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World War Z

Wwz

There are some ideas that are brilliant, some that are maddeningly dumb, and some that can only be done once. This is one of my favorite books and least favorite movies.

World War Z, as the rest of the title suggests, is a oral history of the zombie war. Basically the book is written interview style with multiple survivors of different cultures, creeds, ages, and social standings We get traumatic accounts of epic battles, tearful goodbyes, and get a cool view of how others outside ourselves would deal with such a catastrophic event. The book never feels repetitive in tone or character arcs and that is what makes it so damn enthralling: genuine feeling characters around the world dealing with classic, simple zombies- a threat most wouldn’t take at face value but Max Brooks demonstrates how endearing and dangerous they are.

The movie ditches almost everything but the zombie apocalypse. We get an obscene amount of fast, kinda green looking, Pg-13 28 knockoff zombies overruning the globe as Brad Pitt goes through action set piece after action set piece trying to find a cure and get back to his family. Watching this hurt. Bad. The stories and characters I loved in the book were striped and replaced with a Emmerich wannabe action movie. I admit, I may be hard on the movie; many folks I know that really enjoyed it never read it at all.

I’m going to say pick one, and whatever you pick, don’t go to the other because chances are you will get royally bent out of shape. I favor the book’s variety and emphasis on strong characters, setting, and simple zombies. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Zombie Survival Guide

zombie survival guide

Hello everyone. I have been really sick for a week, hence why I haven’t posted and well, tis the season for runny noses, hoarse coughs, and ZOMBIES! Ok, not really zombies. Zombies don’t do well in the frigid cold, although beware because those cadaverous bastards could be buried beneath the snow. This is something I learned from Max Brooks’s Zombie Survival Guide.

Now there is no narrative but the book is rather an actual survival guide heavily based in actual fact. Wilderness survival, weapons, and home defense tactics are some things that can learned from the book. As for the zombies, Brooks goes out of his way to add a layer of depth to the creatures both physically and contextually you rarely see in fiction. Seriously, they feel pretty damn real when you start getting into there inner workings, origins, and capabilities. If you love zombies and want something different that will make you feel safer come the inevitable zombie apocalypse, definitely pick it up. Best wishes and may the gaming gods save you from zombies…which I’m not..it was a stomach flu…I promise.

Drawn Together

drawn together

There are some things that once seen, cannot be unseen: this is one of the few times it’s a compliment. Many don’t remember Drawn Together, but those that watched it remember it DAMN well. Not everyday you see a Veggie-Tale go postal, a superhero and a pig wash a homeless guys balls, or the most feared creature in our live action universe: live action squirrel with incredibly huge balls! That kind of crazy shit.

Drawn Together is a animated reality show about animated characters living in a house. Captain Hero, Foxy Luv, Toot, Spanky Ham, Xander, Waldor Sockbat, and Ling-ling are representations of characters we all grew up with which leads to some insanely outrageous moments during it’s three seasons. And I warn you now, if you aren’t into raunchy comedy, skip this like swimming in a pool of plague bodies. Over a decade after it aired, it holds up well but I do recommend watching it unedited. I highly recommend this show for it’s great premise, funny characters, and unforgettable moments. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

High School of the Dead

high school of the dead

I’m sure someone somewhere is rolling there eyes just at the title of this anime alone, because zombies are well…dead. Millions of these undead bastards have plagued our media for the past near 2 decades. There are gems but many suck and many just need to stop (I’m talking to you Walking Dead).

Basic premise of this anime: a random group of kids and the busty school nurse at a prestigious high school must band together to survive the zombie apocalypse. That is pretty much it. We never learn what caused the zombies, which I’m fine with, and we don’t even really know if the zombies were defeated at the end and the human race won, not just our heroes. I liked that too. Like many zombie films, there is a deeper meaning behind them and what I took away was the zombie apocalypse as a metaphor for the real world outside high school bleeding into the drama filled lives of these varied teens.

