Film Review: Juan of the Dead
If you’ve seen Shaun of the Dead then this film’s title should be pretty self-explanatory. Cuba’s answer to the popular 2004 British film reveals itself in a more serious horror-comedy wrapped in a political metaphor. The plot starts out similar to Shaun‘s with several homages to certain zombie kills, but outside of that, it is its own movie.
Set in Havana, the film written and directed by Alejandro BruguĂ©s, revolves around a 40-year-old man named Juan who is satisfied with doing absolutely nothing. He has the smarts but prefers illegal, easy money activities. At his side is his even lazier best friend Lazaro and Lazaro’s son, Vladi California, whose essentially a combo of the two men. There are other characters that add some drama such as Juan’s daughter Camilla who hates him for being a criminal and a loser, but none of that matters because zombies are on the loose. Unfortunately, no one knows that they’re zombies. The group in Juan of the Dead has literally no clue what’s going on. They think the zombies are capitalist dissidents.
That’s right. The limping corpses covered in blood, taking biting chunks out of people are accused of being terrorists. This is a running gag in the film as Vladi holds up an American flag to a horde of zombies and all zombies are called U.S. capitalists by the media. Even when one eats the head anchorman on live TV, everyone still thinks they’re just jacked up dissidents. No matter what they are though, Juan and friends decide to work the attacks to their advantage and start a business. A zombie/dissident killing business. Although it’s their confusion over how to do everything else that takes up most of the movie.
Juan of the Dead: We kill your beloved ones. How can we help you?
Always eager to make a quick buck, Juan figures he can make a fortune in killing the “dissidents” in town. They get the word out and became the popular extermination service, “Juan of the Dead.” Like any other business, they have some bugs to work out because as anyone that has ever worked in customer service knows, some people will do almost anything to avoid paying the bill and there are some calls that you just can’t take. People confusing one company for another or asking for services they don’t provide. At one point Juan has to tell a potential client, “we don’t do cows.”
Underneath the humor is a thinly veiled message about Cuba itself. When the zombies start taking over, the characters make a point in saying that things aren’t much different than before. Whether the world is ruled by the dead or the living, survival is the one goal anyone can ever really have.
Verdict
Juan of the Dead might be an acquired taste. It’s certainty funny, hilarious in some parts, and gory in others, but it has a certain grit one doesn’t often see in horror comedies. A dry feeling that’s hopeless but at the same time very jaunty. Juan and friends are complete a**holes but they embrace it.
Most of the humor takes place in jibes made at the country and society in general. There’s a scene where the group is waiting for the bus with their weapons and bloody clothes but the bus drives past them and crashes on its side. Right before it does, they make a point in saying that despite the state of things, public transportation can’t be any more dangerous than before. Once it bursts into flames, however, one of them calmly suggests that they walk instead of waiting for the next one and so they walk.
(3.5 / 5)
All pictures are property of La Zanfoña Producciones, Producciones de la 5ta Avenida and ICAIC.
Breaking News
The Last Drive-In: Joe Bob’s Vicious Vegas Valentine Special Live Watch Party February 10th!
The sweet putrid stench of love lingers through the air which can only mean one thing…Valentine’s Day and its annoying little winged cherub mascot, Cupid, is fast approaching. Soon, partners will be spoiling one another with extravagant bouquets of roses, heartfelt Hallmark cards, obnoxiously large teddy bears, glistening diamond jewelry, and heart-shaped candies or boxes filled with assorted mediocre chocolates. You know? Normal things couples do. I tend to prefer my chocolate boxes filled with bleeding hearts, Ă la ‘My Bloody Valentine’ but, beggars can’t be choosers, right? All jokes aside, Valentine’s Day is special for many couples, however, there are also many others who find themselves celebrating this day without a significant other. Luckily, Shudder, along with drive-in king Joe Bob Briggs and co-host Darcy the Mail Girl (Diana Prince) will graciously be keeping us lonely mutants’, and yes, all you horror fanatic couples’ company on Friday, February 10th as they return with The Last Drive-In: Joe Bob’s Vicious Vegas Valentine, premiering live at 9pm EST.
Love Spells Abound…
Back in 2021, Joe Bob and Darcy invited us to a gruesomely passionate night of spell-binding love witches and animatronic dinosaurs infused with teenage human brains during The Last Drive-In: Joe Bob Put a Spell on You. Many, including myself, were introduced to the tantalizing 70’s inspired retro throwback ‘The Love Witch’ and the graphically goofy cult classic ‘Tammy and the T-Rex’, providing the perfect viewing pleasure to mend any broken heart. While the two films for this year’s morbid love-induced special have yet to be announced, as a special treat, Briggs has announced for the first time on The Last Drive-In, he will be marrying one lucky couple during the live showing. We here at HauntedMTL are eagerly awaiting the return of the ghoulish duo so, as is tradition, we will be proudly hosting a watch party on Twitter during the broadcasting of The Last Drive-In: Joe Bob’s Vicious Vegas Valentine. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and tag us @hauntedMTL as well as @shudder, @therealjoebob, and @kinky_horror to partake in this night of unholy love.
