Gourmet Zombies

by Lonsm Alex
(Hamburg, Germany)

Zombie Master,

It is said about the first zombie movies that they were metaphors / criticism on human nature and the cruelty of war. When you think about that you can see this intention but my question is: why do zombies eat human flesh in some movies and in other movies only the brain??? What are brains and/or flesh metaphors for...what is the message???

Lonsm Alex, Hamburg Germany

Lonsm Alex,

You have the honor of being the first questioner from Germany. I thank you because Germany, arguably, gave us the first "horror" film with The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and it still inspires being release in 1920. I say welcome. Now, to your question.

The first zombie film, White Zombie (1932), was actually an attempt to cash in on the monster fan base that had been created by Frankenstein (1931) and Dracula (1931). The concept came from two literary sources; Le Zombi du grand Pérou (1697) and Description topographique et politique de la partie espagnole de l'isle Saint-Domingue (1797) both describing the "voodoo zombi" of Haitian culture.

The flesh eating zombie that we know and love today, did not come into its own until 1968 with Romero's classic Night of the Living Dead. As far as the idea of "social commentary" goes I guess I will let George Romero himself answer that. "As far as the tone of the piece, I think it just came from the anger of the times. It was 1968 and nobody was in a very gleeful mood about the way the world was going and so it just seemed appropriate to put those themes into the film as well"

The "zombies eating brains" question is answered by watching Return of the Living Dead. My review explains it in detail but the jest of it is that there is no message.

I believe that the entire genre of horror, and the fascination with it, can itself be a metaphor/criticism of human nature. The war thing will only come up in times of war but it will be replaced by whatever is socially valid at the time. Not to say that the study of the "cultural interpretation of the zombie sub-genre of film" is not a good one, but if you spend to much time on it you will lose focus of the first priority of any horror film. To have fun at others expense.

Good hunting and aim high,

The Zombie Master