Review of I Walked with a Zombie (1943) by Tara V — 05 Nov 2015

I've been trying to watch all the movies in Danny Peary's book, Cult Movies. His essay about the film added a lot to my appreciation of a film I really enjoyed.

!) He enumerates the ways Lewton respectfully and richly treats the characters who are female, and those who are black. Pretty unusual at the time.

2) The flavour of the voodoo zombie in the picture. I thought it was a lot like how they were explained in the book of The Serpent and The Rainbow, and Peary says it "visualized the zombie of William Seabrook's The Magic Island", another book. I'll take these ones over fast zombies any day.

2) The absence of violence or scary images, relying on atmosphere to creep us out. Really, the worst these zombies do is walk toward a person but it's still pretty great. I dunno if I'd agree with Peary that it isn't really a horror film.

4) He cites Lewton's 'secret intent' to make "'Jane Eyre in the West Indies'...a young female in a house with a man and his insane wife." That is so bang on.