Dead Snow (Blu-ray / DVD)
Steve Barton
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Reviewed by Uncle Creepy
Starring Vegard Hoel, Stig Frode Henriksen, Charlotte Frogner, Jenny Skavlan, Jeppe Beck Laursen
Directed by Tommy Wirkola
Distributed by MPI Media Group
As anyone even slightly familiar with me and my work can attest, if there’s one thing I love, it’s a good zombie movie. They’re even better if the flesh-eaters in question happen to be Nazi zombies. When Tommy Wirkola’s Dead Snow was announced, it looked to me as if I was about to enter shambling nirvana. Now that I’ve gotten a chance to see the movie, I can’t help but be disappointed. For the strangest reason ever — Wirkola is obviously as big a fan as I am. I’ll get into that in a bit; first the plot crunch.
A vacationing group of medical students decide to go off and party it up in the Norwegian Alps. They get some booze, acquire some other assorted party favors, and then head off to a nice secluded getaway cabin. While there our troupe end up uncovering a dark secret that resurrects a battalion full of bloodthirsty Nazi soldiers. As you would expect, a boatload of gore and carnage ensues. That’s your set-up, and though overly familiar in theme, it’s a concept many fans including myself cannot resist.
Don’t get me wrong. Dead Snow is not a bad movie. It’s just that the folks behind it are such uber fans of Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive and of course Evil Dead, instead of standing on its own, the flick ends up feeling like a wink-wink series of homages that are hurled at you relentlessly until the credits roll. How I wish it were different. Should the film have been played for scares instead of laughs and nods, we could have had one of the definitive Nazi zombie films on our hands. In the end while there’s still a lot to like, there’s just not very much to hold on to.
The DVD and the Blu-ray share identical features so no matter which edition you pick up, you’re pretty much golden. Yes, the Blu looks and sounds better than its standard definition cousin. Do we really still have to even mention that by now?
The highlight of the included supplemental material is the Behind Dead Snow featurette. These guys were having a clearly having a blast making the movie, and this bit truly shows off what an absolute labor of geek love the movie ended up being. It’s nearly more fun than the film itself. From there we get several more featurettes covering everything from the flick’s F/X to its very successful festival run. All in all this is a decent haul, but just like the film itself nothing that’s exactly above and beyond.
If you’re looking for an undead fix which is unabashed in its love for the genre, then Dead Snow should be at the very top of your rental or buy list. My only real gripe is that there’s just not enough decaying meat hanging off of these bones.
Special Features
3 out of 5
Special Features:
3 out of 5
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