The Editor
This film perfectly mimics and makes fun of the classic 70's Italian horror movies that play at any classic horror film festival. Complicated and convoluted plot, check. Badly dubbed, check. Boobs, check. Funky synth tracks, check. I'm amazed Shout! Factory picked it up and not Drafthouse, it's just so damn good as a parody.
The off-kilter crazy plot involves as an editor, Rey Ciso played by Adam Brooks, who lost four of his fingers on his right hand in a horrible accident. Now a psycho killer is killing the cast and crew where Ciso works and everyone is blaming him because the killer is leaving all his victims missing four fingers on their right hand as well. Ciso continues to work an edit a film that keeps losing cast while a lead detective thinks he's doing it and even Ciso starts to question if he's losing his mind.
I'm sad I watched this by myself. I thought it was going to be just another slasher film, not a parody of such great proportions. Joke afters joke come in from the awkward sex that takes places to the ridiculous notion of an editor who doesn't have the full use of his hands.
The body count and blood is taken seriously as well as inner anguish awake nightmare dreams, common in these type of films. When people die in this it's not funny as it is horrifically violent. Blood, body parts and axes to the head. Everything between the vengeful murders is a joke. Naked people in the background, unisex showers at the studio. Every minute the film finds a way to make it absurd to watch. Why would someone do that during sex?The dubbed lines out of everyone's mouth are so cheesy and could never be said today. Slapping a woman is common practice as is threatening someone with a chainsaw. The film even manages to put in a car chase for more 70's love!
You'll need to have seen a few Italian classic horror films to get what it's mocking, but it's so worth it for that payoff of parody. The Editor mocks the 70's classics better than anything else ever made.
Cooties
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I've been wanting to see this horror film since it was announced a year ago. It was shelved since then and from what I read from earlier accounts changed a lot when it finally went into production. Instead of taking place on island theme park a regular elementary school holds hostage teachers and a substitute. They're held hostage by zombie children, infected by the joke name of "cooties, " epidemic.
Now this is a comedy zombie film and where it shines is its large cast of comedy veterans. Wade Johnson (Rainn Wilson), is the PE teacher with Tracy Lacey (Jack McBrayer), Rebbekah Halverson (Nasim Pedrad), and Doug (Leigh Whannell) all being quirky characters. Doug has been the flat-out favorite of friends and myself. The second you see him reading a book titled, "How to have a normal conversation, " you'll want to watch every strange thing he says and does. Elijah Wood is in it too, he stars as a substitute teacher going back to his old elementary and maybe falling in love with one of his old classmates. He's characters best trait is wanting to write a story of a possessed boat. The whole played out, let's fall in love again idea wasn't need.
What was needed was some industrial cleaner as the little monsters in the film eat a lot of people. You won't be too sad as watching the elementary school staff eaten is always accompanied by a joke.
It wasn't the best film it could be, and it wasn't the most original setting. I've seen so many school based zombie films that I have to say the space used was kind of paltry, the school wasn't used to the best advantage it could have been. Even the kid zombies jokes weren't the best I've seen or that new.
The ending made less sense compared to the rest of the film and lazily left it open for a sequel. I could tell you to watch the film up to a point and that the rest isn't worth watching, the best jokes take place at the start. The ending may have a been a re-shoot or if not seems really last minute or out of place.
What's worthwhile are the performances by the comedians throughout the film and if you can watch a bunch of teachers struggle against zombie kids, why don't you?
