Film: World War Z

A virus outbreak that turns people into vicious killers quickly traverses the globe and in order to ensure that his family is protected former United Nations representative Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) must return to the field and search for the origin of the virus.

World War Z immediately throws the viewer into the heart of the action as a seemingly ordinary day descends into a fight for survival for the Lane family. 

Following the explosive opening sequence (partly filmed in my home city of Glasgow) we are off on a round-the-world trip with Lane as he looks for clues to explain what the virus is and how it can be combated.

It seems that reports of re-shoots, re-edits, arguments and studio interference may have put people of this unnecessarily. Regardless of how the movie came to be in its finished state there is no doubt that this is the best zombie film since the brilliant 28 Days Later.

The undead featured here are like a pack of hungry wolves and even move like them on occasion. Pitt is as charismatic as ever as the determined investigator and the supporting cast (including The Killing’s Marielle Enos) all perform well, even the zombies!

World War Z is an action-fest with cool zombies and a bona-fide superstar getting right in the middle of it. What more could you ask for? A bit more emotion maybe.

Check it out in cinemas now.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended.

Book: Dead Tropics by Sue Edge

It’s zombie time again and this time we follow a feisty female nurse as she attempts to protect friends & family from the horde.

Sue Edge’s debut horror story kicks off with a fantastic opening scene. Virus victims arrive in an Australian hospital but the staff fail to take the necessary precautions and all hell breaks loose with many falling prey to the hungry undead.

What follows is a relentless battle for survival and the leading character, Lori, delivers a female action hero performance to rival that of Linda Hamilton and Sigourney Weaver at their best. However, her best efforts may not be enough to protect her group from a threat even bigger than the one posed by the walking corpses.

Amidst the violence and bloodshed there are plenty of emotional scenes. How does Lori react when her daughter is bitten or when she is confronted by the zombie versions of her friend’s parents?

This is all good fun and the author manages to retain the tension throughout but the rapid transition from nurse to killing machine does push the boundaries of one’s imagination and the battles with zombies do become repetitive, with the exception of the river scenes (complete with dead eyes peering through the water) which are something new and exciting. There are also some nice moments of everyday humour amongst the carnage but the blossoming romance felt a tad out of place.

Dead Tropics is available now from Permuted Press.

Ric’s Rating: Good   

Film: Exit Humanity

Its ten years after the American Civil War and upon his return home from a hunting trip Edward Young (Mark Gibson) finds his wife has become one of the walking dead....and his son is missing.

Young eventually decides to go in search of his son. On his travels he meets a fellow survivor and learns of a ruthless General (Bill Moseley of The Devil’s Rejects) who will stop at nothing to find a cure for the unnatural outbreak. Young must deal with all these issues while also attempting to keep a promise.

The Civil War setting is a cool twist in the zombie genre and the story moves along nicely using pages from Young’s journal to illustrate events and Brian Cox provides a smooth narration.

The trouble is we don’t get enough background on Young to ever really care about him and the action often slows to a near standstill.

Cool but lacks excitement.

Exit Humanity is available on DVD in the UK from 2^nd July 2012 courtesy of Metrodome.

Ric's Rating: Dodgy     

Book: The Killing Floor by Craig Dilouie

The remaining characters from Craig DiLouie’s The Infection (see review elsewhere here) continue their struggle for survival in this zombie monster-mash adventure.

I slowly became re-acquainted with Anne, the tormented leader of the group as well as Todd, a young man who has had to grow up fast. New characters are also introduced and bring their own issues to the story.

This sequel really kicks off when Camp Defiance, the refuge valiantly defended in the previous novel, falls foul of infection. Following this incident Ray (a survivor of infection) soon realises he can communicate with the infected, not only with the humans, but also the hideous creatures born of the virus.

The others decide that Ray either has to be eliminated before he causes any further catastrophe or be captured as he surely holds the key to any potential cure.

Each characters hazardous journey continues separately before we come to the final bloody confrontation where true motives emerge and loyalties are decided.

