Gangsters, Guns & Zombies

Alright, well first of all forget all about the DVD cover, because it is putting it on thickly, selling a product that is quite far from what you see on the DVD cover. That being said, then don't get me wrong, because this is not an all together bad movie. Sure there are far better zombie movies available, but there are also far worse zombie movies available.

So why doesn't "Gangsters, Guns & Zombies" stand out in the zombie genre? Well, simply put, because it delivers nothing and once the movie is finished you shrug your shoulders and think 'what was the purpose of this movie?' For a zombie movie, then there wasn't much gore or rot in the movie. It was initially a clone of "28 Days Later", just in a scaled-down version. And the zombies were fast, agile runners with some very red blood splattered on their faces. And given the total lack of rot and decay, I can only assume that this movie is taking place early on in an apocalyptic dead rising in England.

The acting in the movie was adequate, but I can't really say that there was anything outstanding or memorable here. Which just added fuel to the mediocrity of the movie.

As a huge fan of all things zombie, I buy just about anything I come across that involve the shambling, rotting dead, and truth be told, then my collection holds a great many numbers of movies that have been watched once and will most likely never be watched again, as they failed to impress. And I must admit that "Gangsters, Guns & Zombies" is going to fall into that group. It just didn't impress in any way. (Perhaps maybe aside from the cheap price on the Amazon market place.)

The DVD cover blatantly brandished "zombie lovers are in for a bloody treat!" - yeah, alright. I wonder what movie that reviewer was watching, because it couldn't rightfully be "Gangsters, Guns & Zombies". For hardcore fans of the zombie genre, "Gangsters, Guns & Zombies" is worth watching once, and that is about it for this movie - sadly.

I wanted to like this film. I love Zombie films and look forward to seeing them when I can. Just some mindless fun. This is not that film. There is some witty dialogue but few and far between. The first 3/4 of the film we are in a van, very claustrophobic, tight shots and we never get to see the world. random zombies are everywhere and the make up is not well done. The after effects are horrible. The acting, yeah.. not good.

now t the Story. It tries really hard to be as the box says Reservoir Dogs but fails. I mean, we start out right after an apparent bank heist during a zombie event as if anyone would care about money during this outbreak. A dude is shot and bleeding in the van. The next hour they are driving to a safe house. YAWN..... I really don't want to write more on this because it is just not worth my time. Its bad. You can totally tell it only had a budget of 1200 bucks, probably went to food for the cast. Is just bad.

Having just robbed a bank six men are in the process of getting away when a zombie outbreak occurs and dramatically changes their immediate plans. Since one of their members has been shot the leader of the group named "Tony" (Huggy Leaver) makes the decision to take their wounded comrade to the hospital. Unfortunately, the zombie outbreak has devastated that area and so they are forced to bring him back into the van and continue driving. Yet even though their vehicle takes them outside of the city limits they continue to see the havoc brought on by zombies well into the countryside. And with fatigue and lack of food and fuel beginning to become an issue they soon realize that they desperately need to make it to their safehouse soon. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that for an ultra low-budget project this film turned out to be somewhat of a surprise. For starters, I thought that the plot was adequately suspenseful and the acting reasonably solid. Additionally, unlike so many low-budget films today, the director (Matthew Mitchell) decided not to take the easy route and make something "so bad it's good" and tried to produce something a bit better instead. To that end, the humor and dialogue wasn't nearly as crude. On the flip side, however, the audio wasn't as sharp as it could have been and the extras (used predominately as "the zombies") lacked the necessary makeup which really hurt the film as a whole. That being said, while I admired the manner in which the director used the scant resources available, the flaws were too noticeable to be ignored and for that reason I have rated this film accordingly. Slightly below average.

...DON'T BOTHER. A rubbish, not-even-student-grade film. Apparently, given its only synopsis here which seems to be written by one of its overly enthusiastic and underly talented 'creators', it hopes to ride on the coat-tails of 70s B schlockers. Even if you enjoy badly done crap as a source of humor, don't waste your time. It's even more boring and banal than it is amateurish.

I can't believe I wasted even these last five minutes of my life reviewing this. All I can say is, I watched this so that YOU DON'T HAVE TO.

Now making up this timewaster's undeserved but obligatory

Ten

Lines

Of Text.. Done.

Briefly said, a van full of bank robbers have their getaway complicated by the oncoming zombie holocaust.

This movie was a pleasant surprise for me. I was expecting a B movie. Especially since I found the title on a list of 'B' thrillers. What I found was a very well done flick that fit my mood to a tee.

First thing to note is this is clearly in Guy Ritchie style (as in Lock Stock or Snatch). Now there is a fine line between cheap knock off, spoof and tribute. It mostly depends on how faithfully a style is recreated and it's underlying quality. The Ritchie style hits you right from the opening credits. Slick graphic credits interrupting brisk action sequences while the protagonist narrates, followed up by a by a cast of stereotypical British gangsters, each introduced by the narrator. It's a good imitation and I rate it a tribute. If you aren't fond of Rithchie's style you won't like this one either.

I found the characters amusing, original and endearing (you gotta love grandma). Moreover, I was pleasantly surprised at the overall quality. Direction, cinematography, acting, writing, sound all above par. Well, one exception. If you are making a zombie movie, it might be judicious to employ the services of a make-up artist. Or, at the very least, insist that your extras pay a visit to the local costume shop at their own expense.

It would be easy to criticize the finale which seems more like a cast party than a conclusion. But, think about it, there's only one end to a zombie flick. The zombies kill everyone. Isn't that what's meant by Apocalypse?

If you took the trouble to search for this title, the answer is "Yes". Well worth a look see.