There are obvious influences apparent throughout TOKYO ZOMBIE, from 80’s American horror comedies (the bickering male leads sometimes recall the comedy morgue workers in RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD) to SHAUN OF THE DEAD. It’s a peculiar mix of throwaway character banter, cartoonish gore (heads pull off with relatively gore-free ease) and surprising sentimentality.
“Black Fuji” is the nickname for a towering mountain of rubbish in Tokyo that has accumulated to an extreme degree. Everyone in the city has dumped stuff there, from industrial waste to nagging loved ones (!) but the dumping ground starts turning into a breeding ground for the restless dead. Two lazy workers at the dump spend their time plucking out nose hairs and playing Ju-Jitsu but, after killing their boss (who subsequently comes back), the two have more on their mind.
There are many nice incidental touches in TOKYO ZOMBIE : a cute element is the fact that no one seems fazed, surprised or even that bothered by the zombie epidemic, almost as if they’ve seen so many zombie movies lately that such an uprising is both inevitable and even irrelevant. While the script falls back on lame gay jokes, it also has scores some witty asides, like the “Horror therapist” who demonstrates how to behead a zombie on TV .
An eccentric tone-shift midway – executed via an animated interlude – turns the flick into a Romero-esque post-apocalypse satire, as the rich survivors use the zombies as slaves and for zombie lightweight boxing tournaments. Sadly, in this spotty second half, the flick loses its pace and zest, and becomes talky and duller as it goes on (and on), making ill-advised and mawkish serious detours in the process.
The DVD includes The Making of the Dead Featurette, Interviews with the actors, Cast and Crew questions and answers session, Actors in Store Appearance, Trailers and Teasers.
– Steven West
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
