The Dead 2: India (2013) Reviews

• More of the same, only less so

  Boris_Day2013-08-24

  I enjoyed The Dead, which was an excellent old school zombie film fitting perfectly into the George A. Romero "Dead" universe. Many zombie films now are more action orientated, but The Dead had a haunting, even lyrical quality and it was beautifully shot and scored. It reminded me of survival adventure films I grew up with, like The Naked Prey and even Nic Roeg's Walkabout. In this sequel the zombie plague spreads from Africa to India and we follow a new main character, who is strikingly similar to the lead in the first film. Some of the virtues of the first film are still evident here. The cinematography is beautiful taking in some stunning landscapes, the score is great and there is an emphasis on atmosphere similar to the original. Unfortunately the second film contrives much more of a human drama and that's where the sequel becomes problematic. The hero has to rescue his pregnant Indian girlfriend, who comes complete with a traditional, disapproving father and neither the writing nor the acting are up to the challenge. The film lapses into melodramatic cliché and inadvertent comedy every time we spend time with the female lead and her family in Mumbai. Both "The Dead" films cast mostly non-actors. In an ideal case this can lend characters a sense of authenticity but here results in some awkward performances. In the first film the necessary alliance between the the engineer and the soldier was understated and not a lot of emoting was required. Here the lead actress looks uncomfortably out of her depth and her character lacks any qualities that would make us understand why our hero would be traveling 300 miles across the country to save her. To be fair, the actress tries hard but she isn't given much to do apart from crying and screaming. Instead of the dignified, stoic soldier of the first film, here the hero gets a cute orphan right out of Indiana Jones and Temple of Doom as a sidekick. By not having a local character fighting next to him, the sight of a white character killing his way through hordes of brown skinned zombies becomes uncomfortable to watch. On top of these problems, this is a film where characters do unbelievably stupid things in situations where they are surrounded by zombies to repeatedly get themselves into danger. And these folks never seem to learn from their mistakes. Twice the lead talks to his girlfriend about something confidential on the phone and twice her father snatches the mobile from her mid-conversation to overhear something not meant for him, which then sets him off shouting at her paramour. By the second time this almost comes to qualify as a running gag. On the up side there are a few tense sequences and some decent set pieces. The non-computer enhanced gore is plentiful and inventive, which still makes this worth watching for zombie fans but every time the film takes us back to Mumbai for the ensuing family histrionics, the film stops dead for some eye-rolling Bollywood melodrama. At least it spares us a musical number.

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• excellent effects, story so-so

  trashgang2015-09-21

  Sequel to the much acclaimed The Dead (2010). On part of the effects when the zombies are biting in the human flesh that's okay. But what do makes it a bit cheesy is the fact that the main lead comes in contact with an orphan and takes him on his journey to save his girl. Even that, that an American man falls for an Indian girl makes it awkward. Not that it isn't possible but she's pregnant of him and of course the father doesn't agree because he's deciding who she's going to marry. So when the dead finally attacks India he has to save her an take her home to the US. And the orphan follows him all the way. That could deliver some nice action but it wasn't. Once the orphan is saved this flick becomes better especially the railroad scene with the crashed car. Still, it isn't a bad flick due the way it was shot, excellent of course just like in part 1. Can't say that I was sitting on the edge of my chair, not really any suspense. A bit of Romeo and Julliet story combined with those damned biters. But the main question is, how many bullets can a gun take? Gore 1,5/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3,5/5 Story 2,5/5 Comedy 0/5

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• Equals the first zombie instalment

