Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie Review

Fall of the Standards.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 14, 2013

This is serious stuff!

Eh, nothing's ever all that serious in AsylumLand, even for a movie that think it's serious. Fighting zombies is no laughing matter -- just ask anyone who's played Dead Island -- but in Rise of the Zombies, battling the undead is just an excuse to soak the screen in blood and watch a bunch of recognizable actors (and a bunch of unrecognizable ones) run around and pretend to shoot guns at some lucky folks who are amongst the very few who may claim to have appeared in a genuine Zombie movie as one of the walking dead. Rise of the Zombies epitomizes everything that can be wrong with the genre. There's a threadbare plot, minimal characterization, a generic character roster, and all of the usual Zombie movie scenes and clichés ("noble but naive scientist searches for a cure," "chop off the infected limb before the whole body is lost!"). It does introduce a few decent ideas -- holing up in a prison and locking oneself behind steel bars while surrounded by thick concrete isn't the worst thing to do in a Zombipocalypse, as long as survivors have a stock of food, water, and ammo available with them and a means of getting out of the cell should the situation die out -- but don't count on any movie from The Asylum to be a bastion of new wave genre thought. This is a redundant, lethargic movie that does best The Asylum's last Zombie effort in 2012 Zombie Apocalypse, but it's otherwise pretty low on the totem pole of the Zombie canon.

Shocking.

A group of survivors are hiding out on Alcatraz Island, using the secluded iron and concrete island fortress as a sanctuary from waves of the undead that have taken over San Francisco and, presumably, the world. Dr. Lynn Snyder (Mariel Hemingway) views a transmission from afar that promises a cure to the zombie epidemic. When the prison is overrun by zombies and many of the survivors are killed, most of the remainder choose to leave the prison behind and head out in search of the cure. Staying behind is Dr. Dan Halpern (LeVar Burton) who hopes to himself discover the cure and heal his infected daughter whom is locked in a cell. On the outside, the group splits, one led by Caspian (Danny Trejo) and the other by Dr. Snyder and Marshall (Ethan Suplee). As they journey to find the cure, they will be challenged like never before and many won't live to see if the world will ever find itself on the mend.

One might reasonably believe that a movie entitled Rise of the Zombies to be about the beginnings of a zombie outbreak and not start smack-dab in the middle of one, in the midst of a barren San Francisco where the living are harder to come by than a snowflake in central Texas, where scientists are in the middle of searching for a cure, where hardened survivalists have taken over a prison as one of the last bastions of defense from the undead. But Rise of the Zombies offers instead just a short glimpse into one little corner of the world during a zombie outbreak. The movie mixes ideas from just about every Zombie (and similar) film and TV show out there, perhaps most notably The Walking Dead, Day of the Dead, and I Am Legend. It pumps out the action quickly and furiously, taking no prisoners in terms of violent content and gore. There are plenty of nasty visuals, tons of blood, a lot of damage inflicted on the living, and some pretty well-done zombie makeup and visual effects. Unfortunately, the filmmakers have chosen to focus almost entirely on action and skip on over plot and character development. Rise of the Zombies offers little more than faint currents of story that only lead to the next action scene. The overreaching arc -- survivors go in search of a cure -- has worn its welcome, and with precious little character development in support, the lame plot in idea seems only more lame in execution.

To be honest, though, there's a good chance that most people will watch Rise of the Zombies to see its surprisingly diverse cast in action. Whose interest isn't piqued by the presence of Danny Trejo, Mariel Hemingway, Ethan Suplee, and LeVar Burton (yes, the Reading Rainbow star has graduated to bottom-feeding Asylum flicks) all in one bad Zombie movie? This is probably the most star-studded movie ever released by The Asylum; there are plenty of bigger studio projects that don't offer this sort of star power. The cast elevates the movie a tick just by appearing in it, and the good news is that they don't completely phone it in. Burton and Suplee actually try to bring some depth and feeling to the film, Hemingway finds a decent balance between sleepwalking through the less challenging aspects of her character and giving it a go when emotions are higher, and Trejo does his trademark cool dude/tough guy thing well enough. It might be the most interesting ensemble of the year, and that, for the most part, the cast plays it as straight as possible is a real saving grace. Technically, the movie is fine, and the special effects aren't too bad (save for a terrible-looking CG car crash down San Francisco's famed Lombard Street). Otherwise, it's straight Asylum through and through; go in with negative expectations and the next zero effect will satisfy.

Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Rise of the Zombies delivers a satisfactory high definition presentation. The Asylum's 1.78:1-framed transfer offers a clear, clean HD video image. It favors a slightly cold and gray appearance, particularly in the prison, but even in bright exteriors the palette feels just a hair cool. Details are robust and satisfying, up-close shots reveal complex facial and clothing textures with ease, and the image picks up minor elements around the prison and lager details outside crisply and efficiently. There is some light banding across darker backdrops and skies, but the image is otherwise free of any major defects. The Asylum does usually deliver good Blu-ray transfers, and this one is no different. Fans can buy with confidence.

Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Rise of the Zombies arrives on Blu-ray with a balanced DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The bad CGI car crash at the beginning does at least sound rather good; it's involved, noisy, and accurate, spilling into the stage from all over and with natural roll as the vehicle spins and flips about. There's some good bass to be a enjoyed accompanying explosions in chapters six and nine. Music plays with satisfactory spacing across the front and good general clarity throughout the film. Atmospherics are handled well, particularly breezy oceanside scenes that offer the sounds of seagulls, wind, and gentle rolling waters sprinkled around the stage. Gunfire is adequately potent and general zombie action mayhem is handled nicely. Dialogue is usually clear and precise but a touch shallow in a few scenes. Overall, this is a good, well-rounded soundtrack from The Asylum.

Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Rise of the Zombies contains a couple of throwaway extras.

• Making Of Featurette (HD, 5:00).
• Gag Reel (HD, 1:03).
• Trailers: Additional Asylum titles.

Rise of the Zombies Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It's amazing that this movie isn't titled World War Zombie or Worldwide War Z or something along those lines. Perhaps The Asylum just decided to play things safe this go-round and not mess with the 'Mount over a lawsuit; lessons learned from Universal and Warner Brothers? Whatever the reason this one's titled Rise of the Zombies, even if it takes place on what seems like the back end of the zombie apocalypse. Whatever. It's The Asylum. The movie does feature a rather interesting cast and some good zombie and gore makeup, but nothing else of value. The disc delivers good video and audio. The included supplements aren't worth watching. Rent it to see Geordi LaForge in a bad zombie movie.