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Akinlolu Bellotti
Zombie films are nothing new. In fact, they date back as far as the 1930s. Since then, they've since been popularized by the legendary George A. Romero through such classics as Night of the Living Dead, as well as in more recent iterations, like 28 Days Later and the series The Walking Dead. That being said, the zombie genre (or arguably horror subgenre) is still alive and kicking to this day. From action-packed thrill rides to dark turns that leave us pondering, this gory brand of cinema has survived all these years thanks to filmmakers being willing to twist the genre to make it their own.
Netflix continues to offer a variety of critically acclaimed movies based around the undead. From Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead and its spinoffs to zombie films with international flare, here's a closer look at the best offerings currently on the popular streamer.
Updated May 12, 2023: If you're a fan of blood-pumping action (and still have a Netflix subscription), you'll be happy to know that this article has been updated with additional content by Amanda Minchin.
This version of Dawn of the Dead film follows a ragtag group of survivors who take refuge in a mall. Snyder is known for his intense action scenes and use of visual effects, and he did not disappoint here. The crew even resorted to using plastic sheeting during filming as they were constantly in the splash zone.
This new, iconic take on zombies is effortless in all the right ways. Few films outside of Shaun of the Dead had portrayed zombies as funny before this premiered in 2009. This version, however, is all-American to its core, from the amusement parks to the Twinkies.
Valley of the Dead, also known as Malnazidos, is set during the Spanish Civil War in 1938. The story chases two opposing platoons who join forces in order to survive an intense onslaught of the undead following a nefarious Nazi experiment. Now the warring sides must unite to protect the civilians of their country despite their own inner turmoil and hate, all while the zombies leave blood and gore in their terrifying wake. The adrenaline-pumping Spanish picture is an adaptation of Manuel Martn Ferreras' novel Noche de Difuntos del 38, and, needless to say, it's a fun and unique take on the ever-popular zombie genre.
The film had its worldwide premiere at the Sitges Film Festival, where it earned positive reviews for its impressive production design, sharp humor, and sensational action sequences. Valley of the Dead has also been nominated for two of Spain's prestigious Goya Awards.
The Outback serves as the unusually haunting backdrop to a zombie outbreak in this Australian horror film, which takes a restrained, character-driven approach to the apocalypse. Cargo follows Andy (Martin Freeman), who must navigate the dangerous new normal of Australia's zombie-infested interior alongside his wife and infant daughter.
This post-apocalyptic horror drama film from Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke was based on their 2013 short film of the same name. It received positive reviews from critics and was praised by all for its emotional depth and Freeman's performance, though some argue the project is a nod to the 2009 film The Road, starring Viggo Mortensen.
While the rest of the cast is equally star-studded, and the compelling visuals of zombie hordes overtaking whole swaths of land are truly stunning, this film suffers from trying to fit too much into a short time frame. It is, however, a good resource for those wanting to crack open the book. We recommend watching the film for reference first before diving right in.
Robin Aubert directed the critically-acclaimed French-language horror knockout Ravenous, which is also known as Les Affams. The story centers around the inhabitants of a remote, rural town in Quebec as they are plagued by the flesh-craving undead. Their hopes of finding salvation and safety are swiftly dashed when they realize there is no place left to go to escape the vicious horde. Aubert drew inspiration for the look and feel of the film from fellow auteurs Andrei Tarkovsky and Robert Bresson. His version of zombies features the creatures being mindful enough to have a religion in which they are able to assemble altars of worship.
Ravenous debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it nabbed the award for Best Canadian Film. It also went on to receive a whopping five Canadian Screen Awards. Variety praised the gripping flick in a glowing review, writing, "Robin Aubert's idiosyncratic and nuanced drama breathes fresh life into the zombie apocalypse subgenre."
The recent zombie film out of South Korea revolves around a video game live streamer's struggle for survival as he is forced to stay alone at his Seoul apartment during a zombie apocalypse. As the grisly virus takes hold of the city, the streamer remains locked in his apartment, cut off from the world, but with a dogged will to survive nonetheless.
