Dug Up

Seriously? It says it's a zombie movie but it's the furthest thing from that. This is basically the early start of the, all southerners are white supremacists/hicks. The accents are just so far over the top that you want to rent a trailer just to say you've got good coverage on the white stereotype that seems to be common these days. The acting is unbearable, the girls are just, yuck. And the guys are basically what you've seen in movies like Deliverance. I mean what's the point? Nobody believes this is real American culture. There isn't any town in the USA that behaves this way. But of course a zombie movie wouldn't be complete without a bunch of Neo-Nazis right? I mean seriously?

DUG UP is your usual indie zombie comedy which feels a little better than some of the braindead efforts that this genre conjures up. The reason for that is that the script isn't totally mindless and the main three actors do seem invested in their roles. The story takes a while to get going and the first half is too obsessed with showing skin to get on with the plotting, but the low rent zombie nonsense in the second half is a bit better. There's the requisite cheap gore effects and some mannered acting bringing to life characters that are more caricature than real person. By the standards of mainstream cinema it's not very good, but by the standards of an indie it's not so bad.

Not a masterpiece. But it has a few funny bits. The best was early on when the sheriff is at the location of a deceased man, and it's a sight gag that you might miss if you look away. There are a few other funny bits and the movie knows what it is and does not take itself seriously. Decent zombies, goofy, and for what it is, in its class, it's a solid 8. Well, what else can I say about it? The effects budget was certainly decent. The characters are stereotypes, but so what? The whole idea of the main male character visiting his sister at work was disturbingly hysterical to me and I'm really out of things to say. If you like bad movies, you'll like it a lot. Even though its on the cusp of just being good dumb fun.

I know this film was made in 2013 and 'Shaun of the Dead' was in 2004, but either way, both movies were released during the 'renaissance' of the zombie era. The difference is that 'Shaun of the Dead' was one of the first flicks (of the time) to mix zombie-horror and comedy and it was funny, endearing and well-written. Jump forward nearly a decade and 'Dug Up' in also a comedy-horror film set during an undead uprising. And it's not that bad. It's just not that good, either.

If we say - speaking generally - that 2002's 'Resident Evil' (movie) started the modern obsession with zombies, then now - over twenty years later - we've seen almost every different type of take on the subject matter. If you want a 'straight' zombie-horror, then you have everything from Romero's films, to 'The Walking Dead' TV series, or '28 Days Later.' Whereas, if you're looking for something similar, but more light-hearted then you'd - most likely - choose 'Shaun of the Dead.' And, let's pretend that 'Shaun' didn't exist and you asked me - now, in 2024 - to name my 'Top 20 zombie comedy films' I could probably do that and give you a load of movies you probably haven't heard of, but all have laughs at the expense of some shuffling ghouls.

And that's where the problem lies. Even if I had to list twenty zombie-comedies, 'Dug Up' still wouldn't be included. You'll notice I'm not really telling you much about the plot. That's because there isn't one. It's merely one of many similar films which tries to be funny and original, but just can't really offer anything that you haven't seen before.

There's some brief nudity in the opening act, if that's any incentive for you to watch it. But I found it on a streaming service and happened to pause it to go to the kitchen. I figured it must be about halfway (forty-five minutes) through and was amazed when I saw I was only twenty minutes in.

Like I say, it's not terrible. If you really want to watch about 'Number Thirty' in the top hundred list of best zombie-comedy films then this is it. Otherwise, simply stick to 'Shaun' - chances are you already own a copy in your DVD collection.

Minute to minute laughs. Done very well at first wasn't really sure then I could not stop watching. Filmed excellently each camera shot was perfect pulls you right into the story. Really hope to see more from Cast and Crew. My friend cannot stop talking about it. To the cast and crew thank you for a great night of entertainment. C,L, Bush and friends.