Review: ‘The Walking Deceased’ a good-natured spoof of zombie subgenre
“The Walking Deceased,” a good-natured parody of living-dead horror movies, follows survivors of a zombie apocalypse as they make a run for the Safe Haven Ranch in the middle of nowhere.
As with Edgar Wright’s 2004 “Shaun of the Dead,” “The Walking Deceased” owes a great deal to George A. Romero’s entire canon. Writer Tim Ogletree goes so far as to name one of his characters Romeo (Troy Ogletree), whom others repeatedly call Romero by mistake.
Homages to “Shaun of the Dead,” “The Walking Dead” and “28 Days Later” are quite defensible, but indiscriminate nods to such throwaways as the 2008 “Zombie Strippers!” and the 2013 “Warm Bodies” nudge the film toward Wayans brothers territory. Some allusions are probably so obscure they will be lost on all but the biggest fans of the subgenre.
The film, directed by Scott Dow, doesn’t attempt any meta-ness beyond perfunctory sight gags. All the characters seem to know exactly what they are dealing with — even Sheriff Lincoln (Dave Sheridan), who just woke up from a 29-day coma. Yet none is privy to survival skills that could be gleaned from the consumption of zombie films and television shows.
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“The Walking Deceased”
MPAA rating: R for bloody violence, language, sexuality, nudity, drug use.
Running time: 1 hour, 28 minutes.
Playing: AMC Rolling Hills 20, Torrance. Also on VOD.
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