EMPIRE AVENUE, PARK CITY
A Norwegian Nazi zombie horror film. Need I say more?
It is nothing less than pure awesomeness destined to become a cult classic I originally landed tickets to the screening on a complete whim when I made selections for the fest back in late December. Left with a hole in my schedule at the ‘Dance, I was poking around for films that sounded worthwhile and, well, I couldn’t pass this one up.
The basic premise: At the close of WWII, Nazi soldiers near the snowy village of Øksfjord were driven into the hills by an angry mob where they supposedly froze to death, never to be seen again. In the present day, eight medical students take a ski trip, fueled by mostly beer, to these same hills. Raucous behavior and promiscuity of this younger generation raise some evil spirits and… well… soon you have machine guns strapped to snowmobiles and undead Nazis being blown sky-high. Will anyone make it through the night alive?
As one of the senior Sundance programmers said while introducing the film, “if you’re queasy at the sight of blood, this ain’t the film for you.” The filmmakers used over 450 litres of blood to create a horror film that harkens back to the feel of those created in the 1980s: little substance and a lot of slashing. The film is spiced with a number of great moments of homage to other horror films.
Where else other than Sundance can you expect to see such cinema?
Check out the trailer and more at http://www.dodsno.no/
Screening prior to “Dead Snow” came a fantastic short horror film from Jason Eisner entitled “Treevenge.” The basic premise? After years of being brutally sawed down and forced to endue tinsel and ornaments, Christmas trees take matters into their own hands and fight back. Gallons of blood ensue.
You can find out more at http://www.treevenge.com/
It’s now past 3am and my next screening is at 8:30. Time for some sleep.
~Gunther
Cast and crew of Dead Snow talk about the film
