Customer Reviews

Revenge of the Dead [VHS]

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

The movie 'Revenge of the Dead' was originally titled 'Zeder' and is unfortunately out of print in a US release under that title. There is a Region 2 PAL DVD of 'Zeder' which has excellent video quality unlike the US release. Philips DVD player models DVD726 and DVP642, among other Philips models, and the AMW S-99 DVD player can play the Region 2 PAL DVD with a simple 4 or 5 digit code entered from the remote (with the tray open) which can be found on videohelp.com . The Region 2 PAL DVD of 'Zeder' can be found with a froogle search (Amazon does not carry it). The DVD of 'Revenge of the Dead' listed on this page suffers from 2 issues: 1) poor video quality 2) it is missing ten minutes of the movie including two very important scenes (the same for the VHS version put out by Creature Features). Creature Features has a bad habit of cutting movies randomly to get them under 90 minutes and they slaughtered this movie. If you want a complete copy of 'Revenge of the Dead' and better quality than this DVD but for a low price, go to the VHS listing for 'Revenge of the Dead' and click on the used section (ignore the new one listed on the page, it is the same slaughtered version as this DVD). What you want to find is the Lightning Video release which is either listed as that or as 'different cover art'. The Lightning Video release has the same subject, a zombie coming out of the street, but the artwork is quite different and the background is blue. The Lightning Video release is complete and better quality, and you can probably get one for $8.00 or less. 'Revenge of the Dead'/'Zeder' is the story of a writer, Stefano, who is given a typewriter for an anniversary present which was purchased from a pawn shop. One night while working on his story, the ribbon gives out. Upon closer examination of the ribbon he finds some rather strange content apparently from the previous owner of the typewriter. He decides to investigate these writings about K-zones and bringing the dead back to life. He finds that the typewriter belonged to an ex-priest. As he delves further into this mystery, danger and conspiracy lurk around every corner. This is a movie that crosses several genres; gothic, giallo, conspiracy, and yes zombie movie. This is not a gory movie or even close to one. This is a well structured tale of mystery and horror brilliantly brought to the screen by director Pupi Avati. The American distributors of this film made a mistake when they retitled it 'Revenge of the Dead' and targeted the gore crowd. Several of them went to see a gory plotless movie and instead found a film with a story and this seemed alien to them (as evidenced by several reviews on this page). These same reviewers apparently never watched the movie as there are four on screen appearances and two off screen appearances of zombies in this film (the other reviewers claimed none). If you are looking for a zombie movie involving gut-munching gore, you will not find it here. If you like a horror movie that has a story to tell (and a unique one here) and develops its plot which is frought with conspiracy and an unnerving journey into the unknown, you may well like this movie; just not this DVD.-Bob

The correct name of this wondeful film by Pupi Avati is "Zeder," and is also available on DVD under that title. I have that copy and it is horrible. By the previous review I take it this copy is just as terrible.

Apparently there is a crystal clear copy available in Europe in the PAL format, Region 2, letterboxed, uncut, and all.

Why does everyone want killing and zombies and action (and it does have these things)? "Rosemary's Baby," for example, is the most perfectly frightening and terrifying film. Not that "Zeder" is as superior, but the subtle things happening are what is important.

Now, what needs to happen is someone with brains needs to release this film in its proper format on DVD in the States. Yes, "Pet Semetary" is very similar and was perhaps inspired by "Zeder," but otherwise, this is a truly original film.

Those who rate this film poorly are those who don't understand it. Part of the problem is the title and cover of the originally released version in America, Revenge Of The Dead, with the picture of a zombie bursting up out of a sewer. That misleads people into thinking it's your typical flesh-eating zombie movie when it isn't. The correct title, Zeder, and the cover for it are more reliable. Let's just call this movie the zombie film for the thinking man. Essentially what we have here is the story of a man who gets a typewriter as a gift from his wife. What he finds typed on the old ribbon is so puzzling to him that he becomes determined to find out what it means. His search leads him to large hotel still under construction, where inside a group of scientists are trying to understand why the mysterious K-zones seem to be able to reanimate the dead and turn them into vicious killers. Although boring to the zombie fan who insists on seeing the living dead feasting on the flesh of the living every five minutes, Zeder certainly has its terrifying moments, including the two different occasions where the priest's face appears on the tv monitors and the scene where we hear the living dead while the main character is swimming in an indoor pool. Literally, the hair stood up on my neck watching those scenes. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who is a fan of zombie films, but I urge those who have not yet seen it to have an open mind before viewing. If you do this, I have no doubt you will enjoy this film.

