Wiseguys vs. Zombies

This was not too bad considering it was made on a cheap budget. I thought that some parts were very funny, especially the part with the farting zombies. Everyone who I watched it with agreed it was not too bad, and Ray Jones did a good job on the zombie makeup. I hope to see morfe movies filmed around here by these guys.

Even as a double feature this DVD isn't worth the rental. Both movies were bad with little value. The first one Wiseguys vs zombies was as cheap as they come and somehow got chosen to be on this set with another bad offering Meat For satans Icebox, the second half of the feature. Bad acting in both movies. MFSI looks like it was filmed with home video equipment and had the worst music ever. WVZ had little more to work with but it look better and the music was good in points. Meat had better gore scenes and had nude, but not very pretty ones. I'm just going to stop buying movies from Troma. They are always releasing bad movies and I am surprised they still have fans.

This movie lacked direction, focus and, at some points, acting skill; Overall, it was friggin hilarious. This is a really good bad movie; it is a good no-budget film, with supporting actors seemingly being themselves, a ridiculous plot, and a very unlikely pair of heroes, this is an almost must-see. Give these guys another 500 bucks and see what they can do with it! They may create the next Killer Tomatoes. Still, it is what it is, lumps and all, so I must give it no higher than a 6 out of 10.

A huge Troma nut since I was a kid, (thanks Dad!) I've grown over the years to better understand and appreciate the purpose that Kaufman & Co. stand for. And as always, I eagerly purchased another statement of antithesis from the rebel provocateurs of avant gore skinema, Troma's "Dogpile 95 Vol. 1". Call it totally crappy. Call it too extreme for the mainstream crowd. Call it anything but stupid. Because this is truly independent cinema at work! Although the double feature's selections are about as "Indie" as you'll likely find. "Wiseguys vs. Zombies", at least in my opinion, really isn't much aside from a statement. With home-brew indie films, I feel the budgetary constraints and lack of resources that come along with the territory should be made up for with a really good story or at least entertaining acting. Unfortunately, WVZ lacks it all.

If you're able to get along with the acting, homemade gore, and home movie quality, there's still not much of a story or funny acting to be found. There are some chuckle-worthy moments in a pretty much watchable film. But overall it just doesn't leave much of a good impression outside of the whole "fight for truly independent cinema" mood set by the release.

I would never recommend it to anyone outside of a good example for what YOU can do at home if you really want to. (Which is pretty well the point.) But as a movie, "Wiseguys vs. Zombies" is just kind of a dud. I hope they had fun making it though.

I gave this set an average vote of 5 and this is how it breaks down:

Wiseguys Vs Zombies, the first feature of the double feature, was surprisingly good despite the "vs." title (haven't we seen enough of these? **Jason VS. Freddy, Vampires VS. Zombies, Aliens VS. Predator** The movie focused on New York's toughest hit men fighting redneck zombies in South Carolina. Intriguing premise. It was executed fairly well, although the hit men had noticeable southern accents. It was more of a comedy than a gore-fest though, and might throw some hardcore zombie-film lovers off a bit. It is entertaining though, in a way that the second movie on the disc is not. The producers of the film know it's not to be taken seriously, and the viewer can just jump into the fun. Breaking it down:

Acting: 8 for the main characters; 6 for the supporting cast.

Story: 8. Could have used some tweaking, but original.

Direction: 7. I want to give it higher for the effort, but there was only so much that could be done with such an obviously small budget.

Gore: I can only give this advice to the producers: It's a zombie film, so throwing a little bit of blood on a wall or splattering it on the actors clothing doesn't really cut it for hardcore zombie film fans. You get a 4 in this department.

T&A: 0. This is a Troma film, so where were the naked ladies?

Overall, I give this movie a rating of 6.

Now we come to Meat For Satan's Icebox. What can I say about this movie? Ehhh, well, it had nudity. And gore. But that's about all that can be said positively about it. The music was this films biggest downfall. And the acting was just horrendous. The direction was pretty good, and the camera work was very good at times, but it just wasn't a good movie no matter how you look at it. Breaking it down:

Acting: 4. Poor acting all around.

Story: I will say this much about it: the story is sick and fits right in with other Troma movies. Bloodsucking Freaks comes to mind. But its just not that good. I'll give it a 5, and thats being nice.

Direction: Good directing helps even the worst movie. 7.

Gore: Plenty here. Enough to satiate the most bloodthirsty film buff. 9+.

T&A: Yes, its here. Not always pretty, but its here, and sometimes in abundance. 7.

Overall, I give this movie a 4 because I can't really recommend it. It's not something that I'd be proud to push on to someone to see. Unless I just didn't like them.

Wiseguys Vs. Zombies is a strong 6, closer to 7, because it was a fun watch. Meat for Satan's Icebox is a 4, but closer to a three. The only redeeming thing about it was some nudity here and there. As a double feature, I rate it a 5. (Wiseguys 6 + Meats 4 = 10. Divide by two for the two features, and you get my rating of 5. Isn't math fun?).