King of the Zombies

King of the Zombies (1941) is a sort of pre-zombie zombie movie.  It follows the exciting journey of three Americans as they crash their very realistic plane into a mysterious island in the West Indies.  Upon their very realistic landing, they meet Dr. Sangre and his family of Austrian refugees, who are living on the island in a spooky mansion.  As is the case with most spooky mansions, not all is quite right; zombies, black magic, and intrigue are afoot...

RB:  I would like to first point out that this movie is from 1941.  To that end, I wish to communicate that I feel like I've been led astray.  It had been my understanding that George A. Romero had really pioneered what zombies originally were.  Clearly that isn't the case.  Then again, this movie tries to explain itself like three different ways, so I don't know which way is up.  I do know that this movie rules.  Creepy house, creepy guy in a cape, prude lewd 40's jokes, and the most ridiculous black acting I've ever seen.  And so many skulls!  Smart.  Good job, 1941.

BR:  I'd also like to give a shout out to 40's racism.  No, black man, you do not get a drink, or a bed.  It is quite comical that you expected either.  Awesome.  I was also surprised by the date of this film's release; however, I'm not sure that this really counts as a true zombie movie.  King of the Zombies draws from voodoo culture - the zombies are brought back from the dead through rituals - but it's unclear if they are cannibalistic or contagious.  Personally, I find these to be the two true marks of a zombie, and they are what Romero "pioneered" in a sense.  Technical terms aside, this movie is pretty awesome.  A little slow at times, but it's got a spooky mansion, secret passageways, and it somehow ends up being the damn Germans' fault.

RB:  What Germans?  Just so we're clear, there are no Germans in this movie.  Only Austrian refugees, West Indians, and some true blue racist Americans.  Other than that, I really can't say anything else about this movie.  It's good.  I recommend it.

BR:  Ah.  In my defense, Germans would have helped make the ending more logical.  Because it just doesn't even try to make very much sense.

Note:  King of the Zombies came as a double-feature with Revolt of the Zombies.  We chose not to review Revolt as it is even less of a zombie movie.  It's really mind-control / body-snatchers business.