Zombie Book Faceoff! The Remaining VS Colony Z: The Island

Hi welcome to Zombie Book Faceoff where you get to pick which zombie themed book you would prefer to read based solely on its blurb. This weeks contestants: The Remaining vs Colony Z: The Island

The Remaining by D.J. Molles:

In a steel-and-lead-encased bunker 20 feet below the basement level of his house, a soldier waits for his final orders. On the surface, a plague ravages the planet, infecting over 90% of the populace. The bacterium burrows through the brain, destroying all signs of humanity and leaving behind little more than base, prehistoric instincts. The infected turn into hyper-aggressive predators, with an insatiable desire to kill and feed. Some day soon, the soldier will have to open the hatch to his bunker, and step out into this new wasteland, to complete his mission: SUBVENIRE REFECTUS.

Colony Z: The Island (Vol. 1)by Luke Shephard

When the Undead have taken over America, one group of survivors find safety by escaping to a remote, unsettled island.

There they work to rebuild society, while trying to survive whatever it is that is after them.

Alone and isolated, their relative peace and safety is shattered when a group of Others shows up on their island and their leaders must make life-altering choices in the blink of an eye.

This is only the beginning. This is their story.

Check Out both books on Amazon

Interview with the director of the zombie movie "State of Emergency"

Hi this is George Cook the owner of The Dead War Series Blog. I recently watched a zombie movie titled State of Emergency on Netflix and I loved it. So much so that I reached out the director of the independent film and asked for an interview.

Mr. Turner Clay quickly responded with some very thoughtful answers and even addressed some issues that some viewers had with the films pacing. He also has a  insightful answer about how budgets can affect a movie and the story one is trying to tell, I hope you enjoy the interview. 

George Cook: What's your background in filmmaking?

Turner Clay:  I've been working on my own shorts and feature films for about 10 years now and love each new project that I get to work on.

George Cook:   What was your inspiration for State of Emergency?

Turner Clay: The inspiration for State of Emergency came from a movie entitled "Night of the Comet" which was an 80's zombie comedy. I liked that film when I was a kid and just wanted to make something with the same feel.

George Cook: How much of a budget did you have to work with?

Turner Clay: I can't say what the final budget ended up being but can say that it was much less than film school would have been. That was made possible simply because the actors worked for free and did it for the fun.

George Cook:  Do you think that working with a smaller budget forced you to pay more attention to the story and the characters or would that have been your plan regardless.

Turner Clay:  I think that having such a low budget limits ones story telling ability. Especially now a days where not having enough money for props and effects automatically puts you in a "cheap" category and ultimately takes you away from focusing on the story as an audience member.

George Cook: You seem to be going for suspense over gore, was that a choice you made from the start?

Turner Clay:  I learned on State of Emergency that suspense is what most people enjoy about scary movies. Kind of like when you watch a ghost movie, the scariest part is the build up before you actually get to see it. Then once you see the ghost, you're usually like, "that's not that scary". I don't think my strongest aspect is scaring as much as suspense. Definitely something I'm trying to improve.

George Cook: The movie is very character driven and doesn't rush to get where it wants to go. How important was that to you?

Turner Clay:  I wanted the movie to be slow paced but it turned out being slower than I wanted. I believe I was lucky because it was on the edge of being boring I think. But in the end, I was happy with the result because I ultimatly wanted to tell a suspenseful movie with the least use of dialogue.

George Cook: One thing that jumped out at me was that the acting was very good especially for a genre movie. Where did you find such good actors and what was it like working with them?

Turner Clay: The actors were amazing in my opinion because, not only were they talented, but they sacrificed pay for a chance to be creative. It really reminded me of being on a sports team or in war. It was absolute hell to shoot but an experience of a lifetime. I will work with them again for sure!

George Cook: What has been the reaction to the movie?

Turner Clay: Based off of how many people have reached out to us tells me that a number of people really enjoyed the film. The other day, a man at Kinko's noticed me printing off some scripts. (for a future project) He asked me if I have made any movies independently. I said, "I have a movie on netflix called State of Emergency." I was shocked when he told me that he and his wife watch it twice in the same week. I had never met this man but could tell he really enjoyed it. I know its not for everyone, but for me to see that felt awesome.

