115 reviews
I wasn't having high hopes for this movie when I was about to see it. However, I also didn't imagine it could've been this bad. The acting was as if the cast was reading the script in front of you, the special effects was basically drying glue off on the skin and peeling it off (this was amazing to me when I was in kindergarten), and throughout the movie a whole bunch of philosophical nonsense is thrown at you. The movie was an hour and a half long, which could've been finished at an hour tops. This movie was more of a prequel to the Dawn of the Dead remake, rather than Day of the Dead because the zombies in this film also ran. I didn't like the fact that some of the zombies could talk also, and the idea of certain "super" zombies. This movie was a nightmare and should be avoided at all costs, DO NOT let the title fool you.
Day of the Dead 2: Contagium is a disgrace to Romero and all his works.
Day of the Dead 2: Contagium is a disgrace to Romero and all his works.
There are bad movies, worse movies and awful movies. Many of them are quite watchable, assuming that you know what you're getting into and are prepared.
Day of the Dead 2: Contagium isn't one of those.
This film is just plain lousy, as if no one involved in the production really cared about it. The special effects would make Tom Savini cringe in embarrassment. The dialog is dumb, the acting wooden. Many moments of extraneous "drama" are thrown in for no discernible reason. Possibly they wanted to form more of a plot than other zombie movies; if so then it was a failure. Long before you can get into the plot you're distracted by the guns that don't appear to be shooting, the too-obviously fake blood and the actors who can't seem to get into their parts.
Editing and direction? Nonexistent. Cuts between scenes are abrupt, without any kind of lead in whatsoever. Camera angles? Forget it. Anything at all redeemable about this movie? Nope.
Go watch one of the Romero movies. Even if you've seen it a dozen times, it'll be more interesting than this.
Day of the Dead 2: Contagium isn't one of those.
This film is just plain lousy, as if no one involved in the production really cared about it. The special effects would make Tom Savini cringe in embarrassment. The dialog is dumb, the acting wooden. Many moments of extraneous "drama" are thrown in for no discernible reason. Possibly they wanted to form more of a plot than other zombie movies; if so then it was a failure. Long before you can get into the plot you're distracted by the guns that don't appear to be shooting, the too-obviously fake blood and the actors who can't seem to get into their parts.
Editing and direction? Nonexistent. Cuts between scenes are abrupt, without any kind of lead in whatsoever. Camera angles? Forget it. Anything at all redeemable about this movie? Nope.
Go watch one of the Romero movies. Even if you've seen it a dozen times, it'll be more interesting than this.
- leagueofstruggle
- Aug 21, 2005
- Permalink
Zombie movies are by far my favorite, but this was absolutely horrid. I was starting to dig the explanation of the "virus," but it took forever to get there and then cut out before the conclusion of the movie. This is quite possibly one of the worst zombie movies I have ever seen. It may even be the worst horror movie I have ever seen (I think the remake of carnival of souls might still hold #1.) Stay as far away from this movie as you possibly can. The special effects were really cheesy. It might as well be called Night of the Comet 2. I'm not knocking Night of the Comet, it was great for its time and was supposed to have comedic elements and cheese as part of it. This was a serious attempt at a movie and an absolute failure. I am furthermore upset that the listing for this movie had George Romero's name attached to it. I scoured the credits and thank god it's not there. This film is a disgrace to the legacy that he has created for his fans. There is no reason to see this film. I watch bad movies for curiosity and I love a lot of bad horror films, but this is in an entirely different class. I feel precious minutes of my life were stolen from me. Please don't watch this film under any circumstances.
- MetalChef1
- Jan 23, 2006
- Permalink
I'm a huge Romero fan..........and I loved all of HIS Dead movies. If you see the behind the scenes on Day of the Dead 2: Contagium, Ms. Clavell acts as if her movie is the first greatest zombie movie ever made, and that she is the only one who thought up of the idea of making a great zombie movie ever!! Did she ever hear of GOERGE ROMERO---and HIS.......NIGHT, DAWN, DAY, AND LAND OF THE DEAD MOVIES?? Honey, wake up and smell the dead flesh!! This movie is a must see, she says!! The acting, edit, and direction sucked. Thank God George Romero had nothing to do with this trash. Chalk this one up with Children of the Dead folks!! It's just as good! My advice, if you see this DVD in a store, take the only 1 copy of this movie, and chuck it under the shelf!! They'll find it years from now when the store closes and moves all it's furniture out of the building! This movie not only ripped George off, but it sucked!! I'm burning my copy right now. I give it a big ZERO!!