#Alive, also known as #Saraitda, premiered on Netflix in September 2020. It achieved global first place on the platform just two days later, going on to top the Netflix daily chart in 35 countries. It ultimately became the first Korean film to top the Netflix Movies Worldwide chart.
The mysterious illness caught by some of the characters is ultimately revealed as men formerly lost at sea returning to take possession of Dakar's inhabitants on the Atlantic coast. Some may argue Atlantics isn't strictly a zombie film; however, director Mati Diop does offer a mysterious examination of the unquiet dead that more than secures it a spot on this list.
The trailblazing action horror extravaganza Resident Evil famously follows the butt-kicking heroine Alice as she takes on both the ruthless undead and the malevolent Umbrella Corporation in a battle to save humanity. This 2002 flick launched a lucrative and enduring film franchise. Loosely adapted from the popular video game series of the same name, Resident Evil stars the stellar Milla Jovovich as notorious zombie assassin Alice, who awakens with no memory of who she is and how she became stuck in a mysterious underground facility brimming with flesh-eating monsters.
The mass appeal and success of Resident Evil went on to spawn five additional films centering on Alice's quest to eliminate Umbrella Corp. The series has grossed over $1.2 billion and amassed a passionate fan following that has only added to its longevity, both as a game and as a film franchise that truly re-creates the gaming experience for viewers.
Zack Snyder delivered one of the great modern zombie movies in 2004 with his Dawn of the Dead remake, and his grand return to zombie horror is scaled suitably to size. Army of the Dead, starring Dave Bautista, turns Vegas into a hive of undead depravity. The opening credits sequence (a Snyder specialty) presents this takeover in a series of slow-motion tableaux that easily sets up a promising franchise.
Critics praised the humor in the film, which became one of the most-watched originals on Netflix with an estimated 75 million viewers. The film spawned the prequel Army of Thieves, the upcoming anime series Lost Vegas and a direct sequel titled Planet of the Dead, which is currently in stop-and-go development.
But the craze didn't last. AMC's The Walking Dead began in 2010, signaling that zombie media had finally reached a fever pitch. As the show declined in quality, zombie stories began to feel less profound. In 2013, Brad Pitt starred in an impossibly boring adaptation of Max Brook's World War Z, and it seemed the undead shtick was, well, dead.
What might bring zombie stories back to life? A more diverse group of people making them. And if creators use their deeper, culturally-rooted fears to enhance their horror films, as Romero once did, that could help, too. His pioneering 1968 film Night of the Living Dead was called everything from an exploration of the Cold War to commentary on race relations in 1960s America. Ten years later, Romero's original Dawn of the Dead was seen as both a critique of post-Watergate America and the culture's out-of-control commercialism.
Les Affams succeeds because it taps into an existential fear that goes beyond simple life or death. For those who live on the Quebec's farms and dairies, the constant threat of cultural erasure leaves even the youngest citizens with a sense of defensive pride. In fact, many Quebecois people still support seceding from the rest of Canada, and the political movement toward independence has received new blood in 2018.
"Imagine the Quebec homeland being overrun by a hegemonic tribe with its own culture, and its own irresistible method of converting the inhabitants into beings such as themselves," The Globe and Mail wrote in October, when Aubret's film entered the festival circuit. "That is the worst Qubcois nightmare."
Whether the fear of the outsider is warranted or not, that cultural paranoia gives a rich subtext to Aubret's film. One of his heroines, Tania (Monia Chokri), carries an accordion on her back and uses a map of Quebec to wipe blood off the keys. Our French-speaking heroes write off the bizarre towers and zombie proto-religion using the term "clisse," a profane reference to the Holy Sacrament, or the blood of Christ in a chalice.
At some point, the question of the zombies's intelligence becomes too disturbing for the human characters to bear, and they simply drop the subject. As The Globe and Mail put it, "There's a danger, however, in knowing too much about your colonizers. You might become more like them, and less like yourself."
Les Affams mines that disconnect for scares as the heroes decide whether to fight being overrun by zombies, or simply leave the idyllic land they've inhabited for decades. It's a dread choice that certainly resonates with Quebecois viewers. But it's also a universal one. And it's that cross-cultural commonality that makes a genre film like this one resonate beyond the credits.
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