Summary
Oasis of the Zombies (originally called L'Abîme des Morts-Vivants / The Abyss of the Living Dead) is a 1982 film directed by Jesús Franco for French producer Marius Lesoeur. Two different versions of the film were made, each featuring different lead actors.[2]
| Oasis of the Zombies | |
|---|---|
 French theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jesús Franco (as A.M. Frank) |
| Written by | Jesús Franco |
| Produced by | Marius Lesoeur (uncredited) |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Max Monteillet[1] |
| Edited by | Claude Gros[1] |
| Music by | Daniel White [1] |
Production company | Eurociné |
Release date |
|
Running time | 82 minutes |
| Countries | France[1] Spain |
| Languages |
|
Plot edit
The plot involves treasure hunters who track down a lost fortune in Nazi gold in the desert, only to discover that the treasure is still guarded by the Afrika Korps soldiers transporting it, who have become zombies.
Cast edit
- Manuel Gélin as Robert Blabert
- France Lomay as Erika
- Jeff Montgomery as Ben
- Eric Saint-Just as Ronald
- Caroline Audret as Sylvie
- Henri Lambert as Colonel Kurt Meitzell (in the French-language version)
- Myriam Landson as Kurt's Wife (in the French-language version)
- Eduardo Fajardo as Colonel Kurt Meitzell (in the Spanish-language version)
- Lina Romay as Kurt's Wife (in the Spanish-language version)
- Antonio Mayans as Sheik Mohamed Al-Kafir
- Javier Maiza as Captain Blabert
- Albino Graziani as Prof. Deniken
- Jesús Franco as Zombie
Release edit
The film has also been referred to over the years as El desierto de los zombies, The Grave of the Living Dead, and The Treasure of the Living Dead.[3] It was released as Bloodsucking Nazi Zombies on U.S. video.
Franco filmed a "Spanish version" simultaneously with the French version (under the title La Tumba de los Muertos Vivientes).[4] He replaced Henri Lambert and Myriam Landsom with his friends Lina Romay and Eduardo Fajardo for the lead roles in the Spanish language version. The Spanish version is a lost film.[2]
Reception edit
Writing in The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia, academic Peter Dendle stated the film has had a negative reception, but it "presents a simple, unhurried, and unpretending appreciation of zombies and their habitat, a fresh and provocative desert landscape."[3] Ian Jane of DVD Talk rated it 3/5 stars and wrote, "It's terrible, but somehow trance inducing in its own bizarre way."[5] Gordon Sullivan of DVD Verdict wrote, "It's really a mess of tepid Eurosleaze masquerading as a zombie flick, and it doesn't even do that well."[6]
References edit
- ^ a b c d "L' ABIME DES MORTS VIVANTS (1981)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
- ^ a b Stephen Thrower, Murderous Passions: The Delirious Cinema of Jesús Franco (2015)
- ^ a b Dendle, Peter (2001). The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia. McFarland & Company. pp. 128–129. ISBN 978-0-7864-9288-6.
- ^ Stine, Scott Aaron (2015). The Gorehound's Guide to Splatter Films of the 1980s. McFarland & Company. pp. 17–18. ISBN 9781476611327.
- ^ Jane, Ian (2013-02-09). "Oasis of the Zombies: Remastered Edition (Blu-ray)". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2015-02-07.
- ^ Sullivan, Gordon (2013-03-08). "Oasis of the Zombies (Blu-ray)". DVD Verdict. Archived from the original on 2013-03-15. Retrieved 2015-02-07.
External links edit
- Oasis of the Zombies at IMDb
- Oasis of the Zombies a.k.a. Oasis of the Dead at AllMovie
- Negative review Archived 2006-11-11 at the Wayback Machine at Something Awful