  amesmonde2014-09-07

  The dead are returning to life and attacking the living. An American wind turbine engineer with the help of a local boy attempt a 300 mile journey to reunite with his pregnant Indian girlfriend. Brothers Howard and Jonathan Ford add an usually unexplored religious angle with the obligatory social commentary subtext making The Dead 2: India as relevant as it's predecessor. While not as eerie as the first and briefly lacking some logic in both dialogue and decision making, with Nicholas Burton's (played fittingly by Joseph Milson) seemingly six sense knowledge of what's going on there's still plenty to enjoy. The India setting and on location shoot gives part two a realistic gritty, dusty and atmospheric feel. The traditional shambling dead are creepy enough and retain an air of menace with their biting and tearing of flesh, although their white eyes, now an over used effect do feel slightly dated. That said, there's plenty to enjoy - more gun-play, more blood and more zombies. With gripping stand out scenes, the crashed car execution, convoy executions, parachute escape and a car going over a cliff to name a few. The directors also deliver some excellent visual moments, a motor cycle blazing across the Indian wastelands, forgotten temples, grand cities, hovering helicopters, jets and burning slums to name a few. This Ford Brother offering is probably the most grounded undead film since their first outing and Romero's original trilogy. The director/writers again manage to give their zombie outing scope with a fantastic naturalistic visual style as the engineer and boy go from one village to the next complemented by Imran Ahmad's music score. Overall, while not as tension filled and ominous as The Dead, The Dead 2 doesn't try to reinvent the wheel giving the viewer a much needed solid and serious piece of zombie entertainment. Recommend.

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• Moving on

  kosmasp2013-10-27

  I really loved the first "Dead" movie the Ford Brothers did. I can't say the exact same about the sequel. It's not bad, but it feels a bit like a rehash, much of the same again, just in another location. We have a story added and a motivation for our lead character, which saves this from complete rip-off tag. But that is not enough to make this an improvement of part 1. One of the main things that weighs more here, than it did in the previous movie, is the fact that the non actors have bigger roles to play and mostly fail in convincing. It's crucial to have someone make you feel the drama they are going through rather than just saying their lines. The movie has still some redeeming factors (lead actor, effects especially considering the budget and of course the sheer mentality of the directors going after their dream once more). For some it will feel like an endless movie though, especially if they didn't like the first one in the ... first place

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• Powerful, exciting, creative and intelligent - a movie for horror fans and non horror fans

  LisaMJones9882013-09-16

  I am not a great horror fan but I do like the occasional film. I saw the Dead before I saw this one, to get an idea how the Ford brothers worked on their art of film making and I thought it was an appealing genre of zombie films and the cinematography was amazing and the theme of the first film was interesting with the comparison and contrast between these two survivors but I did find it slow in some parts. I managed to get to see this film at the FrightFest, London. I think what the Ford brothers have done is taken The Dead 2 to a much higher level and made it more fast-paced, with more action and tension than the first film, plus there is a haunting feel to it, so the viewer is much more engaged with the story. The scenic places are breath-taking and stunningly shot and the visual effects and stunts were so authentically done. Moreover, the Ford brothers have brought a few mainstream elements to the story, which will appeal to the mainstream audience who are looking for something different from the run of the mill Hollywood type zombie films but I can understand why the traditional horror fans may think this film's plot is a little too sentimental for their liking. This film was shot in such an elegant and skillful manner, using the zombie sub- genre in a French art house kind of way but with a hint of documentary style. I thought one of the reviewers was unfair about the acting. The main protagonist played by Joseph Millson was absolutely superb (I have seen Millson in many good TV shows and high calibre theatre from modern to Shakespeare and he is a very experienced and talented actor with a diverse acting repertoire) and here he has great screen charisma, he plays Nicholas with real tension, emotion and depth which really strikes a chord with the viewer that you are rooting for him all the way in the film. The only very minor grumble I would say was, perhaps a few parts of the script were a little odd rather than the acting itself but overall, they all manage to pull it off beautifully.I thought the young actor who played orphan was very good also. Also by comparing this film to the first one is rather unfair, it is no point making a similar story as the first one and the Ford brothers said they were going to introduce mainstream elements to the film which was expected anyway and to take it to another place where a viewer would want to go and show the main character going on a spiritual journey which was emphasised quite well. Furthermore, this film was shot on a low budget compared to a big studio film but amazingly it gives you the impression that this is a huge budget film production, the quality is of such a high standard. I would rather see a Ford brothers film than your Hollywood world war z type film. The beauty about this film is that, it will also appeal to mainstream audiences who may not like horror (like my family) as well as zombie film fans as it stays true to the zombie genre. The Ford brothers have intelligently created their own sub- genre on zombie films which is tremendous. Overall, if you want a smart, alternative to Hollywood style horror film, fast paced action, tension, pathos, a good storyline, see Joseph Millson's amazingly stellar acting, beautiful cinematography, captivating music score, this film has it all and is 'a must see' in my opinion. I cannot wait to see this film again when it comes out for general cinema release. I highly recommend this sequel.

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