In 2009, Norway's Tommy Wirkola directs. Dead Snow (aka Død snø), a hilarious, high-splatter, Nazi-zombie horror comedy to be followed in 2014 by the excellent sequel Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead, also by the same director. Drawing on 1980s horror cinematography and also on historical events involving Norway during World War II, Tommy Wirkola brings forth an incredible zombie movie populated by corpses in Nazi uniforms who, unlike other cinematic walking dead, do not feed on human flesh and are endowed with extraordinary strength. Buried under the snow, these fierce and swift German soldiers in fact emerge into the light to defend their stolen treasure. These are the foundations around which the story of the two chapters both featured in the incredible Midnight Factory box set.
This amazing saga, in addition to presenting a new zombie figure, enjoys high levels of splatter and gore but not only that. It manages to alternate black humor with moments of unprecedented violence and savagery. An underlying nastiness then, present in both films, gives more depth to the franchise.
Dead Snow (Norway - 2009): Martin (Vegar Hoel) and his friends reach a cabin lost in the snow for a carefree vacation of sex and fun. The place, however, is a veritable graveyard of Nazi soldiers who, awakened by the intruders themselves, will hunt them down to exterminate them.
Tommy Wirkola starts the saga about Nazi zombies with a lighthearted film that aims for fun. The vision nostalgically evokes the 1980s horror filmography in which there is a marked reference to Evil Dead (1981) by Sam Raimi but also to more recent films such as. Cabin Fever (2002) by Eli Roth.
Dead Snow however, manages to gain its own charm thanks to heinous zombies, tasty splatter effects and stunning gimmicks. Not the least of these is the beautiful snowy landscape whose candidness is muted by buckets of blood and body shreds.
The screenplay of Dead Snow is by Tommy Wirkola and Stig Frode Henriksen. The cast includes: Vegar Hoel, Ørjan Gamst, Stig Frode Henriksen, Charlotte Frogner, Lasse Valdal, Evy Kasseth Røsten, Jeppe Beck Laursen, Jenny Skavlan, Ane Dahl Torp, and Bjørn Sundquist.
Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (Norway - 2014): Martin (Vegar Hoel), missing an arm, manages to pull himself to safety. The man awakens in the hospital where he was accidentally implanted with the arm of the Nazi zombie Herzog. The limb gives him not only prodigious strength but also the ability to awaken the dead and have them in his power just like his enemy Oberst Herzog (Ørjan Gamst). With the help of the resurrected Red Army, Martin will prepare for battle against the Nazi leader and his putrid army.
In Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (aka Død snø 2) the homages echoed in the previous chapter abscond and instead space is given to an original story completely steeped in violence. Moments of humor are suddenly cut short by the atrocities carried out by the Nazi army. Thus, the viewer's smiles are erased in an instant by the cruel actions of the zombie soldiers driven by excessive eagerness to exterminate humankind. Ruthless, these living dead daub the screen with bits of human flesh, brains and entrails making no distinction. Indeed, under their wrath fall men and women as well as the disabled and the elderly.
Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead thus offers an excellent and exciting bloody spectacle (in which there is no shortage of necrophilia) but also a story full of original insights (the war between the two armies of the dead) in which very good direction emerges.
The screenplay of Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead is by Tommy Wirkola, Vegar Hoel and Stig Frode Henriksen. The cast includes Vegar Hoel, Ørjan Gamst, Martin Starr, Jocelyn DeBoer, Ingrid Haas, Stig Frode Henriksen, Kristoffer Joner, Hallvard Holmen, Amrita Acharia, Derek Mears, and Bjarte Tjøstheim.
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Midnight Factory has distributed "Dead Snow Collection" on March 22 in a limited collector's edition (with booklet) in both double DVD and double Blu-ray formats. The stunning and inviting box set includes the first and second chapters of the saga viz. Dead Snow and Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead.
The extras compartment of the two Blu-rays is rich, and they present excellent audio and video quality.
Below are the technical data.
Limited Edition 2 Blu-ray + Booklet:
Dead Snow
Duration: 92 min.
Format: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: Italian 5.1 DTS-HD, English 5.1 DTS-HD, Italian 2.0 DTS-HD
Subtitles: Italian
Extras: At the Slaughterhouse; Special Effects; Meet Tommy Wirkola and Bryan Jones
Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead
Duration: 101 min.
Format: 2.35:1 1080p
Audio: Italian 5.1 DTS-HD, English 5.1 DTS-HD
Subtitles: Italian
Extras: Comic strip - Red VS Dead; Audio commentary; Short film "Armen"; Storyboards and concepts arts; Video special effects.
