It wasn’t that long ago that horror fans were claiming that the zombie genre had become boring due to overexposure in popular culture. However, the overwhelming popularity of zombie media during the 2000s and 2010s resulted in a new generation of filmmakers gracing the genre with brand new takes on one of the most familiar […]
It wasn’t that long ago that horror fans were claiming that the zombie genre had become boring due to overexposure in popular culture. However, the overwhelming popularity of zombie media during the 2000s and 2010s resulted in a new generation of filmmakers gracing the genre with brand new takes on one of the most familiar monsters in cinema.
In honor of these undead hidden gems, I’ve decided to come up with a list recommending six underrated zombie movies that you might have missed. After all, there’s only so many times you can rewatch George A. Romero‘s filmography before you start to crave for fresh meat, and there’s plenty to go around if you’re willing to dig through streaming sites and bargain bins!
While this list is obviously based on personal opinion, I’ll try to limit entries to less popular movies that deserve more love, so don’t expect to see major releases like Overlord or even Train to Busan on here. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own undead favorites if you think a particularly fun one was missed.
With that out of the way, onto the list.
6. Zombeavers (2014)
The idea of zombified animals has always fascinated me, as critters like the undead dogs from Resident Evil always seemed much scarier than their human counterparts. Of course, scary movies tend to avoid depicting these creatures due to the expensive special effects required to bring this kind of monster to life. Fortunately, there are exceptions to this rule, and Jordan Rubin’s 2014 horror-comedy Zombeavers is one of the best.
Through the use of charming animatronics and plenty of lo-fi visual trickery, Zombeavers tells the story of an ill-fated group of college students vacationing at a cabin near a beaver dam. Unfortunately for our young protagonists, a chemical spill ends up turning the once-peaceful beavers into undead predators thirsting for human flesh, with the film proceeding to poke fun at all of our favorite zombie tropes while still serving as a sincere love letter to the genre.
5. Anna and the Apocalypse (2017)
Genre mashups are tricky enough without adding original music to the mix, but the added difficulty didn’t seem to faze Scottish filmmaker John McPhail when he set out to make the world’s first Christmastime Musical about an undead uprising. While Anna and the Apocalypse certainly won’t appeal to everyone, you’ve got to admit that this ambitious little horror comedy deserves a bigger following.
From the catchy songs to the clever subversion of infamous zombie tropes (as well as a lovable main character brought to life by Ella Hunt), there are plenty of reasons to check this one out, even if you think that undead horror-comedies peaked with Shaun of the Dead.
If you like this one, I’d also recommend checking out Gregg Bishop’s criminally underseen high school horror-comedy Dance of the Dead.
4. La Horde (2009)
Benjamin Rocher and Yannick Dahan’s La Horde tends to be outshone by other gruesome French productions from the 2000s, but this hyper violent tour-de-force is just as action-packed as it is terrifying. In fact, I believe that La Horde’s frenetic pacing and gritty aesthetics would have been better received today than back in 2009, especially since portions of the flick play out like a kick-ass videogame.
Fortunately, this highly underrated film has been blessed with something of a second life thanks to online word-of-mouth, though it’s still rather difficult to track down for American audiences. That’s why I’d only recommend this one to fans of high-octane splatter cinema willing to jump through a few annoying hoops in order to purchase an imported Blu-ray.
3. Flight of the Living Dead: Outbreak on a Plane (2007)
I still have no idea how my dad came across a DVD of this obscure gem, but I’m still glad that he gifted it to me all those years ago. Briefly known as Plane Dead before being hastily retitled after its festival premiere, Flight of the Living Dead suffers from low production value, wooden acting, and a derivative script, but I’d be lying if I said that this wasn’t one of the most entertaining entries on this list.
A tongue-in-cheek splatter flick with enough practical violence to keep even the most demanding of gore-hounds satisfied, Outbreak on a Plane feels a lot like an ’80s movie that somehow fell through a time portal and landed in the 2000s. It may not be perfect, but it’s definitely worth a watch if you’re in the mood for some self-aware undead thrills.
2. The Dead (2010)
Another bizarre time capsule of a film that would have been a huge hit had it been released during the 80s, The Dead follows an American mercenary who must team up with a local soldier after crash-landing in West Africa during a zombie outbreak. Of course, what really makes the movie so damn impressive is just how much tension the directing duo of Jon and Howard J. Ford manages to extract from such a small budget.
Shot on location in Burkina Faso and Ghana, this daring indie production achieved the impossible by combining local culture with Hollywood filmmaking without the need for a meddling studio – and that alone already warrants its place on this list as a zombified hidden gem that looks far more expensive than it actually is!
1. Fido (2006)
If you’ve ever wondered about what might have happened to the world after the events of Shaun of the Dead, then have I got a movie for you! Taking place in an alternate timeline where humanity overcame the zombie apocalypse and proceeded to turn the living dead into remote-controlled servants, this charming horror comedy follows a young boy and his pet zombie as they navigate the trials and tribulations of a 1950s-inspired dystopia.
Some horror fans have accused the film of being a cheap attempt at cashing in on the Zom-Com craze following the success of the aforementioned Shaun of the Dead, but Fido had actually been in the works since the 1990s until Andrew Currie came along and decided to direct the project through his own production company. And while the film still contains quite a bit of traditional undead violence, I’d argue that it also functions as a surprisingly sweet gateway horror flick about a naïve kid and his troublemaking pet.
