Welcome to another of our From Horror Movie To Horror Comic updates that will be taking a look at another Horror Comedy featuring zombies as our villains. One of the most interesting aspects of this one is that it’s also based on a Live Action Role Playing Game that was created in 2005 and is mostly played on collage campuses with the humans using Nerf Guns as protection. In 2011 it was made into a film that was also turned into a comic book that was given away with the purchase of the DVD. More independent horror films should have comic books based around them released, and it’s shocking how little filmmakers take advantage of comics as promotion. So if you’re ready to take on the hordes of zombies, grab your Nerf Gun and lets walk into the world of Humans vs Zombies. I want to also note that due to the update not being done in time due to Sparkle Comic work, Juliet’s look at Forbidden Planet will be rescheduled for some future update.
In this film, zombies are our main villains. They were created by a virus that escapes from a lab, and it spreads through out the world turning people into flesh eating zombies who crave human meat and move as fast as normal people. The zombies in this film hunt and kill in packs and are driven by hunger-induced rage. They seem to be able to smell the living even when they are hiding in shelters. The zombies have pale skin, foaming mouths and bleeding eyes, and their look also scares the living and helps them in the kill by striking true terror into the heart of the humans. The zombies kill in packs and use their teeth to rip flesh and also infect the living to add more to their numbers. They use their hands to rip and claw at the human body, and they also use their mass numbers to overpower and overwhelm humans who soon become their lunch. The zombies do have weakness as extreme head trauma seems to finally put them down for the count; they can also be killed with fire and explosions. These zombies are very aggressive and are pure killing machines that threaten the humans that live in their sad decaying world. Below are some pictures of some of the zombies you will see in this independent horror film.
So as you can see, these zombies want to eat our guts and are by no means used in the dark comedy elements, making them truly “scary”! So now that you know the savage nature of the zombies, lets take a look at the movie that was spawned by a college campus role playing game that would later spawn a comic book. The film’s plot, as always, will be taken from our friends at IMDB, and after that, we will chat a little about the film’s production as well as my thoughts and experience seeing the film for the first time.
Humans vs. Zombies (2011)
“Dark Comedy and Horror unite in this satirical thriller based on the “Live Action Role-Playing” game of the same name. Students on summer break are exposed to a deadly virus that is spread rapidly through direct human contact. The infected become enslaved by the invading “swarm” intelligence and driven by an insatiable appetite to consume human flesh. Returning home, the students spread the infection to their fellow classmates and other unsuspecting townspeople. One by one, more students fall victim to the plague, triggering an epidemic that spawns a horde of ravenous zombies. The zombie horde grows and spreads quickly. Amidst the chaos, a campus security guard, obsessed with conspiracy theories, leads a group of students to safety as they and a small band of uninfected townspeople set out to find other human survivors in an attempt to discover the source of the “zombie” virus and save the world.”
After the role playing game became super popular and zombie films made a major comeback, it was decided that a film version had to be made! The film was directed and written by Brian T. Jaynes, and it starred Christine Bently, Cody Callahan and Dora Madison. When released in 2011, the film was met with very mixed reviews with many critics and horror fans not showing it much love, and it pretty much was lost in the shuffle of horror films released in 2011 as it joined other releases like Scream 4, Red State, You’re Next, Quarantine 2 and Hellraiser: Revelations, to name a very few. Sadly this film was lost in the shuffle as I had not heard of it until 2018; that’s a bad sign as I watch lots of independent horror movies. There’s not much more to say about this film’s production as it was pretty standard low budget film making stuff.
I discovered this film while on Google and found that it came with a promo comic copy in the DVD release and knew I had to have it to cover on one of my From Horror Movie To Horror Comic updates. So I ordered a copy of the film from Amazon, and when it arrived, I watched it on one cold day in January and went in with very low expectations. By all accounts, it was nothing special but not nearly as bad as the reviewers that gave it one star acted like it was! The film is pretty slow moving for the most part and follows the college kids and the war vet security guard more than it does the zombies and even their battles with them. The film does have some great blood and gore effects, and actress Dora Madison is stunning. It’s a standard cheesy Horror Dark Comedy film that is complete with a terrible Jack Black inspired actor who over acts with the best of them. I also really liked that the film had a very downbeat ending making it feel just like the ending to almost every Italian zombie film. To sum the watching of this film up, I would say standard plot, some cool zombie effects, interesting score and music and some good actors mixed with bad ones. I would say fans of horror comedies that are not over done with comedy and cheesy zombie flicks will eat this one up like the zombies eat guts in this film.
So we have made it past the hordes of fast moving flesh hungry zombies, and if you’re like me, you’re running very low of Nerf darts and this small shed we found to hide in doesn’t seem like it’s built for the force of the zombies gearing up to push their way in so we should make this look at this promo comic happen now so we can get to another safe place. I want to thank Amazon for having this comic and DVD combo in stock, and I must remind you all that I grade these on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comic stays to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So lets take a look at this twisted zombie promo comic before we seek our next shelter.
Humans vs. Zombies: The Beginning # 1 **
Released in 2012 Cover Price FREE Hannover House # 1 of 1
Deep in a research facility, a very powerful virus is being tested, and one mistake has a doctor dropping a vile of it on the ground and being infected by it…what he becomes is a flesh eating zombie and worse, it spreads all through the lab to many of the employees! The lab’s security are called in to try and contain the infected. They are lead by a sword carrying woman who is mad as she had plans to have dinner with her child. Some of the lab workers commit suicide as they do not want to be infected, and the odds start to be against the security team as they are out numbered and they start to fall by the hands of the dead. Finally the last to fall is the sword swinging female who hits a self destruct button before she dies blowing the lab up killing everyone inside…that is besides the one zombie who escapes and is wandering the beach!
This quick little promo comic is a cool read and shows what happened in the lab before the main part of the film takes place. The plot is very simple and has a lab worker dropping a vile that has a very bad virus in it that spreads quickly and leads to the death of everyone working that day. The main hero of this tale is the sword swinging security guard who does her best to fight all the way till the end and all the while is thinking about never seeing her child again. She is a badass, and as a reader, you find yourself cheering her on as she cuts zombies’ heads off, but you also feel for her as you know her time is short. The zombies are very hungry and show no mercy to the living and kill with no remorse and are truly evil undead killing machines. The comic has some cool bloody moments mostly coming from our hero chopping up the zombies, and while not over done, it is nice to see some zombie attacking moments. For those who want to read this comic and watch the movie, make sure to read the comic first as it’s the start of the virus outbreak and blends into the movie very well. The cover for this promo comic is pretty cool and reminds me of the more Sin City style underground comics. The interior art is done by Russell Fox and is not my chosen style of art, but I am sure some Horror Comic readers will dig it. Over all not much to say besides this short promo comic does a great job of keeping in the world of Humans vs. Zombies and is a cool item for fans of the film or fans of comics based on Horror Movies. Check out some of the art below to see the style of Fox.
So as you can see, these zombies pack a wicked bite and truly are horrible horror undead nightmares. While this comic was a free promo comic that came inside the DVD, it was a very cool read and helped add to the film’s over all presentation. For our next update we are going to stay in the world of Horror and have yet another From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update as we take a look at the Boris Karloff film Die, Monster Die and the Dell Comic adaptation of it. So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Horror Movie or two and as always support your local Horror Host. Oh also make sure to watch out for zombies and monsters…..
Rotten Ink 