SDFiles #019 – Origins: Zombies Part 2

Published: Nov. 12, 2014, 4:37 p.m.



This week we bring to you our second part of the Origins of Zombies. There is so much information about zombies that we couldn't quarantine it all in one episode. So here you go.
Romero's Zombies

* Romero's Zombies were the cause of an unknown phenomenon which causes re-animation of the brain. It is not spread from undead to human, rather just the act of dying can bring the infection.
* James Titchwell, Dreadful Pleasures: An Anatomy of Modern Horror, "[He] bred the zombie with the vampire, and what he got was the hybrid vigor of a ghoulish plague monster."
* Night of the Living Dead selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry.
* Because of a copyright error, Night of the Living Dead is public domain and is distributed by many different publishers: 52 VHS, 181 DVD, 9 Blu-ray.
* There are five sequels to Night of the Living Dead each one tracing the evolution of the living dead epidemic, but focusing on humanity's desperate attempt to cope with it.

Sam Raimi Films

* Creatures are demonically possessed corpses
* Not really zombies, but we see a lot of influence from Raimi in present day zombies

O'Bannon's Zombies

* Zombies have a specific hunger for brains and at first, retain all their former intelligence and abilites: running, speaking, thinking, etc.
* Zombification occurs by a chemical compound called Trioxin, which was a byproduct of experiments from the outbreak during Night of the Living Dead
* The consumption of brains helps stave off the pain of decomposition

Zombie Movies by Decade



Decade
Count


1930
3


1940
6


1950
5


1960
13


1970
25


1980
60


1990
34


2000
173


2010 (to present)
68



Schmidty’s Favorite Zombie Media:

* Movie: Warm Bodies (2013)
* TV Show: The Walking Dead (2010-present)
* Book: Monster Hunter series
* Video Game: Left 4 Dead

Zohner’s Favorite Zombie Media:

* Movie: Zombieland (2009)
* TV Show: The Walking Dead (2010-present)
* Book: The Walking Dead (2003)
* Video Game: Minecraft

 


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