American Zombie (2007)

Written by Rebecca Sonnenshine & Grace Lee
Directed by Grace Lee

Just when you thought the mockumentary genre had shown you just about everything you could think of (including it's half-brother, the docu-style narrative e.g. Diary of the Dead, Cloverfield) Grace Lee finds a way to incestuously invent a new take on both horror films, horror conventions, real social issues, and the documentary process in general. More impressive than the actual story being told here is the form, it's manipulation, and the statement that manipulation makes.

Here is a mockumentary about zombies, the real living dead that walk the streets of Los Angeles, and here are two filmmakers, Grace Lee and John Solomon who decide to make a socially conscious documentary about these outcasts of society who have trouble getting credit, jobs, finding friends, and social services.

Of course, the entire film is a joke, because zombies aren't real. Right? I'd actually be surprised to see how many people would watch 3/4 of this movie and start to wonder if zombies are real, that's the level of seriousness directed toward the issue. However, anyone watching the last quarter of the film will eventually get the joke, and experienced horror fans will realize the joke just because of the exploration of zombie conventions throughout the film, such as "Are all zombies stupid?" Of course not, and an M.D. is on hand to explain the three levels of brain function in zombies.

Of course, the main issue to be tackled is how do zombies survive, are they a real threat to humanity? Do they in fact eat flesh? This is one of the main issues tackled in the film, and being the socially conscious filmmakers that they are, they just skirt around the issue most of the film, that is until the filmmakers are finally granted permission to go to Live Dead, the yearly zombie gathering out in the desert just outside of Los Angeles, which they have initially had trouble gaining access to. Of course, this will explain everything about zombies, or so the filmmakers think, and will finally answer the big question.

The one thing I really liked most about this film is how for the most part, the fact that the subjects are zombies is secondary in the main action of the film. Most of it is about the bickering between Grace and John and their journey in the creative process of making a film together. With tongues firmly placed in cheeks, they put their serious faces on and go at it the entire film, with the looming threat of being eaten by zombies always skirting right around the corner. Definitely recommended for fans of the zombie genre, and people that like to see the conventions of the documentary form destroyed while you watch. Fun movie.

7.2/10