Dead Season

Dead Season is a pretty decent no budget zombie horror film that you won't hate yourself for watching. While it is standard fare for the genre, it's funny how something so cheap gets it so right while bigger budget films manage to miss the mark.

The movie opens with a voice over, a man named Elvis is talking over the radio relating his story of how he saw the zombie apocalypse. He was an EMT and a person he couldn't save gets back up a few minutes later. He talks about how he tried to get back to his family only to find them gone. He buried them. He's telling this story to Tweeter, a woman who is traveling with a young boy. All of them are headed to the same place. To to docks, to get on a boat, and maybe find safety on an island somewhere.

They do find an island, but it isn't safe. It was, until a Dutch cruise ship crashed into the reef and since then supplies and zombies have been washing ashore. The island is controlled by a former military man, Kurt, who is trying to keep things together. But everything falls apart.

Dead Season looks surprisingly good despite have zero budget. The crew used their Canon 5D and 7D cameras very well, proving that you don't need a RED to make a good film. While most of the actors are unknown, it works in the favor of the film, not against it, as they are more believable as regular people. Especially Scott Peat, Elvis, who completely embodies the everyman the audience needs to root for.

The DVD contains a few extras, outtakes, deleted scenes and a making of featurette. But the real gem is the commentary, with director Deyoe, the director of photography, the producer/editor, and Scott Peat, and is full of great insight into how they got the movie made, the production and working without money.

Dead Season isn't the best film ever made, but it's good enough to earn a place on my DVD shelf and will get a few repeat viewings for sure.