Hell of the Living Dead
(aka. Virus)
 (1981)
review by Krug Stillo

The funniest film ever produced in Italy is not a comedy, it is actually a lame attempt to cash in on the lucrative success of Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. With a plethora of different titles, the best being the one chosen by Anchor Bay for their DVD release, the direct translation form the Italian title (Inferno dei Morti-Viventi), Hell of the Living Dead.

The film opens with a chemical leak that turns the local workforce into carnivorous zombies. Before we get to know the purpose of the Hope Center working on ‘operation: Sweet Death’ we are informed that ‘some kind of degenerative process has began that maybe catastrophic for everyone.’ Cut to a group of four wannabe Dawn of the Dead SWAT team fellas, who, after saving the day in a local government building. The terrorists in the building are holding the council hostage and demanding that the Hope Centers be abolished…hint, hint. Aforementioned SWAT guys burst in, shoot and ask questions later before being sent off to New Guinea where the natives are apparently going insane and indulging in a spot of cannibalism. The film is already a mess of insane Dawn plagiarism.

Seventy minutes later, after encountering two journalists and surviving numerous zombie attacks the group suddenly materialize a dinghy and set sail for the Hope Center island. It transpires that the group’s brief is to reach the island and destroy any evidence that implicate the Hope Center with the current collapse of society. In a ludicrous apocalyptic ending, the zombie plague is supposedly spreading across the world.

So what makes this film so hilarious? Well the dialogue for one thing. Here’s just a few beauties -

“She may not know much about chemistry but in bed her reactions are terrific.”

“When did you start worrying about our balls, Daddy?”

“Dumb broad! The living image of a modern mother. You couldn’t be so mean to leave your kid in a nice safe school for a couple of week! Not her! Ah no! Not to bring our boy along would be cruel, it doesn’t matter if he’s eaten up by mosquitoes or wounded by a native lunatic!”

“I’d prefer to concentrate on the delightful water nymph who is about to quench my innate primordial thirst.”

“Maybe there’s some chicks in grass skirts.”
“Maybe there’s some without grass skirts.”

"Suppose we met at a cocktail party in Washington, we'd be in the sack together by now!"

The list is endless...

This really must be seen to be believed. The most surprising aspect is the soundtrack. As if the plot didn’t rip-off Dawn of the Dead enough, Mattei felt that he should also reuse the Goblin score. In his defense, he claims that he bought the rights to the music before Romero. If this were true, did he also purchase the rights for the soundtracks Goblin composed for Contamination and Beyond the Darkness? Because he also uses the music from those gore films.

This Anchor Bay DVD features a documentary ‘Hell Rats of the Living Dead’ in which Mattei speaks about his films. There is also a theatrical trailer and poster and stills gallery.

Hell of the Living Dead gets 2 Skulls as a horror film, 5 as a comedy!