City Of The Living Dead
Dir: Lucio Fulci
Starring: Christopher George and Catriona MacColl
Fulci, the godfather of gore, is in my regard one of the greatest horror directors of all time. Starting his film career in 1968 with a couple of mystery thrillers, it wasn’t until the early 70’s that Fulci found some footing in the genre with the release of A Lizard in Women’s Skin and Don’t Torture A Duckling. However, finding a distinctive style would prove difficult considering the domination of Dario Argento and the controversy surrounding Fulci's use of violence and gore. Never one to shy away from vivid scenes of sadistic and gruesome portrayals, Fulci continued and found worldwide success with the release of the stunning Zombi (a continuing contender for my favorite zombie movie). Fulci is a maestro; his films have a quality and atmosphere that would rival today’s horror films. City Of The Living Dead (also known as Gates of Hell) is a later example of his honed style, incorporating numerous elements distinctive to his style. It's interesting that zombie films from the late 70’s and early 80’s seem to possess so much more substance than later films, which is partly due to the living dead playing a supporting role instead of the starring role. Although City of the Living Dead has many slow moments, and I still encounter people that believe it’s more of ghost film than a zombie film, the payoff is spectacular. Day 6 with the godfather complete.
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