George Cook: Are you looking at making a sequel?

Turner Clay:  I just finished my next film which is very similar to SOE but not really a sequel. I think this one will blow people away.

George Cook: Where can readers learn more about you and your film / films online?

Turner Clay: I really don't know where people can read about me and my movies. I'm not famous at all. Nobody really knows who I am. Maybe one day I hope:)

You can check out State of emergency on Netflix now here: State Of Emergency

*Although Mr. Clay has no web site he did want this link to his youtube posted. Check it out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RS3w25gSms

The Dead War Series 2014 Resolution

Happy New Year to all.

Here in 2014 my resolution for The Dead War Series Blog is to bring you the readers more original zombie content. That means more reviews of zombie books, zombie movies, and more interviews with their creators. Many of these guys will be independent authors and filmmakers which means we might get to know them before they become famous...LOL.

These reviews and interviews will be with people with currents books and movies as well as those with older movies. It's not always easy getting the contact info but I will keep working at it for you the readers.

I have some great things planned in 2014 and I hope you guys come along for the ride.

George Cook Thedeadwarseries.com

Today's zombie book of the day: Rotters by Carl R Cart

I just finished reading this zombie book and I really enjoyed it. It tries and succeeds in coming up with a plausible scenario in which a zombie apocalypse could happen. There are of course a few scares and the requisite zombie gore. I recommend this book to all zombie lovers out there. George Cook thedeadwarseries.com

Synopsis: Set in the dark heart of Africa, Rotters is a hard-core mix of biology, forensic science, military adventure and graphic zombie horror wrapped up in a leaking body bag.

When a deadly new virus emerges in the Congo river basin of central Africa, Dr. Peter Barry must lead an elite military recon team deep into the heart of the rain forest in a desperate race against time to discover the source of the virus. Each step closer to their goal brings new revelations about the virus, themselves, and the unimaginable fact that zombies are real.

Movie Review Chanbara Beauty: The Movie - Vortex

As some may already know I recently subscribed to Netflix and have been binge watching anything with the word zombie in the title or description. 90% of the time that has led me to watch some good to decent to that wasn't that bad zombie flicks. 10% of the time it has led me to shit like Chanbara Beauty: The Movie - Vortex

The movie is in Japanese featuring English subtitles which is not the problem. To say that this movie is bad is being kind. This is the type of movie that makes Syfy movies look like cinematic masterpieces.

The movies synopsis is pretty simple:

In a post apocalyptic future when zombies dominate the Earth, Aya (Tejima Yuu) and Saki (Akari Ozawa) are two young women from the almost extinct Imichi clan. They travel Japan killing as many of the undead as they possibly can but it seems like there is no end in sight for their fight and they seemed destined to fight forever. A woman called Misery (Kumi Imura) enlists their aid to destroy Himiko, the mistress of the undead. The two agrees to aid Misery but instead find themselves in conflict with a group of human survivors being led by Aya's old friend Reiko (Rika Kawamura) and a young man called Ryo (Youhei Hoshina) who are protecting a child named Kei. Tricked and seduced by Himiko, Saki sides with the zombie queen on the condition that her parents be resurrected. Now, Aya must fight alone and try to save her sister...but what are the secrets of the Imichi bloodline and its relationship to Ryo's bloodline?

The guy or gal that wrote that synopsis could have saved a lot of time and wrote:

A movie featuring scantily clad women fighting zombies with bad anime special effects throughout it's entire 85 minute run.

It's not even the acting that makes this movie so bad it's the special effects and the zombie effects which are awful. The zombies themselves make no sense. At times they are like the slow moving Romero zombies and at others they are quick enough to dodge swords and oncoming strikes.

Unless you are a teenage boy in heat there is absolutely no reason to ever watch this movie. Stay away. Any zombie flick on Syfy is ten times better.

George Cook Thedeadwarseries.com