The Zombie Diaries (2006)

An unknown virus begins spreading and within weeks it engulfs the entire planet. Upon the death of its host, the virus would reanimate the corpse until it was no longer able to support itself. Soon, the planet was infested with the undead.

Directors:

Michael G. Bartlett (as Michael Bartlett), Kevin Gates

Writers:

Michael G. Bartlett (as Michael Bartlett), Kevin Gates

Stars:

Scott Ainslie, Toby Bowman, Victoria Summer

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Scott Ainslie	...	Sgt. Jim McCulloch
Toby Bowman	...	Cpl. Jez Nicholson
Victoria Summer	...	Leeann (as Victoria Nalder)
Juliet Forester	...	Sharon Buckley
Vicky Blades	...	Vanessa (as Anna Blades)
Craig Stovin	...	Andy
Leonard Fenton	...	Bill
Jonathan Ball	...	Matt
Alison Mollon	...	Elizabeth
Kyle Sparks	...	Greg
Jonnie Hurn	...	John
Sophia Mackie Ellis	...	Anna McKenzie (as Sophia Ellis)
James Fisher	...	Geoff
Russell Jones	...	Goke
Imogen Church	...	Sue

Storyline

In the early part of the 21st century, an unknown deadly virus is spreading among the population. The planet becomes infested with a new threat unlike any other The Undead. Three compelling video diaries chart the beginning of the plague through the last days of the apocalypse. In the first, a documentary film crew traveling the countryside becomes caught in the outbreak and are forced to survive at all costs. In the second, a husband and wife flee London and meet a mysterious hitchhiker, scavenging the remnants of dead towns where shadows lurk at every turn. In the third, a group of survivors escape the virus, making their way to a farm for refuge, only to find themselves attacked by the creatures who now rule the night.

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Plot Keywords:

infection | zombie | 

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Taglines:

Brace yourself... This time it's for real.

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence/gore, language and some nudity

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Bad Movie Beatdown: Diary of the Dead (2011)

User Reviews

No more shaky camera, please.

The Zombie Diaries was intriguing in the very early going. It had a low budget realism that actually worked for a little bit. I remember one scene early on where a character had trouble lining up a single close range rifle shot against a lone zombie. There's more realism in that than most movies that feature over-the-shoulder head shots on moving targets from 50 yards away. Unfortunately, that's about the best thing I have to say about this movie.

The Zombie Diaries consists of three separate stories that occur during a zombie epidemic in England. The stories intersect later on in the movie, and that's really about all you can say about it in a review. There are numerous characters in the various stories- so many in fact, that it's hard to identify one from the other after awhile. The virtually non-stop cinema verite shaky camera will drive you mad and makes it impossible to follow the storyline they're trying to set up. This is especially true during the nighttime scenes, and there are several of those. With all apologies to my British friends- the actors in this movie are so British that they're nearly incomprehensible.

So, if you've seen Zombie Diaries, you can scratch it off your list and move on. If you haven't, you're not missing much. With all that being said, I will say that there's a basis here for a much better movie. I would be interested if someone gave it another go with a script rewrite and some improvements in the basic cinematography.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 October 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Zombie Diaries

Filming Locations:

Chapel Street, Baldock, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP8,100 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bleeding Edge Films, Off World Films

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1