Horror

The Zombie Times, July 2013 newsletter (e-newsletter review).

The July 2013 issue of ‘The Zombie Times’ is very timely, focusing on the recently released Hollywood blockbuster ‘World War Z’. Whether you’ve already seen the film, are still hoping to catch it at the cinema or have decided to wait until it comes out on DVD, if you’re at all interested in ‘World War Z’, then you’ll want to get hold of this newsletter.

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There are four items about ‘World War Z’ here. The front page splash speculates on the likely impact of a big budget movie starring Hollywood heart-throb Brad Pitt on the zombie genre and its fans. Later on, there’s a brief piece about the coffee table book ‘World War Z: The Art Of The Film’ which I reviewed here last month. This is followed by an item about the two books by Max Brooks on which the film was rather loosely based, ‘World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War’ and ‘The Zombie Survival Guide’.

The article that will make this issue of ‘The Zombie Times’ indispensable to ‘World War Z’ fans, though, is the final one of the bunch. This is a ‘Making of’ special and includes interviews with director Marc Forster and several other members of the crew. It reveals an impressive amount of fascinating detail about the film-makers’ process and approach. If you’re interested in how a big budget zombie movie gets made, you’ll want to read this piece in full. From my own perspective, it was the lack of this kind of insightful background material in ‘World War Z: The Art Of The Film’ that was the reason for my lukewarm review of that book last month. I’m therefore very grateful to ‘The Zombie Times’ for making up for that failing here.

There are three articles not related to ‘World War Z’ that are worth highlighting, too. The first is a news item reporting that well-known actor, comedian and author of young adult novels Charlie Higson has launched a competition inviting people to make a video trailer for his new zombie novel, ‘The Fallen’. If you’ve ever fancied yourself as the next George Romero this might be your chance to find out if you’ve got what it takes.

Second, there’s a review of ‘Dead Rising 3’, which is coming out exclusively for the Xbox One in November. This includes details of the storyline and the new gameplay features. If you’re a zombie fan and a potential Xbox One owner, you’ll want to have a look at this.

Finally, there’s an in-depth review of ‘Nightmare City’, a 1980 horror film from director Umberto Lenzi. Even if you had no interest in ‘World War Z’, it would be worth getting hold of ‘The Zombie Times’ for this review alone. It’s a hugely entertaining piece of writing, taking the mickey out of many aspects of the film while still giving it a fair assessment.

The rest of the issue is taken up with the usual mix of articles about opportunities to get involved with upcoming zombie film productions and events, as well as notices of recent films, DVDs, books, festivals and conventions.

If you’re having withdrawal symptoms after the adrenalin rush of ‘World War Z’, the July issue of ‘The Zombie Times’ may be just what the doctor ordered.

Patrick Mahon

(pub: Terror4fun, 24 page newsletter. Price: free!)

check out: www.Terror4fun.com

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