While not exceptional, it was a nice breath of fresh madness in a sub-genre played to death. It has fun characters you grow to care about and you do see them grow as the show continues. There is plenty of awesome kills and the animation is damn good. What stole my heart is the huge WTF factor at play, like a kid using his ex girlfriends boobs to stabilize his AK 47 during a firefight or the random moments you that make you laugh out WTF. I’m sure Savior had a blast reading my confused texts that night. My only real complaint is that I do wish there was more and that it does take a little bit to find it’s groove. I recommend this as a fun, crazy ass anime for horror fans and zombie fans. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Hellraiser: Judgement trailer

hellraiser judgement

At Saviorgaming we have love for the Cenobites but sadly over the years, the film industry hasn’t had so much respect for the explorer of pain and pleasure. Hellraiser hasn’t the best luck with sequels, to put it lightly. Thankfully, the trailer for the latest installment looks to be the most promising I’ve seen in decades. Just from the cinematography alone, I can see a huge improvement. Also, some old classics return which made me giddy as hell. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. Best wishes, feel free to check out our reviews of Hellraiser Movie review and Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 review as well as my review of The Hellbound Heart but most importantly, may the gaming gods bring you glory, because we have such sights to show you…

Slenderman preview

slenderman

Ok, I’m going to say something that may blow many a mind away, especially if you are a modern horror fan. Ready? I don’t get the fear around the Slenderman. A lot of the fan art is cool and the infamous court case surrounding that murder was indeed terrifying but I never really saw the appeal. That being said, I can’t ignore he has become a pop culture icon and now he’s got a movie. Ugh. After seeing the trailer I groaned. It reminded me of a typical horror trailer with pretty standard horror themes. I’m giving it the benefit of the doubt but see for yourself. May the gaming gods bring you glory and best wishes.

Metal Gear Survive preview

mg survive

What the hell Konami? I’ve always heard amazing things from Metal Gear fans and been fascinated by the strange storylines and cool designs but zombies…really. Without Kojima we get a game without any familiar characters and now there is zombie things. From what I gathered from the gameplay footage I got a heavy vibe of Red Redemption’s Undead Nightmare, where it’s a giant side story but still it’s own thing. There’s crafting like many zombie games and you can either stealth it out Last of Us style or go semi ham Dead Rising style. It looks graphically nice at least but that won’t be enough to save yet another zombie game from the gaming god’s wrath. May the gaming gods bring you glory and best wishes.

Fifty Shades Freed trailer

50 freed

There is a 16 year old kid I work with who is about to turn 17 very soon and he once said to me “Torsten, I want you to review the 50 Shades Trilogy. You. Not Savior. Just You, books movies, the full deal.”

Well kid, here’s a early birthday present. Now, I’m setting the record straight and say no, I’m not a 50 Shades fan. At all. In fact, the book gave me a good laugh or two but that’s about it. And from the overwhelming amount of negative critical reviews, I can say many get a cheap laugh from the movies too. Still, show must go on, so we get the final chapter. I guess they get married and have kinky sex, the end? If any would like to torture me with a request to review the trilogy, please leave a comment. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Strangers

the strangers

There are few movies that ever really freaked me out. Strangers is one of those movies that kept me up at night and made me watch the shadows carefully, because you don’t know who maybe staring back at you.

Strangers is a simple story of a troubled couple going to a cabin in the woods. The guy proposed to his girlfriend at a friend’s wedding and she declined him, so well, there romantic getaway is screwed. Suddenly, late at night in the middle of nowhere, there’s a knock at the door. A young woman stands there in shadow and asks “Is Tamera home?”. Confused, they tell her no and close the door. Later, the couple argues and the dude walks out for air and not long after, the same woman returns, knocking. Only this time she doesn’t go away. Then the woman of the couple quickly discovers that she ain’t alone and calls her man back. Rushing home, it doesn’t take long before the three Strangers make themselves known and trap them there, playing with them, well, because they were home…

The movie is simple but effective as hell. The music and atmosphere adds a lot of tension to the loneliness but the Strangers themselves are eerie enough. They wear such simple masks but what freaks me out is that this movie isn’t about the couple being hunted, but being toyed with. The Strangers don’t attack until the very end, but they cut every chance they have to get away, knowing every route, always there. I highly recommend it with the lights off in a house alone. May the gaming gods bring you glory…and is Tamera home?

Strangers 2, trailer 1

strangers 2

One of my favorite horror films of all time, and one of the most underrated of last decade was The Strangers. Emphasis on the last decade part. Strangers came out in 2008, and a decade later we get a sequel, or rather a prequel? What the hell is with this decade in horror where sequels are prequels but still named 2? Anyway, there is a family, a mobile home, and those creepy, simple bastards in masks that just freak the hell out of me. Immediately I have to say this is a much brighter, colorful movie than the first.

So far, I’m conflicted by the trailer as well as by the movie itself. I think Strangers should have been left alone personally but as far as sequels goes, this doesn’t look bad. There is enough to feel like the first but there is a different flavor too. My biggest fear is that the sequel will try pushing it into slasher territory instead of keeping psychological horror. We don’t have long to wait, so I am curious. May the gaming gods bring you glory.