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
Voodoo Hijinks..., 3 March 2004
Author: suspiria10 from The Void

When a plane crashes on a remote South American island during a bad storm, the planes three occupants find themselves in a doctor's mansion where strange things appear to be going on. The pilot, a government guy and his manservant must get to the bottom of the zombies appearance on the island and the doctors' sinister plan involving them.

Jean (The Devil Bat) Yarbrough's direction is quick and sure in the funny, underappreciated gem from the early 1940's. The film moves along after a very snappy pace and never drags. Not high on production value, loved the cheesy model of the plane crash in the beginning, King has a very high energy level thanks to the hilarious antics of the always entertaining Mantan (Spider Baby) Moreland. Easily the highlight of the film Moreland's bug-eyed often off-color schtick made this rather routine film is loads of fun. Good fun for anyone who likes a classic voodoo zombie kind of film with an outstanding comedy performance.

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12 out of 18 people found the following review useful:
EXCELLENT! Mantan Moreland is hilarious! See this one!, 10 June 2003
Author: jbar19 from Indianapolis

This movie is a gem. Even though some politically correct idiots criticize some of the 'stereotypical' black behavior, ignore them. This movie is funny and anything funny is good.

Mantan Moreland is the main reason to see this movie. He steals every scene and turns a slow, and ultra low budget horror movie into a laugh riot.

This movies has everything; laughs, zombies, hypnotism, a voodoo priestess and a German Spy. Plus, Mantan Moreland's one liners are hysterical.

"Being a zombie sure has its disadvantages".

Looking at voodoo priestess: Mantan : Who's Methusalah? I know a museum that would give a fortune just to get her under glass. What's cooking? Samantha : That's brew. Mantan : Brew? Home Brew in this day and age? Why, don't you people know Prohibition has been repealed? Samantha:How's it taste? Mantan : I don't know but it ain't Kosher.

Dr. Sangre : The living dead? Mantan : That's it. That's what they is, dead folks that's too lazy to lie down!

Whether this 1941 movie is politically correct in the 21st century is irrelevant. Plus, it is indicative of it's time. It's stupid for critics to try to censor or dismiss this movie merely because of political correctness. The movie is funny and funny is timeless and divine.

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9 out of 13 people found the following review useful:
Funny, But Nothing More, 23 September 2004
Author: Big_Captain_Splatter from C-Town

The Internet Movie Database calls King Of The Zombies a horror film, and many people who have seen this film call it a horror movie as well. But the truth is, that watching this movie hoping to see an old classic horror film were make your expectations too high therefore making the movie hard to enjoy. King Of The Zombies is an interesting MYSTERY film with some really funny scenes.

The film is about three men, who are on an airplane trying to find a place to land. They're plane ends up crashing on some small island. They search around for a little while, until they find a big house out by a graveyard. The odd man who owns the house invites them in to stay until they can find a way home. But what they don't know, is that they are trapped on an island with zombies!

It's sad, the plot for this movie could have made an excellent horror flick. If this film would have been done right, I believe that it would be very popular. The only problem was that the movie was way too funny, and I absolutely hated the way it ended.

Only check this film out of you are looking for a way to blow an hour and get some good laughs in at the same time.

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