From vampires to werewolves, there seems to be no limit to the imagination of writers and creators who recycle these mythical monsters in books, paraphernalia, movies and television.
Prominent on store shelves and in various media formats lately are slow-moving, mindless beings risen from the dead and driven by an uncontrollable need to feast on the flesh of the living. I’m talking about zombies.
The zombie was first brought to the big screen in 1932. “White Zombie” starred Bela Lugosi as a voodoo master who brings a young girl back from the dead as a zombie played by Madge Bellamy. The film was directed by Victor Halperin and is now considered a cult classic. Since the film’s debut, zombies have evolved in to a fan favorite among scare-seekers and have spawned many more films.
The 2004 movie “Shaun of the Dead,” starring Simon Pegg, is a must-see zombie parody. It’s the story of a down-on-his-luck guy who’s a little lazy, but when it comes to protecting his girl, his mum and his friends from zombies, Shaun is the man for the job.
As far as fear-filled classics go, the 1978 zombie drama “Dawn of the Dead” is, to date, still considered the best zombie movie ever made. It’s George A. Romero’s follow-up to “Night of the Living Dead.” Romero is considered the “Godfather” of zombies, so no spoilers here – go home and watch it for yourself.
Television is even joining in on the zombie craze with AMC’s wildly popular series “The Walking Dead,” starring Andrew Lincoln. Lincoln portrays a sheriff that ends up in a coma after being shot. When he wakes, he finds himself in a very different world where the streets are overrun by the flesh-eating dead and his wife and son are nowhere to be found. He has to adapt quickly to survive while he tries desperately to reunite with his family.
The zombie mania still doesn’t stop there. It has even found its way into the public’s daily lives by means of paranoia and colorful, witty product placement. Zombie paraphernalia, from comical items to apocalyptic survival tools, can be found on store shelves everywhere.
For those interested, the Zombie Apocalypse Academy catalogs and posts all things zombie, including new products and survival advice. Its Facebook fan page has 64,000 “likes” and the website, zombieapocalypseacademy.org, has a cornucopia of information on zombie entertainment for survivalists.
