
Love them or hate them, zombie movies are a staple of the entertainment industry. Whether you like your zombies slow or fast, this list of my personal favorites should please everyone.
#10 Resuscitator
Countries: United StatesLanguages : German English
This movie really stuck with me when I was a kid because it’s about a scientist who managed to bring dead tissue back to life. There’s no crazy apocalypse or big event that suddenly creates zombies; the undead are the result of science.
#9 Evil Dead II
Countries: United StatesLanguages : English, Latin
It’s the movie that put Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi on the map, and for good reason. I remember going to the video store as a kid and looking at this amazing cover, trying to figure out how they could put a human head inside a skull.
#8 I walked with a zombie
Countries: United StatesLanguages : English
This movie came out 25 years before Night of the Living Dead, but it’s truly one of the first looks at how to deal with the undead (thanks to 1932’s White Zombie). It’s not gory, and there are boring (disgusting!) romantic parts, but it’s definitely a classic in every sense of the word.
#7 Return of the Living Dead
Countries: United StatesLanguages : English
Uh oh, did I just add a non-Romero “living dead” movie to this list? ! John Russo’s Return of the Living Dead came out when I was 10, and it really stood out to me the most. Not only did it introduce us to the concept of a fast zombie, but it also gave us the classic trope about brain-eating zombies.
#6 Undead
Countries: New ZealandLanguages : English Spanish
Before taking the hobbits to Isengard, Peter Jackson made one of the bloodiest zombie films of all time. Yes, it’s another comedy on the list, but it’s also funny in a dark, dark way.
#5 Dawn of the Dead
Countries: United States, ItalyLanguages : English Spanish
The 1978 sequel to Night of the Living Dead takes the apocalyptic event much further than NotLD ever did. On the one hand, it actually explains what happened and shows us the response of humanity as a whole. I think of Dawn of the Dead as Mad Max’s Road Warrior from Night of the Living Dead.
#4 28 days later…
In stark contrast to the slow, heavy zombies of Night of the Living Dead, we get the infamous fast zombies that really heighten the horror aspect of these types of movies. 28 Days Later has become synonymous with that new type of zombie that everyone hopes doesn’t exist in a true zombie apocalypse.
#3 Zombie Country
Countries: United StatesLanguages : English, Spanish, French
Much like with Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland expands the zombie comedy genre in new directions. Released in 2009 when video games were exploding into popular media, Zombieland takes the same approach to delivering a gaming experience that doesn’t try to be more than it is. This film also made the most money of all the others on this list.
#2 Night of the Living Dead
Countries: UNITED STATESLanguages : English
The addition of this 1968 classic makes me look like a giant hipster, but there’s no denying the quality of the film’s story and its effect on the entire zombie movie genre. Sure, it’s the first movie to feature zombies (there’s one earlier on this list!), but it really brought out the horror factor and introduced us to the survivor band trope that seems work again and again.
#1 Shaun of the Dead
Countries: United Kingdom, France, United StatesLanguages : English
Shaun of the Dead is known for its comedy and wit, but the movie is so much more than that. Using everyday found items as weapons against the undead is something not covered much (but very useful!). No matter how many times I get tired of people calling me “Shawn of the Dead”, this movie still deserves number 1 in my book.
Of course, this list is strictly my opinion, but I’d love to hear your own top 10. Leave them in the comments below!
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