- A Man is Trapped in a Porta-Potty in HOLY SHIT! Trailer
- Teaser Trailer for PREY, Latest Predator Movie
- Teaser Trailer for Netflix's RESIDENT EVIL Series
- A tale of disappearance and horror in YELLOWBRICKROAD
- A tale of disappearance and horror in YELLOWBRICKROAD
- New EVENT HORIZON 4K Steelbook Available Now
- AVATAR 2: THE WAY OF WATER Trailer
- Stop-Motion Madness! Phil Tippett's MAD GOD Premieres on Shudder in June
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- Re: Occupation, Australian Sci Fi movie
- Slice of Life, Blade Runner inspired short
- Is Snowpeircer a sequel to Willy Wonka?
- Re: Yesterday
- Re: Yesterday
- Yesterday
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- First Poster for Anticipated Apocalyptic Thriller VESPER
- Teaser Trailer for Netflix's RESIDENT EVIL Series
- Here's What's On Blu-ray and 4K This Week! [May 10, 2022]
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- Turbo Kid Directors Apating THE ZOMBIES THAT ATE THE WORLD Comic Series
- Proto-Cyberpunk & Post-Apocalypse Meet in MONDOCANE [Trailer]
- Here's the WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE Trailer!
- Watch Richard Stanley's Rare Super 8 Version of Hardware called
- Epic Destruction in RESTART THE EARTH Trailer
- Carriers Directors David Pastor and Àlex Pastor Are Filming a BIRD BOX Spin-Off
- Richard Stanley's HARDWARE Continues as a Comic!
- VIFF 2021: THE IN-LAWS, MIRACLE, SALOUM, SECRETS FROM PUTUMAYO [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: SILENT NIGHT Review
- VIFF 2021: Documentary Preview [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: THE PINK CLOUD, THE HOLE IN THE FENCE [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: JAGGED Review
- TIFF 2021: SUNDOWN Review
- VIFF 2021: Animation Preview [Capsule Reviews]
- SAINT-NARCISSE is Bruce LaBruce at His Most Accomplished [Review]
- TIFF 2021: DASHCAM Review
- TIFF 2021: THE DAUGHTER Review
- New Red Band Trailer Gives First Look at HEAVY METAL SteelBook Edition 4K Blu-ray
- Trailer for Sci-Fi Prison Thriller CORRECTIVE MEASURES
- This Week on Blu-ray and DVD! [April 19, 2022]
- Disturbing Teaser for David Cronenberg's CRIMES OF THE FUTURE
- CHILDREN OF SIN Spooks up Amazon April 22
- Proto-Cyberpunk & Post-Apocalypse Meet in MONDOCANE [Trailer]
- This Week on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD! [April 12, 2022]
- Paul Schrader Penned THERE ARE NO SAINTS Trailer
- Full STRANGER THINGS Season 4 Trailer
- 3-Disc TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD Coming from Synapse Films
- This Week on Blu-ray & DVD [April 5, 2022]
- DOG SOLDIERS Collector's Edition 4K Blu-ray on the Way from Scream Factory
- Famous First Films: Robert Eggers' HANSEL AND GRETEL
- ‘Squid Game’ Director's Next is KLLING OLD PEOPLE CLUB
- Choose or Die: Netflix Movie Features a Killer Text Adventure Game
- New this week on Blu-ray and DVD! [March 29, 2022]
- Trailer for Horror Maestro Gustavo Hernandez's VIRUS:32
- V/H/S/94 Blu-ray Details Unearthed from RLJ
- Trailer for Atmospheric SHEPHERD
- Here's the WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE Trailer!
Jack In
Latest Comments
Latest Forum Posts
PA News
Latest Reviews
Older News
Crew
Marina Antunes
Editor in Chief
Vancouver, British Columbia
Christopher Webster
Managing Editor
Edmonton, Alberta
DN aka quietearth
Founder / Asst. Managing Editor
Denver, Colorado
Simon Read
UK Correspondent
Edinburgh, Scotland
Rick McGrath
Toronto Correspondent
Toronto, Ontario
Manuel de Layet
France Correspondent
Paris, France
rochefort
Austin Correspondent
Austin, Texas
Daniel Olmos
Corrispondente in Italia
Italy
Griffith Maloney aka Griffith Maloney
New York Correspondent
New York, NY
Stephanie O
Floating Correspondent
Quiet Earth Bunker
Jason Widgington
Montreal Correspondent
Montreal, Quebec
Carlos Prime
Austin Correspondent
Austin, TX
Latest news








No more ratings!
It would be easy to think that the ‘zombie genre’ is played out, but then you encounter a film like Alejandro Brugues’ JUAN OF THE DEAD and you’re proved dead wrong. While it doesn’t reinvent the seminal horror genre, Brugues manages to bring to the table enough elements of originality and humor along with a very well-intentioned sense of political responsibility to satisfy the viewer. Put together on a shoestring budget, this Cuban original with it’s origins taken into context, creates a unique and deeply admirable effort that one only hopes will begat other opportunities for the exiled filmmaker.
Juan (Alexis Diaz de Villegas) is a scoundrel of the first kind. He has a daughter, Camila (Andrea Duro) who hates him, and a close friend, Lazaro (Jorge Molina) who only encourages the bad behavior that alienates his offspring -- drinking, debauchery, and one get-rich-quick scheme after another. It’s when Juan’s broken Cuban community is overrun by zombies that he finally begins to understand what it takes to maintain friendship and a strong family base. Teaming up with the dumpy Lazaro, his son, California, transvestite El China and El Primo (think Dwayne Johnson) the quintet go into business GHOSTBUSTERS-style by offering to kill your undead “beloved†for a fee.
The jokes come fast and often, usually erring on the side of penis, masturbation and other sexual humor. Though growing tiresome at times, it’s the injection of political musings that give the film a heart and a message. Repeating throughout the horror comedy are a series of government run news broadcasts wherein an uptight anchor asserts that all is well in the island nation, and that any issues within the community are to be blamed on the United States. It is through this that our group of wannabe mercenaries never actually uses the word “zombie†until late into the film, preferring to trust elements of the broadcast and instead adopt the term “dissident†as they have been instructed to do so.
Never pretending to be smart, Juan is a man who has made one mistake after another in his life, and all that he has left is the love for his daughter and his country. He is determined to win them both back, but as the number of remaining humans dwindle he is forced to finally become the man and father he should have been from the start.
You’ll never look at JUAN and admire its use of special effects, which as over the top as they are cheap. The squirting blood would have been more realistic if they had used Heinz ketchup. However, taking into account just what Brugues had to do to get this film made, it’s easy to put all this aside, and admire the movie for what it is -- a creative triumph. While the name JUAN OF THE DEAD cannot help but evoke comparisons to the Edgar Wright film, SHAUN OF THE DEAD, it would be wrong to treat JUAN as a simple knock-off. While Wright brought an immense level of heart and camaraderie to his film, Brugues brings a level of intelligence and whimsy to his.
Though he leaves us with an unrealistic and somewhat staid ending to Juan’s story, Brugues makes us enjoy the ride to get there and for that we are appreciative.
You might also like






