Island of the Living Dead (2007 Video) User Reviews

Island of the Living Dead: So bad it's...........still bad

[Platypuschow · 3/10 · 28 July 2017]

Supposedly a sequel to Zombies The Beginning (2007) but sharing no similarities at all other than the lead female (Even though she plays a different character) this Italian made poorly dubbed mess is pretty damn bad.

Attempting to pay homage to the classics with scenes mimicked from Night Of The Living Dead, Zombie Flesh Eaters & erm....House Of The Dead?! it fails miserably at each and is more an insult than a respectful nod.

The soundtrack is the standout performer but since I recognised that one was ripped straight from Aliens (1986) I'm left to think maybe they didn't make the rest either.

With a variety of different zombies, no explanation of basically anything at all and some of the worst acting around this is one to watch when drunk, high or while in a medically induced coma.

If I were to make a zombie movie the blue print I'd make is taking everything they've done here then do the literal opposite.

This is an awesome movie!

[spetersen-79-962044 · 2/10 · 4 November 2011]

Yes I know I only gave it 2 stars, but bear with me. If you know who Bruno Mattei is, then see this! It's hilarious for any zombie-movie fan.

Here are some Things I Learned from Island of the Living Dead:

1) If the opening to Lucio Fulci's Zombie is good, then repeating it three times in a row is even better!

2) Damage from a zombie uprising is indistinguishable from earthquakes.

3) Catholic churches are often underground, and are decorated with images of the Grim Reaper

4) Filipino natives often wore Conquistador armor, or dressed like Spanish ladies with mantillas.

5) If you are not looking at a pack of zombies, they immediately vanish.

6) It's easy to make a raft with no tools but a hammer.

7) Boats have a self-destruct button. It's red, and explodes the whole boat instantly.

Here are some examples of Great Dialogue from this movie:

"I know you're the best carpenter I know of."

Girl "Tao sacrificed himself for us – we have to go back!" Guy "No, Tao sacrificed himself for us – we have to run away!"

Tough Guy offers arm to zombie "Go ahead! Have a bite!" Zombie *chomp* Tough Guy "Argh!"

Bruno Mattei stole scenes from Night of the Living Dead, Lucio Fulci's Zombi (repeatedly), and even his own film, Hell of the Living Dead. But in each case, the theft was in some way inept. For instance, Mattei steals the scene in Lenzi's Nightmare City when the characters encounter a priest in an abandoned church and accost him. But when the priest turns around, he's a zombie. But in this movie, the characters are on an island completely uninhabited by humans, and the person they mistake for a "priest" is wearing a filthy black hooded robe. Is that how priests dress? Why would they expect a priest? The answer - they wouldn't, but this movie doesn't care.

It makes so little sense that one plot point, to which attention is drawn several times, is that the zombies are only out at night. Except that we see zombies in the daylight throughout the movie. It's like Mattei can't remember his own dialog.

Frankly, I can't wait to see Zombies: The Beginning. If it's anything like Island of the Living Dead, it will make for a huge treat.

Hilariously bad. Watch with a friend.

Another Good Plot Ruined by Bruno Mattei

[Uriah43 · 2/10 · 7 April 2020]

This film begins during the 17th Century on an island somewhere near the Bermuda Triangle where some Spanish soldiers are fighting for their lives against an incredible number of zombies. The scene then shifts to the present day where a small group of treasure hunters find their ship engulfed by a fog bank and because of a collision with another ship are forced to take refuge on a nearby uncharted island. Sure enough, this just happens to be the same island in the previous scene and the treasure hunters soon find themselves in the same situation as the Spanish soldiers 320 years earlier. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a typically bad low-budget film by Bruno Mattei which suffered from a bad script, bad character development and bad acting. Everything was bad. It also features some of the most incredibly stupid people to have ever walked on the planet as each of them stumble from one bad predicament to another based entirely on their limited decision-making processes. And things then go from bad to worse. That being said, those who may have enjoyed the movie "The Evil Dead" might find some similarities with this film-but even then there isn't really much of a comparison between the two. Personally, other than the presence of two fairly attractive actresses, Yvette Yzon (as "Sharon") and Ydalia Suarez ("Victoria") there really wasn't much of anything here that caught my eye and for that reason I have rated this movie accordingly. Definitely below average.

