You could say that this obscure little schlocky zombieflick takes place somewhere between Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead, where the dead roams in the midst of the zombie apocalypse, all shot with a Super-8 camera on a microbudget. Some years after the outbreak, we’re in Virginia where a group of soldiers from the “Zombie Squad“ are on a mission to take down a pack in some farmhouse. The squad is led by Raimi, played by the Temu version of Bruce Campbell. And no, your ears aren’t playing tricks on you — the actor (Pete Ferry) is actually dubbed by Bruce Campbell for some reason. Anyway: it isn’t until now that they learn the fact that it isn’t enough to shoot the zombies in the head, or even chop it off with a machete.
— Damn things! Look at it! Why won’t they DIE?! The thing’s head’s off its body fo Christ’s sakes! Doesn’t it know that?!
When one of the soldiers grabs his gun which lies next to a zombie’s severed head, he gets two of his fingers bitten off. And when you’re that dumb, you deserve it. Since there’s no cure yet, the squad has not much other choice than to leave him there. Goodbye soldier, thanks for your service, and God bless. While Dr. Moulsson is working on a serum that can wipe out the zombie virus, the Zombie Squad gets sent to Akron, Ohio to search for the ingredients. Instead they get in trouble with a crazy cult leader named Jim Jones. And he’s even wearing dark glasses. Not subtle at all. And this Jones guy views the zombies as God’s punishment to the humanity. Fred Phelps from Westboro Baptist Church would give a big Amen to that.
Dumb dialogues, amateur acting, campy action and lots of gore n’ delicious fun practical effects is what’s on the menu from this grainy-looking cheesefest. Nothing more, nothing less. The Dead Next Door is written, directed, produced, edited and scored by J.R. Bookwalter, an amateur filmmaker who just loves to make Z-grade backyard-style horror movies, I guess. That said, it’s a little impressive that he managed to film some quick shots of zombies walking the National Mall and near The White House in Washington DC. Hardcore guerrilla filmmaking. He’s also buddy with Sam Raimi, who’s listed as an executive producer under the pseudonym of “The Master Cylinder“. Raimi actually spat his earnings from Evil Dead II (1987) into this. If it was worth it, who knows, but what do you have friends for.
The film can be found next door to Alice, Tubi.
Writer and director: J.R. Bookwalter
Also known as: Mondo Zombie
Country & year: USA, 1989
Actors: Pete Ferry, Bogdan Pecic, Michael Grossi, Jolie Jackunas, Robert Kokai, Floyd Ewing Jr., Roger Graham, Maria Markovic, Jon Killough, Scott Spiegel
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094962/
