Zombie Night

Zombie Night

Starring Anthony Michael Hall, Daryl Hannah, Jennifer Taylor, Alan Ruck

Directed by John Gulager

The Story:
On an ordinary night, the dead come back to life to feast on the living.  Patrick (Anthony Michael Hall) and his daughter Tracie (Rachel G. Fox) attempt to make it back home to Patrick's wife Birdy (Daryl Hannah) and her blind mother Nana (Shirley Jones) before the zombies get there.

Meanwhile, neighboring family Karin (Jennifer Taylor) and Joseph (Alan Ruck) fortify themselves in their home, which is equipped with surveillance cameras and a panic room, where they try to keep their own family safe.  If they could survive morning, the zombies will die out and they'll live to see another day.

The Pros:
The zombies look well-done for a small horror film, and since it falls under the banner of one of the most terrible distributors ever (The Asylum), that's saying something.

The film boasts a surprisingly well-known cast, some of whom aren't completely washed-up.  80s icon Anthony Michael Hall plays the devoted father who does everything he can to make sure his daughter makes it home alive.  "Kill Bill" star Daryl Hannah is almost unidentifiable as Birdy, the mother who has some fight in her, but not as violent as her Tarantino work.  "Two and a Half Men" star Jennifer Taylor plays the rich neighbor, and "Ferris Bueller" star Alan Ruck plays her husband.

The standout performance comes from legendary actress Shirley Jones, who plays Birdy's mother who's also blind as a bat.  She hams up her performance so well it's extremely comical and over-the-top, which is something to be expected for a low-brow film like this.

The concept of the zombies dying out come daylight serves as a unique spin to the genre, as our hapless heroes only have to survive a few hours instead of trying to adapt to a whole new life with zombies hunting them day and night.

The Cons:
The story, although offering a unique twist, is still incredibly simple and stupid, not really offering anything memorable after it ends.

The acting is rather lackluster and subdued, except for Shirley Jones, and none of them are really good, especially for a bunch of acclaimed actors.

The effects are laughable, as you can clearly tell when the director used CGI very poorly (then again, it was a SyFy Original, so that's to be expected).

The film was tedious to watch - I just wanted it to end even from the start, because it was pure stupidity.


The Summary:
Despite boasting some surprising names, "Zombie Night" is worse than your typical zombie film because it's just plain stupid, with nothing worth remembering except for how awful it all was.


The Score: D-