Spooky Special - One Cut of the Dead (2017)

 

Streaming on Shudder 

For Rent on Amazon, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube 

    There are movies about zombies, movies about making movies, and even movies about making zombie movies. This style of a film within a film or a story within a story meta-narrative has existed since the dawn of the arts. One of the earliest examples is Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, written in the style of letters, journals, and official reports presented to the reader rather than a traditional third-person perspective narrative. While this particular sub-genre has numerous advantages and quirks, only a few of the ones I've seen up until now have captured the joy and unity that the arts can provide to its creators and the audience. 

    One Cut of the Dead is precisely that kind of film! It is a story about art, creative unity, and the joy of making something unique together. Not to mention the ever-so-appreciated argument that there's no such thing as high or low art. This film has much more heart, commitment, and nuance than I expected. I am overjoyed that I could enjoy it and review it for all of you, especially during the appropriate Halloween season. 

    Without spoiling the twist (and yes, there is a twist), the opening story of the film is indeed what it says in the tagline: a group of filmmakers are trying to make a zombie film only to be invaded by actual zombies. The main attraction is that it is all captured in one continuous shot with no cuts, much like the films 1917 or Alfred Hitchcock's Rope. However, while those films utilized cleverly hidden edits to maintain the illusion of a single take, One Cut of the Dead does it for real with no such hidden editing tricks. 

    At first glance, while the single take is always admirable, it seems almost too amateurish in this film: Overexposed images, moments of awkward stalling, and occasional questionable camera angles. All of this for a solid 37 minutes, and while some of it may seem strange, it all fits the narrative style and feels justified given the situation of the story. However, if you stay with it for the whole run, it suddenly transforms into something unexpected and more profound than you might have thought. Suddenly, all of the strange aspects of the first part make total sense and build up to something greater, which, again, I will not spoil here because you have to experience it for yourself. 

    While the zombie genre may not be for everyone, and the graphic violence depicted may turn away some viewers (understandably so), please take solace in knowing that none of it is there for the mere sake of having it. None of it is real, of course, and all of it serves the greater purpose of the actual story. It should be noted that there was a French remake of this film titled Final Cut, but I haven't seen it as of this writing, nor am I particularly interested in it because this kind of movie is impossible to recreate. Sure, the French version might have sleeker visuals and a bigger budget, but no remake of this film could ever capture the one thing this low-budget Japanese film has in spades: heart. 

    Even if you're not a fan of zombies, I encourage you to give this film a shot. It will be much more nuanced and joyful than it may appear. You will not regret it! 

Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.