Island of the Living Dead

[Michael_Elliott · 5 March 2010]

Island of the Living Dead (2006)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

The one and only Mattei got to end his career with a couple zombie movies, which will be good news for fans of the genre and horrid news for non-fans. In the film, a group of treasure hunters got lost in a fog bank and in the morning they notice what appears to be a deserted island. The group goes on shore and sure enough there are zombies running around. If you're looking for any type of actual story then you're obviously not too familiar with the work of Mattei. He's considered one of the biggest hacks in Italian history but at the same time he's made some rather entertaining bad films. This one here really doesn't work but there's enough gore and badness for fans of bad cinema to at least want to give it a single viewing. As is the normal case with the director, we get all sorts of stuff stolen from other movies including dialogue lifted from NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, the infamous eye/splinter sequence from Fulci's ZOMBIE and the Blind Dead movies are certainly playing a big key here. We also get stock footage which is another Mattei trademark. It's pretty hard to judge the acting in the film because the dubbing is so horrendous you really can't tell what's going on. I'm not sure who did this dubbing job but it's among one of the worst tracks I've ever heard but this does lead to some rather campy moments. I think zombie fans will enjoy some of the gore here as we get some (bad) CGI as well as real effects. We have heads being blown off, arms ripped off and plenty of flesh being eaten with all types of blood flowing at ease. We also get some rather bizarre zombie stuff including some having fangs, a few ghost zombies and one that can grow his dead parts back after they're shot off. On a technical level pretty much everything here is bad but those checking this title out are going to know that going in. The film's biggest flaw is its 90-minute running time, which is just way too long for a movie like this especially when you've only got enough plot for a half-hour movie and not enough attacks to justify the long time.

So much fun!

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 20 May 2021]

When the rest of the world makes zombie movies that are either boring or sub-Troma winks at the camera filled with humor that breaks the tension, Bruno Mattei remains single-mindedly devoted to making the kind of undead movies that made me love the genre.

In short, in the sad world we find ourselves in where zombies have become boring, Bruno Mattei alone reminds us that these kinds of movies can remain incredibly fun.

After a team of adventurers loses their gold, they go through a fog bank and end up on an island of the living dead. There, nearly everyone dies as they're pursued by shambling, blood puking monsters that never stop. Oh yeah, there's also another higher caste of zombies that act like a cross between the Blind Dead and vampires, hypnotizing unwilling victims into becoming their thralls, even if they have to charm them with flutes!

I've come away from Mattei's late period - he made this movie a year before his death - digital video films with great fondness, particularly for Yvette Yzon, who has taken over for Laura Gemser in his movies, starring in this, Zombies: The Beginning, The Jail: Women's Hell, A Shudder on the Skin and two Segreti di Donna films for Mattei.

Here, she's Sharon, not only the final girl but the Lara Croft of this story. The rest of her crew is pretty worthless, except for Snoopy, who gets his name by always wearing a Snoopy t-shirt. This is an astonishing choice for a zombie film and one that I applaud. He's played by Jim Gaines, who has been in plenty of Mattei films like Robowar, Zombie 4, Strike Commando and even shows up in The One-Armed Executioner.

Want an even better name? The leader of the ship is Captain Kirk (Gaetano Russo, The Killer Reserved Nine Seats and Trhauma, which he wrote)!

Screenwriter Antonio Tentori has been there for the dark night of the soul that aging Italian horror filmmakers must endure, being the scribe for everything from Argento's Dracula 3D to Fulci's Cat in the Brain and D'Amato's Frankenstein 2000.

Only Sharon survives, but it appears that she becomes a zombie. No worry - she comes back perfectly healthy in the sequel, Zombies: The Beginning. Yes, only Mattei would name the second movie - or third, if this is in the same universe as Hell of the Living Dead - with a title like Zombies: The Beginning.