The title of this review is for all you chumps who wrote a bad review for this great movie. Revenge of the Dead is the movie Zeder under a different name. Don't buy the ROTD version, but do buy the slightly superior version called Zeder that is also offered on this sight on VHS or DVD. With that clarified, let me get on with my review: This movie ROCKS! I have never seen anything like it! It's part conspiracy movie and part zombie flick. Oh, and despite popular belief, Zombies ARE in this flick. They get about two minutes of screen time at the end of the movie (before that, we only heard them breath or see their shadow) and their make-up job consists entirely of only pale gray skin, but they are still creepy and cool. The violence level is also minimum. This has all of the ingrdients of a borefest of an Italian zombie flick (the fact that it runs for over 100 minutes doesn't help either), but the director makes it work. It is suspenseful, entertaining, and overall well done. The zombies (when they're around anyway) are some of the best ever. They are fairly intelligent (by zombie standards anyway), elusive (we usually only hear them or see a shadow, like I said before. There are no brainless armies of the living dead here.), and just plain SCARY! If you are expecting a Romero or Fulci style zombie flick, you will be disapointed. This film demands its viewers to THINK for once and NOT be mindlessly entertained by gore and mayhem. The plot is a bit hard to follow, so you will have to concentrate hard while watching. If you can do that, you will have a great time. If you can't, go watch some brainless crap like Zombie 3 or Doctor Butcher(fun films but still garbage). If you want to go somewhere in the middle as far as intelligence goes, watch The Beyond or Phenomena.

...don't be fooled by this movie. The only reason I bought it was because I thought, due to the cover and name, that it was going to be a zombie movie. It is not. Apparantly it got renamed by U.S. distributors or what not, but it has nothing to do with zombies. The reason for the low rating is because I expected a zombie movie due to the name, cover, and quote on the top of the case. Well I lost interest in this fairly quickly after seeing no zombies at all. If you are looking for a zombie flick here stay clear, as it has nothing to do with them, if you are looking for the movie "Zeder" or whatever it is called then you found it. I was looking for a zombie movie, didn't get it so hence the one star.

From reading some of the other reviews I see I am not the only one who was disappointed when I got this on DVD because I already had a vhs copy and realized that hey, they cut quite a few scenes out of this movie which I think are of value. People who see this version without the benefit of seeing the uncut version will have hardly a clue of what is going on because the movie itself is a little confusing. I loved the uncut version and I hope they release a better copy of this. I may just have to break down and buy another vhs player so that I can watch this again the way it is meant to be watched, in its' entirety.

This movie was the worst excuse for a zombie movie ever!The cover has nothing to do with the movie.There is no gore or blood at all.The title has nothing to do with the movie.The most im protant thing is ....NO ZOMBIES!Thats right you heard me no dead corpses walking around and eating people just some stupid old guy.My advice do not buy or even rent ths movie.I was suckered by the cover so I wa stupid and rented it.Lemme tell ya its the worst excuse for a movie never mind a horor movie. My 2 words for this movie are: Stay Away!

As a fan of zombie movies, all I can say is that this movie is a mockery of what a real zombie movie should be. There's no blood, no guts, the script has no guidelines, and above all else, not one single zombie. Not one single person gets their brain eaten, as any zombie fan would know is what they go after. If your thinking of watching this movie, here's some advice. DON"T! not only would you be waisting your money, you'll be waisting your time watching trash.

The five star rating is for the movie and not for the Creature Features release here. This movie is called 'Zeder' and is available in an out-of-print DVD and I do believe VHS under that title. There is a current release of 'Zeder' on a region 2 PAL DVD which does have good reviews for the print quality. Amazon.com does not carry the region 2 PAL DVD but you can find it with a Froogle search. If you do not have a DVD player that is region free and will handle PAL, you can find one on Amazon.com, including some cheap models. Philips models DVD726 and DVP642, among other Philips models, and AMW S-99 can play this DVD (these models only require a 4 or 5 digit code you can enter from your remote to make them region free; you can get the code from videohelp.com). With regards to the Creature Features VHS tape, it is missing 10 minutes of the film including 2 very important scenes. Look in the used section on this page and you can find copies of the Lightning Video release which is the complete theatrical release and pretty good quality to boot. If you see a listing in the used section that states that the box has different cover art than the one pictured on this page, that is the Lightning Video release. The cover art is the same subject (a zombie coming out of the street) but is quite different with a blue nighttime sky for the background. We can be thankful that the cover art is different so as to easily distinguish the bad from the good. With regards to the movie 'Revenge Of The Dead' A.K.A. 'Zeder', this is one of my favorite horror movies and one of the best. If you are looking for a gorey plotness romp, then avoid this movie (an intelligent well made movie could offend your sensitivities; as evidenced by most of the reviews on this page). This movie was released to the U.S. in 1984 under the title 'Revenge Of The Dead' to play on the zombie movie popularity of the time. This was the distributors decision and had nothing to do with the film-maker. 'Zeder'/'Revenge Of The Dead' is an unsettling tale of a quest for immortality in contrast, that of the spirit and that of the flesh. In this story we have two men essentially in a search for something different; not so much a new beginning but a different direction. However, will one man's search interfere with the others; and those who seek what they would consider the ultimate prize, would they sacrifice it for themselves and others to protect it. This is a mix of giallo, gothic, and yes zombie movies which is frought with conspiracy. I have been intentionally vague to keep from spoiling anything for the would be viewer. This is not a movie for the gorehound or for someone who prefers movies that require no thought process. Enjoy-Bob

How can a movie with such a cool cover be so horrible. The cover has three zombie son it and there is like two in the movie who do nothing. Most of this painfully boring movie is a man playing with his type wrighter. Yep deffinately exciting. I would recommend to bye this movie to break or to torture some one. So pretty much just stay away if u buy it gos help u cuz i was a victim and the pain still stays.