(thanks for loaning me your copy, smooshieboo!)

***

i'm not one who usually enjoys reading analysis of films. i think you can form your own opinion of what you think a film represents, but a fair share of the time, all the filmmaker really wants you to do when you watch their movies is... well, watch their movies. that said: it's hard to deny that george romero's stuff has always clearly been about delivering messages.

kim paffenroth's 'gospel of the living dead', if you couldn't tell from the title, takes a lot of religious (predominantly christian) inferences from the 'dead' series (sans 'diary...', but including the 'dawn...' remake). now, while i'm sure that there were quite a bit of nods to christianity in the films, i wouldn't say that there's enough to base a whole book on. at times, it does feel like he's reaching just a little to beef it up, but otherwise, his analysis seems pretty interesting. his comparisons with dante's 'inferno' and milton's 'paradise lost', in particular, were some of the better touches.

there were moments where i got the feeling that his focus was wavering a little, and i didn't agree with quite a number of his points - mostly the over-abundant demonising of science that he seemed to take away from romero's works - but it was, nonetheless, a generally fascinating read for me. anyone who's not big on the zombie film genre, however, might not share my enthusiasm. 

***

despite being an abridged edition, the audiobook for 'world war z' felt like a pretty complete experience to me. now, i've never read the original, but this version was pretty damn engaging stuff. a lot of it, no doubt, has to do with the impressive assembly of voice actors (including henry rollins, alan alda, john turturro and the always brilliant mark hamill), but they're working on a very well thought-out and cleverly executed concept that any zombie buff would be drawn to.

the real gems here, however, are certain short stories that stand out, not for the attention to detail that brooks has employed to shape his zombie-infested world, but for their genuine humanity. colonel christina eliopolis and tomonaga ijiro's tales, in particular, were the ones that really grabbed me. yeah, it's great to hear about the political and social shifts that might take place from a full-blown undead invasion, but the biggest strength of almost any zombie story has - and always will be - the people involved.

- wayne ree