What are we to think of a movie that has not only the Necronomicon but also the De Vermis Mysteriis and the Cask of Amontillado? A film willing to rip off The Fog, Night of the Living Dead, Ghost Ship, Fulci's eyeball scene in Zombi, the Blind Dead movies and even Mattei's own Hell of the Living Dead? A movie that outright steals footage from The 13th Warrior, Interview with the Vampire, Deep Rising and House of the Dead?

We are to celebrate it. Thank you, Bruno Mattei, for always making it cheap, gross and upsetting, but never ever boring. The spirit and flame of 1980s Italian horror was kept alive by you longer than anyone.

Mattei returns to the living dead

[udar55 · 8/10 · 12 November 2009]

A group of treasure hunters get their boat lost in some wicked fog and run aground on an island inhabited by the living dead. Yay, Bruno Mattei dusts of his Vincent Dawn pseudonym and returns to the genre that gave him his biggest hit (HELL OF THE LIVING DEAD) of his career. And don't think 25 years has changed his improved his style at all as this is as equally gory, stupid and amusingly dubbed. It is like he didn't miss a beat between this and his last collaborative effort ZOMBIE IV (1988). Technically, the film has more in common with his soap opera looking THE TOMB (2004) than his previous shot-on-film zombie entries. But the locations in the Philippines look nice and this allows Bruno to recruit some eager extras to be his zombies. There are some odd twists thrown in here like the zombies having fangs and some zombie ghosts (including one that does some Flamenco dancing!?!). Uncle Bruno also takes it easy on the "borrowed" footage this time, only using stuff from another film once during a flashback (a galleon battle that looks like it is from a 1960s film). This was Mattei's next-to-last film with his final film (ZOMBIES: THE BEGINNING) being a sequel to this. Color me blood red excited! The film ends with a dedication to veteran Italian character actor Mike Monty, who was the script supervisor on this and died while it was being made.

An Italian Zombie movie delight... a throwback to the 80s

[horrorfreak2 · 8/10 · 9 March 2009]

Island of the Living Dead is an awesome zombie film that reminds me of those 80s zombies flicks everyone knows and loves.

Plot: A group of scientists end up on an uncharted island but they are out alone. All of the people who once inhabited the island have now be come the living dead and a hungry for flesh. From there its a struggle for survival for the group.

Acting: The film was dubbed so its hard to tell if the acting is good or not but, all in all, the whole cast was pretty convincing. The two standouts are Yvette Yzonne and Ydalia Suaraz. They are true beauties.

Directing: Bruno Mattei does a wonderful job here. This was shot on high end digital video and looks very professional.

Overall: An awesome zombie flick. Feels like the 1980s again.

Another fantastic Bruno zombie opus

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 10/10 · 13 January 2016]

Getting stranded by a thunderstorm, a group of treasure hunters land on a deserted island in the middle of the ocean overrun by zombies from the colonial days along with other supernatural beings trapped there and must fight them off to escape.

This here is one of the most enjoyable and entertaining Italian zombie films. What really gives this such a great deal to like is the old-school atmosphere here that recalls the epic feel and tone of the whole affair as a great throwback feel here. This starts from the very beginning as the opening scene of the Conquistadors confronting the afflicted natives down in the dungeon while the rabid voodoo ceremony brings them back to life is an absolutely spectacular start here that's full of cheesy action along with the Gothic atmosphere, the later encounter in the cemetery is the epitome of cheesy action with the kung-fu attack following the initial stumbling encounter hidden from the others by the rolling fog and the big battle on the ship that blows up the whole thing which all form a solid opening that recall all the fun and enjoyment of the earlier Italian zombie films. Given that as well with the film's other big action scenes here as the massive shootout that erupts when the group wanders into the swarm in the catacombs, the resurrection in the burial chamber below group or the group trapped in the various rooms full of gold with rotting skeletons, dead bodies being feasted upon and ravenous zombies breaking in through all manner of barricades offers some great action-packed moments that are a lot of fun. Still, even with all this the film really hits it's stride with the wallowing in the cheesy realms Mattei usually works with, as there's plenty of that kind of material here. From the fact that the film's storyline allows it to feature numerous references and scenes throughout here that really stick out yet comes comes off as part of the charm with this one, as the graveyard attack is a carbon-copy of a legendary sequence, the entire plot is basically one long rip-off cobbled together from three other movies, a narration sequence for the backstory is taken directly from yet another film while there's even several scenes here that rip off his own work from before. Even on top of that the nonsensical elements like the flamenco dancers, ranting and raving characters that are always in complete hysterics, unexplained plot lines like the friendly, talking ghosts explaining everything and the cheap charm all on display here which adds to the fun and delirium of a Mattei effort. Along with the stomach-churning gore and fine, mess make-up work for the zombies, these here all manage to make this one of the best of the Italian zombie films. About the only flaw here is in how this one deals with these elements which may not be suited for everyone who don't appreciate or are distracted by such material in a film. Otherwise, there's nothing really wrong here.

