SummaryA reimagining of George A. Romero’s cult classic, Day of the Dead: Bloodline is set in a post-apocalyptic, zombie-filled world where a former med school student is tormented by a dark figure from her past. The only thing is, he’s a half-human, half-zombie hell-bent on destroying her world.
SummaryA reimagining of George A. Romero’s cult classic, Day of the Dead: Bloodline is set in a post-apocalyptic, zombie-filled world where a former med school student is tormented by a dark figure from her past. The only thing is, he’s a half-human, half-zombie hell-bent on destroying her world.
When Day of the Dead: Bloodline, a promised retelling of one of Romero’s classic “Dead” films came across my radar, I thought, “That might be a fun way to start the new year.” It’s not.
No ifs, ands or Bubs about it, the memory of Day Of The Dead: Bloodline will decay at lightning speed. There’s nothing new here that Romero didn’t do better, only a downgraded horror watch with lesser value.
As far as crappy zombie movies go, this isn't that bad. More generic than anything. I may just be desensitized from having watched so much truly awful stuff back during the height of the undead craze, but this is still leagues better than the 2008 remake.
Admittedly the first 25 minutes or so is awful. That's because you're getting bludgeoned in the head by the bad acting, unnatural dialog, and new **** take on Bub (now called Max) right out of the gate. Once the survivors set out to get meds at a nearby college though things get much better. That's when it settles into a comfortable groove of the expected zombie action. There are even some decent twists made to stuff from the Romero movie.
The "Rotters" look pretty good. So does the gore. The appearance of main zombie is the only reason this got any sort of buzz before release. It's easy to see why. They accentuated Johnathan Schaech's mouth to great effect. The guy gives a suitably creepy performance. The action never really deviates from the expected headshots and bite marks, but Max's ability to think makes him a more significant threat to the soldiers in the bunker. It's also the only zombie movie I can think of that at least tried to make a memorable antagonist that stands out from the rest of the living dead in a notable way.
This still in no way deserves to share the same name as one of the greatest zombie movies of all time as all it really does for the Romero film is reduce it's quality to that of your average straight-to-DVD effort, but there's still enough of the original Day of the Dead hanging around too keep things pretty entertaining throughout. The characters may make some baffling decisions and the production values are low, but the ending is more upbeat than you would expect. Trust me, there are worse alternatives out there. Like The Zombie Diaries for example. At least this isn't ineptly made. In fact, the biggest problem with Bloodline is that there isn't really much about it to distinguish it from your typical Romero clone.
6.1/10
Quite possibly the worst actress in film history. I couldn't imagine any line coming off as more wooden or stale than how the lead actress whatever her name was portrayed it. Her one performance destroys this film. Haha. Or does it make it a masterpiece I've just I don't give a f***? Who knows? Either way I have to watch it every few years it is absolute trash and she is the worst but it is Romero universe lol
"Bloodline” director Hèctor Hernández Vicens and screenwriters Mark Tonderai and Lars Jacobson, on the other hand, are less stewards of it than schlockmeisters, treating any possible resonance as stale oil in which to fry the usual junk food of gory, hyperkinetic kills. Their side orders are thin characters with dumb dialogue and even dumber behavior.
IDMB gave this movie 9.1/10 and I would have been OK with this if this was a B movie scale. It's an above average movie which, unless you're a die hard fan of the undead genre (rotters, in the movie) will not manage to hold your attention long enough.
I couldn't figure out if this was Asylum level self-aware awfulness for its own sake or an earnest zombie flick with serious social commentary. Whatever it is, it did not work at all.
Another painful remake that does not stain Romero's legacy nor the legacy of the original film but unfortunately it uses them to attract attention. Avoid it