There was many-a die-hard zombie fan present, who probably plan their entire year around this event. By the looks of some of the get-ups, it may very well be true. While on one block you would hear the frantic sound of wheels zooming behind you (courtesy of one zombie girl with a wheel chair and a blood IV to drink from), at the next you could see a tall, rail-thin zombie boy with white contacts and detachable skull skin being interviewed by a TV crew (he declined to comment further than a few “aaagghhhhs,” by the way).
The walkers made their way down the Plateau to Club Soda, which is apparently the zombie hang-out place of choice in Montreal, to watch Best of Zombies, a presentation of films put on by SPASM Festival. To cap things off, there was a costume contest to honour the goriest and most dedicated brain-gobblers. After all, who says you can’t look good when you’re (un)dead?
Zombie Zidebar
Shaun of the Dead is arguably a masterpiece (zombie rom-com, anyone?), but there’s just something about old zombie films that makes one more likely to reach for brain-protecting gear. So behold, our top picks of pre-21st century zombie films.
1. Â Â Â Â Â White Zombie (1932)
The end of the silent film era obviously meant it was zombie time. Bonus: you can stream the entire film on YouTube.
2. Â Â Â Â Night of the Living Dead (1968)
The first in Romero’s classic zombie series, this film paved the way for many unfortunate re-adaptations.
3. Â Â Â Â Â The Woman Eater (1957)
If the Amazonian brain-eaters don’t creep you out enough, how about a mad British scientist to top things up?
4. Â Â Â Â Mad Monster Party (1967)
This stop motion gem has plenty of other ghoulies, but Baron Frankenstein’s army of brain-eaters definitely steal the spotlight.
5. Â Â Â Â Â Thriller (1983)
Before he was shaking things up at his Neverland Ranch, Michael Jackson was doing the moonwalk with some very ‘80s-standards fashionable zombie friends.