Rated Unrated/R: Extreme Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.

An enjoyably ridiculous mess

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 2 March 2015]

A group of treasure hunters survive a shipwreck only to find themselves stuck on a deserted island that's been overrun by ferocious flesh-eating zombies. Man, does the one and only Bruno Mattei nicely capture the endearingly scrappy aesthetic of a vintage 80's nickel'n'dime Italian horror splatter schlockfest: We've got lousy dubbing (the boat captain for some inexplicable reason sports an uproariously out of place British accent!), excessive cheesy gore, tin-eared dialogue, plenty of choice moments of inspired absurdity (one guy uses martial arts on a zombie in a cemetery!), cardboard characters, a gloriously ludicrous plot, lame acting, and shoddy (far from) special effects. Moreover, Mattei does manage to create some decent misty atmosphere, plus deserves praise for using old school practical gore and make-up. Yvette Yzon and Ydalia Suarez supply yummy distaff eye candy. Luigi Ciccarese's sharp cinematography provides a neat polished look. An absolute cruddy hoot.

Mattei fittingly delivers an enjoyable b-film as his last outing.

[amesmonde · 24 February 2022]

A group of treasure hunters find themselves trapped on a cursed zombie infested island when their ship explodes.

Director of copy-cat films Bruno Mattei's penultimate offering. Writer Antonio Tentori's story starts off the promising as conquistadors keep the reanimating dead at bay with muskets while the islanders perform rituals. There's plenty of death shrouded head shots echoing Dawn of the Dead.

Once it moves to present day as the team explores the island it's the usual quality you'd expect not just from Bruno Mattei, but from the glory days of Italian cash-ins films of the 80s. Bad dialogue, sound design, editing, lapses in logic, over acting, ill fitting music, recycled stock footage and the like. Even though made in the 2000s it's reminiscent of those kitschy, ungainly films the 1980s. This offering is just as clunky as Zombies The Beginning (2007) but arguably better.

The screenplay comes from both Mattei and Giovanni Paolucci, so you have no idea who is responsible for lines like, "It's written by hand, it must be very ancient." Some of the dialogue and sequences are lifted straight out of other films including George A Romero's Night of the Living Dead and Lucio Fulci's Zombie Flesh Eaters. Incidentally Gaetano Russo as Kirk does his best Ian McCulloch impression as Tentori's bare-bones plot unfolds from zombie film to more of a souls trapped on the island affair. Alvin Anson's Fred adds a little acting to the show. Ydalia Suarez's is gives her all as feisty Victoria. Lead Yvette Yzon as Sharon comes to life in the third act as the rest of the cast are picked off. Jim Gaines is likably humorous as Snoop.

This is one of Mattei's less sleazy films, to his credit like Hell of the Living Dead, AKA Virus, Zombie Creeping Flesh (1980) and co-directed Zombie 3 (1988), what it does have is atmosphere and low budget gore-drenched zombie high jinks. The exteriors give it some scope and the sets are quite well crafted. There's plenty of blood filed mouths, rot, a severed hand, a decapitated head, headshots and shotgun action. There's a zombie priest, zombie pirates, fanged zombies, talking zombies, zombie monks, burning heads, burnt bodies, rats, supernatural shenanigans and more. The costumes and make up effects of the dead are quiet effective.

Overall, the late Mattei ends his career on (a last but one) fitting high with an enjoyable DTV b-film that encompasses many of the staples synonymous with his work.