The Infection was a fantastic zombie novel and while this doesn’t quite reach the same emotional level it’s a more than adequate continuation of a story that doesn’t rely on blood and gore. By concentrating on the inner torment faced by those involved DiLouie has created a series that should appeal beyond the preconceived notions of the genre.

The Killing Floor is available in ebook and trade paperback from Permuted Press.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended.       

Film: The Cabin In The Woods

Five friends head off to a remote cabin for a weekend break but all is not what it seems.

From the beginning the audience is made aware of the presence of people watching the group, the whole cabin is rigged with cameras and certain events are engineered, but their purpose is not clear.

This has been hailed as something special, it isn’t. What it is, is an interesting twist on a traditional lost in the woods type movie. For two thirds of the film I was annoyed by the presence of the watchers, I would have been happy with a Friday The 13th type scenario although I couldn’t help but groan when the “zombie rednecks” appeared. What saves this film is the fantastic gung-ho finale when all hell breaks loose, literally.

The cast all perform well and there is a surprising appearance by Chris Hemsworth, almost unrecognisable from his recent turns as Thor.

The Cabin In The Woods is silly and at times frustrating but it still manages to be good fun.

Ric’s Rating: Good

Book: The Failed by Jim Bronyaur

Dr Romen believes he has found the cure to all diseases with his new wonder drug. The D8-C10 virus works by regenerating dead cells consequently curing the patient. Unfortunately everyone who tries the drug dies from the effects……then it begins to work.

The dead come back to life and they are mere shadows of the people they once were. Consumed by the D8-C10 they become the shuffling husks we all know as zombies.

Following the explanation of the outbreak this book quickly becomes a tale of human endeavour amidst the surrounding carnage.

A frightened young girl attempts to convince her parents of the “monsters” outside.
A long haul trucker and his dog hear strange noises coming from their load and two quarrelling pilots begin to suspect their cargo isn’t what it seems.

This is an exciting fight for survival as we follow the characters through various hazardous situations until the remaining few meet up and decide to face the horde in a heroic last-stand battle.

The Failed is a quick easy read that will please fans of the genre but also contains enough emotion and excitement to reach beyond horror. If you like your fiction to be simultaneously fast paced, touching and terrifying then give it a try.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended

Top Books Read in 2011

2011 will go down as the year I embraced reading e-books. The format has helped open my eyes to new authors, short stories and has made me willing to take risks with my reading, some of which paid off big time.

Traditional printed books did not go away, on the contrary I actually welcomed the feel of them after reading e-books so overall I had a brilliant reading experience in 2011.

Here are some of the highlights in no particular order. Each book is reviewed in full elsewhere here and I've included a quote from it to give you a brief taster.

Murder In Silence by Gary Kassay
“stunning debut thriller........harrowing.....the best self-published book I’ve read”

Sinema by Rod Glenn
“This is a hardcore serial killer thriller that won’t appeal to those used to cosy whodunits”

Jimmy by William Malmborg
“ captivating journey through the mind of a young man who crosses the line and brings his darkest fantasies to life”

Black Flowers by Steve Mosby
“Neil Dawson investigates the apparent suicide of his Father in the latest disturbing tale from Steve Mosby”

Creep by Jennifer Hillier
“Fatal Attraction meets Misery.......in a sexually charged story”

11.59 by David Williams
“Full of seedy goings-on and laced with dark humour it had me looking forward to resuming the story every time”

Ask The Dice by Ed Lynskey
“very engaging and the explosive finale provides a final round knockout”

Winds Of Change by Jason Brannon
“simultaneously terrifying and intriguing”

The Sacrificial Man by Ruth Dugdall
“Dugdall proves to be a smart new voice in the crime fiction genre”

The Infection by Craig Dilouie
“everything The Walking Dead aspires to be....all the best elements of a zombie story in one place”

Blitz by Ken Bruen
“Highly recommended for fans of violent, fast paced crime stories”

Memory Leak by Trevor Schmidt
“an action thriller told at a blistering pace that reminded me of one of my favourite films, Total Recall”

Book: Holiday Of The Dead

Wild Wolf Publishing assembles some of the most exciting horror authors around to bring us this zombie anthology containing thirty eight tales featuring our favourite flesh eating foes.

