Director: Victor Halperin
Year: 1936
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie
Plot:
After learning of a special reanimation ceremony, a group of scientists and their entourage head to a small village in Cambodia to investigate the incident, but when a dubious member of the group learns the formula ensnares the locals into an army of followers to use their powers for his own cause.
Review:
This was a highly underwhelming and bland effort. About the film’s only positives here stem from the scenes in the temple regarding the search for the secret regarding the truth of the resurrection process. The first person to enter it and followers the keeper going deep into the vaults to find it which evokes a generally fun adventure-film scenario that’s only called as such due to the first glimpses of action in this one. As well, there’s the finale where they realize they’ve become free and rise up against their oppressor leaving a trail of destruction in their wake hunting down the one who enslaved them which features the best action here, but that’s all this one has going on.
There are quite a few flaws here. Most of the issues here stem from the dull presentation that doesn’t generate any kind of excitement or interest in what’s going on. The beginning of this one spends tons of time dryly espousing racial stereotypes about the natures of the zombies’ creation and the threat it poses in anyone else’s possession but theirs, the quest for the secrets inside the lost city, or the utterly banal romance so obviously shoehorned into this one that’s furthered by the jealousy angled included for no reason. As these keep the film held back for so long until anything happens, there’s very little in the film that’s interesting or enjoyable.
That wouldn’t be too bad if the film weren’t so cheap and flimsy that it’s hard to take it seriously. Granted, some of it could be due to the film stock it was shot on which makes everything look herky-jerky for no reason, but regardless the sets here just display that innate fakeness from the time period where the actors are standing in front of paintings that in no way resembles an actual location. Other scenes where a major military scene is completely bungled or just being too dark to tell what’s going on, keep this one so underwhelming and uneventful that they overcome those few lonely positives easily.
Overview: 0.5/5
Filled with so few horror elements as to be nearly worthless due to wholly uninvolving pacing alongside an unforgiving cheapness, this one has very little to recommend about it. This is pretty much to be treated as a forgotten curiosity piece in the history of films and left as such since even those who enjoy zombie films or pre-1940s films will have little to appreciate this one.
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