Made by the producing / directing team of Edward and Victor Halperin, who'd previously made the landmark horror film "White Zombie", this follow-up (rather than sequel) concerns an expedition into the heart of Cambodia to find and destroy the process that can create zombies. One would think that an interested party would desire the process so that they could contrive a zombie army, but one weak individual, Armand Louque (Dean Jagger) just wants to be with the woman he loves (Dorothy Stone). She desires another man, Clifford Grayson (Robert Noland).
"Revolt of the Zombies" is a lot less interesting than its predecessor. "White Zombie" was far more atmospheric and stylish. This is a plodding affair that moves much too slowly for a film that only runs 63 minutes long in the first place. The love triangle takes up too much of the run time, and horror elements are practically non-existent. There ARE some effective visuals, to be sure, but the story gets bogged down in talk too often. Only the sequence in which Armand noses around on his own has any real juice. Even the finale is much less ethereal than the finish of the first film. Fans of "White Zombie" may appreciate the frequent use of the haunting image of Bela Lugosis' eyes, which figured so prominently in that feature. And there is one amusing shot in which we see bullets penetrate a zombie chest, in the days before squibs were commonplace.
The performances are nothing special, for the most part. Roy D'Arcy IS an entertainingly malevolent antagonist, but Jagger is kind of dull. The presence of a villain as intense and charismatic as Lugosi is sorely missed. Teru Shimada ("You Only Live Twice") earns some sympathy as the victimized Buna.
Check out this movie if you must, but you're better off just revisiting "White Zombie" instead.
Four out of 10.
"Revolt of the Zombies" is a lot less interesting than its predecessor. "White Zombie" was far more atmospheric and stylish. This is a plodding affair that moves much too slowly for a film that only runs 63 minutes long in the first place. The love triangle takes up too much of the run time, and horror elements are practically non-existent. There ARE some effective visuals, to be sure, but the story gets bogged down in talk too often. Only the sequence in which Armand noses around on his own has any real juice. Even the finale is much less ethereal than the finish of the first film. Fans of "White Zombie" may appreciate the frequent use of the haunting image of Bela Lugosis' eyes, which figured so prominently in that feature. And there is one amusing shot in which we see bullets penetrate a zombie chest, in the days before squibs were commonplace.
The performances are nothing special, for the most part. Roy D'Arcy IS an entertainingly malevolent antagonist, but Jagger is kind of dull. The presence of a villain as intense and charismatic as Lugosi is sorely missed. Teru Shimada ("You Only Live Twice") earns some sympathy as the victimized Buna.
Check out this movie if you must, but you're better off just revisiting "White Zombie" instead.
Four out of 10.