The stories vary in length and content but all feature the basic premise of the dead returning to life with the inevitable catastrophic results.

Stand outs include:

Jennifer by Iain McKinnon in which the hero of the piece may not be what he seems.

Apocalypse Noo by Vallon Jackson which takes us on a scenic trip to Loch Tay in Scotland where the locals are anything but friendly. Vallon Jackson is a pseudonym for Matt Hilton, author of the Joe Hunter thriller series.

Thanksgiving Feast by A.M Boyle which is a surreal tale of an old turkey farmer and a special knife.

Seahouses Slaughterhouse by Rod Glenn which sees the return of Han Whitman, the brilliant anti-hero from Rod’s Sinema novels, see reviews elsewhere here.

My recommendation for tackling this book would be to dip in and out of it reading just one or two stories per sitting. Reading it like a novel can ruin the effect as some of the tales tend to merge.

Check elsewhere here for info. on a recent multi-author Holiday Of The Dead event in Glasgow which I attended.

Ric’s Rating: 72%

Book Event: Holiday Of The Dead

Waterstone's in the heart of Glasgow was the venue for this multi-author event and in attendence were Rod Glenn, Tony Wright, Matt Hilton, Iain McKinnon, Iain Paton and John McCuaig.

Holiday Of The Dead is a collection of stories featuring the undead.

Here is the blurb:

The zombie apocalypse can really put a downer on your holiday... 38 holiday-themed zombie stories from new and established authors including Night of the Living Dead co-writer, John Russo, Tony Burgess, Shaun Jeffrey, Rod Glenn, Ian McKinnon, Matt Hilton, David Dunwoody, Wayne Simmons, Bowie V Ibarra, Joe McKinney, Remy Porter, A P Fuchs and Eric S Brown. Over 500 pages crammed full of flesh-eating horror and dark humour from the cream of UK, US and Canadian talent. Theme parks, serial killers, seaside resorts, Christmas, Thanksgiving and fishing trips. You'll scream, you'll laugh and you might even shed a tear... Holiday zombie horror has never been so entertaining.

Each author read from their contribution to the collection. It was a heady mix of destruction and carnage and as you might expect there were quite a few twists. Lets just say that the zombies aren't always the most dangerous characters in these tales.

After the event all authors spent time signing books and chatting to fans.

Heres me with Rod Glenn, author of the fantastic Sinema books (see reviews elsewhere here).

Matt Hilton, author of the cool Joe Hunter thriller series (you'll find a review of the very first one elsewhere here) also took time out for a chat. Matt goes by the pen name of Vallon Jackson in this book.

It was my very first book event and I'm sure it won't be the last. Check back soon for a full review of Holiday Of The Dead.

A - Z Challenge: Z

Z is for..............................Zombies.

Love them or loathe them, if you're a horror fan you can't escape them.

From Geroge A Romero's classics to 28 Days Later and Shaun Of The Dead they are a force to be reckoned with at the movies.

I have also recently read a couple of zombie novels by Craig DiLouie, the second of which, The Infection, is absolutely brilliant.

There will be more to come from these demented souls courtesy of Permuted Press so stick around, it's bound to be eventful to say the least.

Book: The Infection by Craig Dilouie

Craig Dilouie, author of Tooth And Nail (see review elsewhere here) returns to the Zombie genre with his latest novel.

The infection itself begins on a day just like any other and we see it from the viewpoint of schoolteacher Ethan, as his pupils randomly drop down screaming when the mysterious virus strikes. Three days later everyone felled by the initial wave wakes up and all hell breaks loose.