Save your time and just watch the last 5 minutes...what a piece of garbage! I can't believe that this movie costs as much as they say it did. My buddies and I could have done a better job with a camcorder, There are some good zombies, but not until the very end. This could have easily been a Troma movie! The acting sucked! The story line was weak and things just did not move along. I cant believe that I wasted 90 minutes of my life watching such a horrible piece of crap....A disgrace to the genre. It's disappointing because there was a great buzz surrounding this film. There is a website for Taurus Films (the company that produced and shot this piece of crap) and they are offering the chance to be in one of their films. This must be how they got everyone that is associated with Day of the Dead 2.
- robbpastor2
- Oct 1, 2005
- Permalink
First of all, its a shame they use the title of a George A Romero movie and pretend this piece of crap is a sequel of it. Okay, they have the rights on the title, but this movie IS NO SEQUEL. ITS PURE TRASH. Second, I read some were that this one was shot on 35mm film! My god! It looks like a 1CCD miniDV!!! I believe that the producers are lying and saying that this was shot on film to make look the movie more important...but if this movie was shot on 35mm, it have the worst photography of cinemas history. Well, that about having a 8 million budget...yeah, sure. Zombie Bloodbath 3 have more production value than this one. All in all, a boredom, a piece of trash, a "8 million movie(hahah) were the guns have not flashes when they are shot. Avoid this one...
- judaspriest
- Sep 24, 2005
- Permalink
I am a zombie aficionado. Unfortunately, most zombie films stink. This is pure and simple fact. So now I've watched Contagium (I refuse to honor it with a Day of the Dead sub title, since it doesn't deserve it and is in no way connected with George Romero) and The Dead Next Door in the same week. Well, thats about three hours of my life wasted. This was simply a crappy, bad film. While it had better production values than say, any Italian Giallo Zombie film of the 80's and left crap by J.P. Bookwalter and Todd Sheets in the dust, it was still garbage. The writers didn't know if they wanted to make a Romero type Zombie film or a Return of the Living Dead Zombie film, so the zombies bounce back and forth between the two. The lame opening tries to tie this craporama in with the Romero films, but don't buy the hype. Every Day Has a Beginning is simply a rip off of "Every Saga Has a Beginning" from Star Wars and tries desperately to sucker the viewer into believing this has something to do with the Romero Films, the five opening minutes of any of Georges epics are way better than this movie. While there are a few nice gore scenes, there is no logic or real continuity in the story itself, which kills the whole movie. Watch this crummy waste of time if you must, but don't be surprised when the credits roll and you scream "WHY DID I DO THIS TO MYSELF? You've been warned!
- Beowolf2001
- Oct 19, 2005
- Permalink
I heard this movie was on sale in a DVD store in another town an hour and half away from my place of residence. I was excited my friends. I drove said one hour and a half to find the DVD was on sale for 50 bucks Australian. I was a little disconcerted - but settled on the notion this movie must be some kind of gem at that price tag. I returned home and slipped it into my player with an eagerness only compared to the 13th birthday that i received optimus prime. What happened next was 99 minutes of absolute rubbish. I sat there scratching my head thinking - wha? Acting? gross. Directing? laughable. Storyline?.Whats with the stupid shiny little flower things popping out of the canister? sheesh. A complete and utter raping of Romero philosophy and ideas. Burn it, burn it, burn it.
- DelendaEst
- May 25, 2004
- Permalink
This is a motion picture that demands to be seen. Intense, horrifying film that is a significant addition to the zombie genre. Inspired direction coupled with an imaginative script make for an often uneven but always terrifying motion picture experience. The make-up is some of the most creative ever done in cinema and is a vital element in some of the brilliant scenes both shock and entrance the audience. The performances are incredibly powerful and uniformly excellent as a cast of talented actors give everything they have to the overall success of what is essentially an ensemble effort. A relatively substantial budget is certainly reflected in the production values and special effects which will leave most viewers speechless. While this film is sometimes not accepted as an authentic entry in the Day of the Dead series, it is an admired stand alone film that offers a powerful story that is both unique and very well told.
- jlthornb51
- Apr 5, 2015
- Permalink
Yeah yeah, we all know the story about the rights to the earlier Romero flicks, so it's no mystery how this gained the nomenclature "Day of the Dead 2." A better question is why? Because the only way this film should be mentioned in relation to the benchmark work of Romero is in the phrase "...and isn't nearly as good as what Romero can do." It's name is opportunistic cash cow milking, no more. Let's be absolutely clear, this is a Day of the Dead sequel in the same way that the American remake of Get Carter is an inspired and intelligent reappraisal of the original. Not at all, basically.
