So I'd have to think that Nazi Zombies are pretty much an official subgenre by now - between the Red Snow series, Frankenstein's Army, and Bunker of the Dead we've got a few to choose from. And that's just the European-produced ones. There's almost certainly a couple of American ones in there too. (You don't get to Osombie without at least trying zombie Hitler.)
But while there's always something interesting about Nazi Zombies in theory - there's a campy energy there, and they're probably going to look cool - it's almost always a matter of style over substance in these films. (Red Snow comes the closest to bucking that trend, I guess.) Bunker of the Dead is more of the same - the zombies look pretty good, there's some decent chaotic action, and the titular bunker is claustrophobic enough to give the film a decent atmosphere. And really, a hidden Nazi bunker on a US military base is not a terrible setting for a cheesy horror film. But the characters and story range from bad to bland, so nothing sticks.
My Synopsis: Guy with a body camera sneaks onto a military base to find a secret bunker filled with Nazi gold. But little does he know it's actually a... Bunker of the Dead!
Elaborate Genre: First-person found footage action horror, with a little comedy
Overall: Not terrible, but doesn't bring anything new or terribly exciting to the table. Also, a bit disorienting at times.
So the general concept is workable, but Bunker of the Dead leans too heavily on a couple of things to be too enjoyable. (1) It's less of a found footager and more of a First-Person-Shooter than anything. Our main character is equipped with a body camera, and so 90% of the film is from his shaky point of view. It's decently done for the concept, I guess, but I'm just not that interested in seeing 80+ minutes of it. (Also why I skipped Hardcore Henry.) This is doubly true when the filmmaker's don't present any compelling reason why it had to be that way. There's never much of a hook or reason for using the FPS view, and nothing really happens that wouldn't be better if it was a traditionally shot film. (I guess it's maybe easier and cheaper this way?)
I reckon Bunker was meant for 3D though. The characters talk about how the camera is really heavy, because 3D. Although why they need a 3D camera to help in their quest for hidden Nazi gold is never explained. But there are some "coming at ya!" gags (that obviously don't work so well in Netflix), most notably our hero (i.e. the audience) getting urinated on. Which brings us to another issue with the film - there are too many attempts at humor, and it's all annoyingly sophomoric. Not that I'm expecting sophisticated humor in my Nazi zombie movie, but it gets old after a while. I mean, I don't think we're going for any legitimate suspense/tension here anyways, but the tone of the humor all but ensures that isn't going to happen.
The action/gore is okay without ever being that inspired. Since most of the film takes place in a dark bunker, it's pretty easy to hide the seams, I guess. The camera also has a habit of cutting out just as something nasty (i.e. expensive) is about to happen - so you'll see set-up, then some static, and then the gory results. Again, what you see is fine, but it's not really going to satisfy any gorehounds, you know?
I guess the biggest problem with Bunker of the Dead is that it's pretty forgettable. Nothing all that surprising happens (sans a weird alien that I think is *supposed* to look corny). Once you establish the "comedic" tone, everything you would expect to happen in a not-so-serious found footage zombie movie happens. He fights zombies, makes some allies, they all fight zombies, and then fight The Boss, and then they try to leave. I mean, I watched it last night, and am kind of already having trouble remembering how it ended. It's that kind of movie. (Or maybe I'm that kind of viewer.) I think I enjoyed actually watching it more than Frankenstein's Army, but this film is far less memorable. It's okay, but very disposable.
I would shrug my shoulders if asked to recommend this film.
No comments:
Post a Comment