2006: A Look Back

Well, whaddya know... 2006 has turned out to be my most productive year ever!

I completed a major life goal to write a novel, Deathbreed, to be published January 16, 2007.

I was interviewed for a TV show that will be seen by millions of people worldwide when it airs in spring 2007, and not just briefly, but I'm getting an entire 30-minute episode devoted to me and my films!

Not too shabby for a year that started off in the crapper, LOL, and 2007 is shaping up to be even better and busier!

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all my friends and fans throughout the world!

ZOMBIE NOVEL: Official Release Date

I just got an advance copy today of Deathbreed: A Zombie Novel today. OMG, what a gorgeous book! It's one thing to see something on the computer monitor or printed out at home, and quite another to see it professionally printed as a trade paperback--the literary equivalent to having my name up in lights on the silver screen. The cover art is unbelievable, the interior layout is crisp and easy to read, and it just makes me want to jump up and down and scream, "YES!!! I DID IT!!!"

Writing a novel has been a major goal of mine all my life--one it took me 36 years to realize, but damn, am I happy with the results!

The new promotional website supporting the novel kicks ass, too. It's done and will be uploaded in about a week.

Deathbreed: A Zombie Novel by Todd Tjersland, the Visionary Overlord of American Horror, releases in trade paperback and a signed and numbered limited edition hardcover January 16, 2007.

You can order it online and read samples at www.ZombieNovel.com

ZOMBIE NOVEL: Done!

Deathbreed: A Zombie Novel (by yours truly) is now officially done after nine months and seven drafts. It is moving toward a January 2007 release date; the new website should be up shortly to promote it and, of course, I will be announcing it here on my blog and MySpace.

Included in the 388 page book as special bonus features are a preview of Deathbreed 2 and an interview with me.

The book is fantastic; what more can I say? It's sick stuff with fresh twists on zombies that will surprise and delight horror fans. It's definitely not for the squeamish!

SARS WARS: Bangkok Zombie Crisis

Sars Wars: Bangkok Zombie Crisis is a ridiculous horror/comedy mess that still manages to entertain (but I was desperate for a zombie fix). Two martial arts heroes for hire go to rescue the kidnapped daughter of a shady businessman. The only problem is the highrise building she's being held in is cordoned off by government troops. This is to contain an outbreak of the deadly SARS-4 virus brought to Thailand by African mosquitos. The virus turns people and animals into flesh-eating zombies... Now our heroes must fight the kidnapper gang and the zombies!

The plot seems to be influenced by a combination of Demons 2 (zombies in a highrise) and Peter Jackson's Brain Dead (animal causes zombie plague). The lead zombies look like vampires from Buffy (with inexplicable nose and forehead ridges) and their teeth turn into fangs (sometimes all of them, sometimes just their canines). One character even comments, "His face looks just like a piranha!"

The film starts to drag about an hour in and little of it makes any sense, nor is there any consistency in the logic of the zombies (sometimes fast, sometimes slow). The action and horror always take a backseat to the (mostly) lame jokes, but this is still a million times better than any of that Scary Movie crapola by the Wayans Bros. There's even some Kill Bill style anime scenes thrown in for good measure.

Sars Wars is worth a rental if you're a zombie fan, just don't expect too much beyond mindless gore, kung-fu, and bad jokes.

SEVERED: Forest of the Dead

SEVERED: FOREST OF THE DEAD (2004, Canada)
Just saw Severed and thought it was a pretty good zombie movie, despite its heavy-handed, tree-hugging hippy message. An evil logging company creates a fungus to speed up tree growth but the fungus turns humans into flesh-eating zombies. Loggers and scummy hippies are forced to band together to survive.

Essentially, this is a clone of 28 Days Later and the Dawn of the Dead remake. It's written and shot to look like them, with shaky camerawork and fast zombies. The gore is plentiful and good, as is the zombie makeup. The plot, characters, and script are all two-dimensional and utterly forgettable--it feels a lot like a Resident Evil game only without the stupid puzzles. I was wishing most of the characters would hurry up and get eaten as soon as I saw them.

What makes the film unique are the hauntingly beautiful wilderness locations; the misty Canadian forest and logging camps lend an eerie, isolated atmosphere that serve the film well. The filmmakers really did a fantastic job at bringing their locations to life--especially the aerial shots. The (non)ending may frustrate some viewers, but it didn't bother me. It seemed fitting (and set it up for a sequel). Bear in mind that many zombie movies end ambiguously like that, with characters left to an uncertain fate, and you can thank the original Dawn of the Dead for that:

Peter: "How much fuel we got?"

Fran: "Not much."

Peter: "Okay."

(cue helicopter flying off into the sunset)

What I'm saying is you could do a LOT worse than Severed if you're looking to get your zombie movie fix. I give it three out of five stars--a good rental for a rainy night.

Great Noir Westerns

I've never been a big fan of the western genre except for the Clint Eastwoods and a handful of spaghetti westerns like the Django and Sabato series. Recently, I've come across several really great westerns that are dark, gritty, and oh-so-noir-ish. Mannaja: A Man Called Blade directed by Sergio Martino (Horror Express), Winchester '73 directed by Anthony Mann (Raw Deal), and McCabe & Mrs. Miller directed by Robert Altman (M*A*S*H).

In particular, the latter is an excellent and realistic depiction of frontier life in the 1880s. A gambler (Warren Beatty) opens up a whorehouse in a mining town and brings in a seasoned madam to run it (Julie Christie). When their operation becomes too successful, it attracts the attention of the mining company who offers to buy them out... or else! Reminds me of a David Goodis novel as the protagonist, McCabe, is weak and flawed but likable. You want him to win, to overcome his inner demons and become a hero even though the odds are very much against him... I won't spoil anything by giving away the ending. It also reminds me a bit of the protagonist, Jimmy, in my zombie novel, Deathbreed.

Even though I love horror movies, the older I get, the more I find I like to explore different genres. I've already seen just about every horror movie (foreign and domestic) that I care to see and I don't see too many worthy new ones being released. I can't just watch the same stuff over and over. The lack of quality new releases forced me to check out all kinds of other stuff over the past decade... and I've been pleasantly surprised! I think exposing myself to so many different genres and influences has been invaluable in making me a better writer and filmmaker.

Anyway if you're looking for something dark but not full of zombies, vampires, or axe-wielding maniacs, do yourself a favor and see what else the world has to offer. Chances are you'll be glad you did!