Media Partners Reviews Slovak Queer Film Festival

Film Review: Remington and the Curse of the Zombadings (2011) By Jade Castro

As a young boy, Remington would openly mock anyone he believed to be homosexual. One day, while visiting a graveyard, he makes an accusation at someone in mourning, who in turn puts a curse on him that he will grow up to be gay. Forward to his adolescent, where shortly after falling in love with a girl his mannerisms and sexual preferences begin to change. As Remington struggles to rid himself of the curse a killer is on the prowl, targeting the gay residents of the small town of Lucban.

is screening at the Slovak Queer Film Festival

Although “Zombadings” presents itself as a horror comedy, the real emphasis of the production lies in the comedic elements. Offering critiques on comedy presented in a style not tailored to a critic's taste can prove to be difficult. With this in mind, the comedic elements of the production are set up well, littered with campy performances and great dialogue. Although the production's humour did not appeal to me directly, the tone and pace give plenty of amusing moments from start to finish. There is also appealing in the comedy being pretty light, outside of a few moments, to the point that the production could easily be a family film. it is refreshing once in a while to enjoy a horror comedy that could feasibly be rated for general audience.

Within the film there are some moments and terminology that might seem derogatory within current western sentiments on gay culture. However, this feels like it rests more on societal differences, as the movie feels more like a celebration of the actors and community as a whole. In spite of it being a light-hearted affair, there could be some room for offense within the content to those of a more sensitive nature.

The performances, for the most part, are rather one note. The more boisterous actors come across as playing into their own personalities. The main characters outside of Remington offer little in the way of memorable scenes or dialogue. Thankfully, the title character (played by Martin Escudero) acts as a focus point to keep the comedic tone of the production consistent, particularly in the scenes where he begins to transform and reels in disgust at his feminine mannerisms and his newly adopted cute terminology. The aspects of the production that are successful seem to rely heavily on his performance, so it was great to see it so well executed.

The visuals are a bit mixed, since, although the film never looks bad, the cinematography has the feeling of a made for TV Halloween special. This suits the narrative well, but it is hard to garner much praise or appreciation for the presentation. The special effects utilized are very simplistic and low budget. The score also stays in the realm of low budget, with jingle-like music pieces. The soundtrack choice does amplify the impression of “Zombadings” being a made for TV, quickly produced film.

I was able to appreciate my time spent with “Zombadings” in spite of the humor not really appealing to my tastes. Off of this, I imagine it could be an appealing watch to many others. Unfortunately, the production was too simplistic on a technical level to really offer much praise. Although it does not make any bad missteps, the overall presentation is just serviceable to the plot. However, I can see someone who appreciates a more whimsical and campy approach to comedy, finding the production a rewarding experience. There is definitely an audience for “Zombadings”, I just happen to not be one of them.

About the author

Adam Symchuk

Adam Symchuk is a Canadian born freelance writer and editor who has been writing for Asian Movie Pulse since 2018. He is currently focused on covering manga, manhwa and light novels having reviewed hundreds of titles in the past two years.

His love of film came from horror and exploitation films from Japan that he devoured in his teens. His love of comics came from falling in love with the works of Shuzo Oshimi, Junji Ito, Hideshi Hino, and Inio Asano but has expanded to a general love of the medium and all its genres.

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