Deadlands 2: Trapped

The Undead Edition

Extended & Unrated

Blu Ray

Deadlands 2:Trapped is an indie film from director Gary Ugarek. Ugarek made a name for himself with Deadlands:The Rising, an impressive zombie film which balanced plot with horror and gore and clearly having a limited budget more than made up for it with innovation. Deadlands 2 is much the same, while the budget may be limited (it seems higher than the first film) there are lots of creative touches. The plot is intriguing, the soundtrack atmospheric and haunting and the cinematography certainly above par for an indie production. The acting is quite credible and I had no problem entering into the dark world Ugarek creates for us.

The plot focuses on a secret government agency who is undertaking experiments with a new nerve agent. They are warned by one of their own medical team that this agent will not only infect all who come into contact with it but will continue to keep them in a state of animation even after death. Deciding to go ahead with the experiment they cleanly despatch the doctor with a bullet to the back of the head and infect Hagerstown via a careful release of the toxic gas. Of course the gas not only turns the whole town into zombies but these zombies eat the flesh of other human beings who come their way, including police and security forces.

The human interest is about Sean, Jack and Shelley who are having a simple night time drive. They see what seems to be a drunk fall in front of the car, Jack investigates but is bitten on the arm. They find the closest place to ask for help and this happens to be a local cinema where they are met by employees Chris and Casey. However it seems the zombies can smell out where they are and they home in for the kill. The government agency continues to monitor the events and indeed are thrilled to find a further development in their experiment. As the agency taunts the survivors in the cinema you know a showdown is coming.

There are lots of zombies in this film and the make-up is impressive, they are very Romero like in their “mood” but can move a lot quicker. The use of the cinema as the only place of refuge which also becomes a prison is effective and on the whole this ends up being a very enjoyable zombie film.

Web: http://www.playingwithdeadthings.com/

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