That aside, it's not a bad movie and is a fun way to waste an hour and a half if you enjoy zombie flicks. Competently shot, if uninspiring and far from inspirational. The writing is ho hum, introducing a pathetic and pointless alien DNA exposition (the whole point is you don't KNOW why there are zombies, you idiots! Cah!) The acting is TV level but enjoyable enough.
It rolls along nicely, gives you what you want and expect from a film about the undead, then stops abruptly and rather weakly. No real gut munching, but some nasty effects. It could well be an extended episode of the Outer Limits with extra blood directed by a film grad and his mates over a dull weekend.
All in all, it just suffers from the expectations of its name. Left as merely Contagion it'd probably get a much needed break from let down viewers. Forget everything you know about the supreme original trilogy, switch your mind off, and enjoy.
That aside, it's not a bad movie and is a fun way to waste an hour and a half if you enjoy zombie flicks. Competently shot, if uninspiring and far from inspirational. The writing is ho hum, introducing a pathetic and pointless alien DNA exposition (the whole point is you don't KNOW why there are zombies, you idiots! Cah!) The acting is TV level but enjoyable enough.
It rolls along nicely, gives you what you want and expect from a film about the undead, then stops abruptly and rather weakly. No real gut munching, but some nasty effects. It could well be an extended episode of the Outer Limits with extra blood directed by a film grad and his mates over a dull weekend.
All in all, it just suffers from the expectations of its name. Left as merely Contagion it'd probably get a much needed break from let down viewers. Forget everything you know about the supreme original trilogy, switch your mind off, and enjoy.
- junk-mail-4
- Aug 26, 2005
- Permalink
Right off the bat I have to say that "Day of the Dead 2: Contagium" has got to be one of the worst movies I've stupidly sat through in years (though my thumb strayed to the speed-scan button a few times during interminable stretches of padding). I have a feeling this thing was made with some other title in mind like, for instance, plain old "Contagium", but the filmmakers were saddled with the tag-on "Day of the Dead 2" by crass marketing hacks. I'll give the makers of this drek the benefit of the doubt. But there is no doubt that they should never, ever make a movie again. As noted by other posters, "DOTD2:C" cherry-picks bits and bobs from other genre offerings and turns them into an emetic pile of poo. The acting ranges from awful to competent, but the writing and direction are heinous. That it was a labor that took years to realize boggles the mind. Talk about "why bother?" A must avoid on every level.
On a personal note: I made the double mistake of watching it right after George A. Romero's "Land of the Dead", which no doubt made "Contagium" even more toxic a shock to my system. It was like following a beautifully cooked piece of filet mignon with a dessert of dog vomit.
On a personal note: I made the double mistake of watching it right after George A. Romero's "Land of the Dead", which no doubt made "Contagium" even more toxic a shock to my system. It was like following a beautifully cooked piece of filet mignon with a dessert of dog vomit.
- bobfingerman
- Oct 22, 2005
- Permalink
- Backlash007
- Dec 10, 2005
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- joshua_the_director
- Apr 11, 2006
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- chrisgiant
- Oct 11, 2005
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- bryandeth316
- Dec 27, 2005
- Permalink
Now, I know I'm gonna take a lot of flack for liking this movie, but oh well. I thought it was funny. I love being able to watch first a movie that scares the living crap out of me and then one i can laugh my butt off to. Yeah, the acting sucked, my 10 year old can do better make-up effects with play-doh, and the plot line was so holey that i swear it belonged in church, but if we cant laugh at a cheesy movie, then why does Rob Schneider and Adam Sandler continue to make movies. Of course, if you are too anal to enjoy watching cheesy movies from time to time, stay outta the horror section of the video store, cause for every 1 great horror movie, there are like 50 cheesy ones.
This is not as bad as everyone makes it out to be !! I found it to be quite decent actually and there are far, far worse horror films out there. The actors were OK, plot a little thin but the gore was pretty good. Considering the low budget and the fact all the actors are relatively unknown, there are worse ways to spend a hour and a half ! Go on, give it a try. It may not be the best Zombie film ever but its not the worse either. Troma make far worse efforts ! It gets a bit slow in the middle and could maby have been a bit shorter. Overall, a decent low budget, no brainer flick ! I give it 5/10. Not an academy award winner but OK nonetheless
I liked it when I first saw it in 2005, and I still like it now.
- sbaillie-08090
- Sep 14, 2019
- Permalink