10 best zombie movies of all time, ranked: the scream of the undead crop
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Selecting the best zombie movies of all time is a serious task that raises a number of key questions. Do fast zombies count? Do they all have to be scary? Are the undead not in themselves absurdly comic creations that can have records thrown at them? And most importantly, how much Romero can one list take?
This selection then is a buffet of undead flesh. A literal finger food offering of genuinely unsettling horror, disturbing imagery, and, of course, some all-important zombie comedy.
Here you’ll find white knuckle-inducing found footage with lethal use of night vision, a very British approach to the apocalypse with a trip to the pub, and, of course, bucket loads of viscera and gore. Pack your survival kit for the 10 best zombie movies to watch right now.
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10. Planet Terror (2007)
The better half of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s Grindhouse double bill, Planet Terror is positively dripping with schlock. This is, of course, a movie where Rose McGowan has her leg chopped off and replaced with a machine gun, so set your narrative expectations at that unique bar. It’s big, stupid and has seriously wince-inducing gore as the inhabitants of a town attempt to survive an unleashed infection, but there’s something ludicrously entertaining about the nastiness at work.
9. Dead Snow (2009)
Two words. Zombie Nazis. Surely that’s all you need to know? Dead Snow - complete with the tagline Ein, Zwei, Die - is the Norwegian zombie movie you didn’t know you actually needed. If it’s not clear, it’s not terribly serious. A stack of attractive students head up into the mountains for a skiing holiday and find a little more undead SS on the piste than expected. Yes, it’s high concept but there’s no questioning its execution. A definite guilty pleasure.
8. The Girl With All The Gifts (2016)
Based on the novel of the same name, The Girl with all the Gifts is rather different to the other titles on this list. This is a world where ‘the hungries’ have already taken over and survivors are holed up in fortified army bases. To avoid spoilers, it’s in one of these that we meet Melanie, an entirely unique little girl. Great performances from Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine, and Glenn Close make this a fresh and heartbreaking British apocalypse.
7. Rec (2007)
When it comes to the scariest found footage horror, The Blair Witch Project is the scream-packed judder-fest that springs to mind for most people. Rec will change that for you. This trip to a Spanish apartment block as a daytime TV presenter joins a team of firefighters is genuinely one of the most terrifying zombie movies of the 21st century. Ignore its subpar American remake Quarantine, turn out the lights and prepare to be afraid.
6. Night Of The Living Dead
The original and best, Romero’s classic zombie movie still holds up today with its, often literally, bleeding edge social commentary. The king of undead cinema refined his horde over the years but Night of the Living Dead still holds a true sense of disturbing horror. The production might now seem as unsteady as its titular monsters but the understated tone of the movie is still drenched in dread. No-one says the word zombie in the movie. This is fresh terrifying ground. And still packs a punch.