The book follows a motley crew of survivors in their attempts to find sanctuary while fending off attacks from the infected. While finding some respite in a derelict hospital they make an alarming discovery, hideous alien-like creatures born of the infection.

There are huge similarities between this and the author’s first book but the characters on show here are much more developed making the reader sympathetic to their plight. Each characters individual experiences are told in a series of well placed flashbacks that provide much needed emotion amongst the battles for survival. There is also an interesting turn of events when the group eventually reach the camp they have been searching for. Is it the safe haven they crave?

Fans of the genre will love this, it’s everything the recent tv show The Walking Dead (see review elsewhere here) aspires to be. Throw in a couple of Resident Evil type monsters and the heart of 28 Days Later and you have all the best elements of a Zombie story in one place.

It has bags of movie and sequel potential so hopefully it’s not the last we’ve heard from the excellent characters that are brought vividly to life amongst the most trying of circumstances.

Ric’s Rating: 92%

Preview: The Infection by Craig DiLouie

Craig DiLouie, author of Tooth And Nail (see review elsewhere here)

has sent me a copy of his new novel The Infection for review.

Details below:

A mysterious virus suddenly strikes down millions. Three days later, its victims awake with a single purpose: spread the Infection. As the world lurches toward the apocalypse, some of the Infected continue to change, transforming into horrific monsters.In one American city, a small group struggles to survive. Sarge, a tank commander hardened by years of fighting in Afghanistan. Wendy, a cop still fighting for law and order in a lawless land. Ethan, a teacher searching for his lost family. Todd, a high school student who sees second chances in the end of the world. Paul, a minister who wonders why God has forsaken his children. And Anne, their mysterious leader, who holds an almost fanatical hatred for the Infected.

Check back soon for a full review.

DVD: The Horde

When you watch a film like this French Zombie splatter-fest it's easy to see why European cinema often scoffs at Hollywood horror. This is wall to wall hardcore violence with little or no let up in the pace.

A team of cops enter a run down apartment block and find themselves forced to team up with the criminals they are there to arrest in order to make it out alive.

This is instantly enjoyable and features some fantastic Human v Zombie fight scenes but ultimately it has no likeable characters giving you nobody to root for.

Fast furious fun but no depth.

Ric's rating: 62%

TV Show: The Walking Dead

The hook here is that this is a tv series based around the typical horror film premise of a handful of survivors battling against huge numbers of shuffling zombies.

Sceptical? Me too but I was sufficiently impressed to make a point of catching episode 2.

There was nothing new here (is there ever?) and most of the pilot episode felt like the opening scenes of 28 Days Later with Andrew Lincoln replacing Cillian Murphy as the man who wakes up in hospital to an entirely new world.

Lincoln himself is pretty impressive and his American accent is spot-on. The rest of the cast (including Prison Break's Sarah Wayne Callies) didn't have much to do but are sure to feature more as Lincoln's character searches for his family while fighting off the brain-munching masses.

The effects here are as good as and even better than some zombie movies but with Frank "The Shawshank Redemption" Darabont on board I expected a bit more. Hopefully it'll pick up.

Ric's Rating: 58%

Film: Resident Evil: Afterlife

Having not seen any of the previous movies I went into this with an open mind despite recent drubbings in the press. For the first 15mins or so I was treated to a fantastic action sequence (the 3D is wonderful) but puzzled by the story except for the basic virus outbreak leading to zombies by the bucketload.

It picks up when Alice (Milla Jovovich) and Claire (Ali Larter from Heroes) meet up with fellow survivors in an abandoned prison.

Plenty of blood and bullets fly as the newfound allies attempt to reach safety in "Arcadia" while avoiding the rather wierdly mutated zombie masses.

Prison Break's Wentworth Miller plays a mysterious prisoner and Sons Of Anarchy's Kim Coates is a slimy movie producer.

No depth to this, it's all about the 3D action scenes but if you enjoy explosions, bullets and body parts flying and some nifty sumersaults then it's a passable action flick.

Ric's Rating: 55%