What started off as a one-time special premiering on Shudder July 13, 2018, ‘The Last Drive- In’ was originally meant to be Brigg’s swan song; one last special before hanging up the bolo tie in retirement. However, due to so many mutants, excuse me…viewers tuning in and breaking the Shudder servers, it was only natural to announce an official full season of ‘The Last Drive-In‘, which would make its explosive debut March 19, 2019. Since then, Darcy and Briggs have spawned many exclusive holiday specials, have graciously donated to many charities within the community, and have accumulated 4 seasons of ‘The Last Drive-In’, with a fifth currently in production premiering on Shudder’s 2023 schedule sometime this year, let’s hope sooner rather than later.
Movies n TV
Horror Noire, a Film Review
Horror Noire is a horror collection that includes “Daddy,” “The Lake,” “Brand of Evil,” “Bride Before You,” “Fugue State,” and “Sundown.”
Horror Noire is a horror collection brought by the combined efforts of AMC+ and Shudder. The collection includes “Daddy,” “The Lake,” “Brand of Evil,” “Bride Before You,” “Fugue State,” and “Sundown.” Horror Noire boasts Black directors and screenwriters, providing six unique stories.
As this collection explores six stories, I will skip the usual synopsis to assess the genres and ideas explored, albeit limited as needed. Expect to find supernatural horror, creature features, and psychological thrillers. Many short films deal with these genres while exploring Black issues, but this isn’t universal for the collection.
The directors and writers include Zandashé Brown, Robin Givens, Rob Greenlea, Kimani Ray Smith, Steven Barnes, Ezra Clayton Daniels, Tananarive Due, Shernold Edwards, Victor LaValle, and Al Letson.
What I Like
Each story remains unique, holding different strengths and weaknesses that highlight drastically different perspectives. Collections like VHS hold a similar premise to create their collection, but Horror Noire gives more creative freedom to its talent to be independent.
My personal favorite short film is Zandashé Brown’s “Bride Before You.” This period piece unravels a fable set in the Reconstruction Era. The entry feels Fabulistic in approach, which happens to be my preferred niche.
However, the best example of horror goes to Robin Givens’ “Daddy,” providing an existential horror tied directly to the characters involved.
What I Dislike
As mentioned, all have a particular style and idea. The downside of this approach always remains to keep the viewer interested long enough to find their favorite. If you find several underwhelming choices, this becomes a chore. But I imagine that is rare as the variety makes the options refreshing.
Personally, “Brand of Evil” had an interesting premise, but the execution fell short. On paper, it might have sounded like my favorite, which makes the lackluster execution a bigger letdown.
Final Thoughts
Horror Noire gives power and control to Black creators, providing a formula for a unique collection against others in the space. While the various subjects and approaches mean you aren’t likely to love them all, there should be a short film for everyone. (3.5 / 5)
Episode six of Netflix’s Dahmer was not, honestly about our title character. Instead, it was about one of his victims, a man named Tony. We’ve actually seen Tony a few times during this series. We just didn’t know it was him.
And, well, he wasn’t exactly alive the first time we saw him.
Tony was born into a supportive, loving family. This is good because soon after he was born a viral infection took his hearing. He is black, deaf, and gay in the early 90’s.
Tony has a dream of becoming a model. And he certainly has the looks for it. He is beautiful, body and soul. He has lots of opportunities for romance, but it’s not what he’s looking for. He wants a real relationship.
Eventually Tony moves to Madison, trying to pursue his dream. He gets a job and starts getting modeling work.
Then, he meets Jeff Dahmer at a bar.
At first, we can almost believe that it’s going to be alright. Jeff seems happy. He’s taking care of himself. He’s not drinking as much. He even has his dad and stepmom over for dinner. It seems like his life is getting on track. Even better, he’s treating Tony right.
Then, of course, things go bad.
One thing that has always bothered me as a true crime fan is that we know so much about the killers, but not as much about the victims. Not so much if we don’t know who the killer is, of course. But the names that are part of our pop culture are those of the killers. Dahmer, Manson, Jones, Bundy, Holms. The names we don’t know are Roberta Parks, Beth LaBiancas, Leno LaBiancas, and Tony Hughes. And clearly, we should know them.
If Tony Hughes was half the shining, positive person that the show Dahmer made him out to be, I’m so sad that he isn’t with us anymore. We need so many more people like him. And many of Dahmer’s victims were likely just like him. After all, he was attracted to them for a reason.
This was a significant episode, and I understand why it’s the highest-rated episode of the series. I finished it with a heavy heart, saddened by the loss of a man who should still be with us today.Â
(5 / 5)
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