Review of White Zombie (1932) by Jacob G — 13 Nov 2010

The actual storyline of White Zombie feels rather muted today. As one of the earliest examples of a zombie film, things feel... beyond tame. These are mindless bodies, yes... but there is no blood-lust or rotting corpses shuffling along.

It is kind of precious, in a way. This movie is from an era where the movie was deemed crass and violent because of a couple of bullet holes in a zombie's torso--no blood, no gore... just a couple of dark circle on the shirt.

However, preciousness aside, White Zombie is spectacular in how it utilizes sound. One of my favorite moments is early on in the movie as we see zombies working in a mill. They're pushing something in a circular motion, and the sound it makes is incredible.

Absolutely captivating. Sound isn't enough to make a film great, though. Halperin's direction makes the visual statement of a silent film, in spite of the presence of dialogue. Each shot seems framed beautifully.

Bela Lugosi's character is absolutely, beautifully diabolical. Just a great villain.