Running Zombies?

pauldeehan

So which do you prefer? Those good old dependable slow bastards that we've grown to love? Or perhaps the new generation of super fast bastards that we've seen in the new Dawn of The Dead, 28 Days Later... (Yeah, I know, they're just humans infected with rage).

I'm unsure myself. Part of me wants to be a grumpy purist and flat out insist on slowness, but I must admit the fast zombies in DOTD 2004 do add a lot more danger.

Hmmm, a rapid shuffle perhaps? A light jog maybe?

Fysh

I've defended fast zombies to my friends, because I like the way they were done in 28 days later and Dawn 2004. But I think that, overall, slow zombies work better for the tension and claustrophobia that most zombie movies rely on, it's that unstoppable feeling of "you can run but you can't hide" that really makes a zombie flick. And enjoyable as the fast zombie movies are, their zombies necessarily feel more like, I dunno, human versions of velociraptors or something. Equally deadly, but leading to a more immediate type of scare.

then again, maybe we just haven't seen them used in the best way yet...

Belisarius

A slow moving zombie is a better instrument for actual horror surely,you actually have time to soak in the head**** that they are undead, Its the main usp of zombies.Strikes me when you have zombies ala dotd2004 it looses some of that genuine horror, it might as well be anything running after you.
imho..

Karl Hungus

Can't really beat the auld shambling undead horde for sheer spookyness. In fact, argueably the slowest zombies would be that of Lucio Fulci's films, and those are the ones that probably put the ****s up me the most.

TCamen

I voted Slow Moving just cos that's really what a zombie is all about.

I like the fast moving ones because the danger is a lot more immediate & frantic á la the beginning of Dawn of the Dead 2004.
However, there's something to be said for a slow moving mass of zombies shuffling about-- they're damn freaky!
e.g Day of the Dead when the soldiers land in the helicopter in the deserted city and the zombies slowly emerge from all the side streets, it's a fantasic visual and really sticks with me-- they'll get you eventually, nowhere to hide cos there's so many of them *shudder*

Sarky

Slow zombies. These new fangled prissy running ones disgust me.

And what's with the headshot instakills? Proper hardcore zombies should keep coming until they're destroyed. A hole in the head shouldn't even slow them down. Pfft... [/rant]

mike65

A mass of determined zombies gradually shuffling towards you trapped in a room is much more scary as you await your fate in slow-motion.

Mike.

pauldeehan

mike65 wrote:

you await your fate in slow-motion.

Yeah good point. It's a lot more drawn out and gives the viewer more time to squirm.

freakydeadgirl

both have their advantages...
fast-ones: tend to be fast as all hell, no time to escape for the normal people. and damn the idea that they could decend and surround in a matter of moments...shiver
slow-ones: have to be taken down with a well placed head shot or have to have both of their legs taken off and even then that won't slow them down...they just don't die
hmmmm it is a hard choice.....