FRIGHTFEST 2020 - Zombie For Sale
FRIGHTFEST 2020
Lee Min-Jae's Zombie For Sale is a comedic blast from start to finish. A wonderfully performed and written feature that is ferociously fun with marvellous set pieces.
While Bong Joon-Ho's Parasite might be the cinematic talking point from South Korea with its golden statuettes at this year’s Academy Awards in February, Zombie For Sale is undoubtedly the hidden gem. An impressively crafted and thematically balanced comedic horror that follows a rogue group of hustlers as they unknowingly cause a global zombie crisis.
The tone is delightfully playful and energetic throughout. The comedy is never heavy-handed and even when the farcical is implored it is done with an incredibly rich and flavourful palette—courtesy of a weird and wonderful screenplay from writers Lee Min-jae and Jung Seo-in. The duo implements plenty of notable character traits and embellish the comedic fashion with wonderful results. It is subtle, yet when optimised delightfully the engagement in it’s over the top bravado is effective in what it does.
The writing in Zombie For Sale while a critical element only works in its success due to the outstanding performances utilised. The dynamic of the family is wonderfully curated in a tremendous excessiveness that is so obtuse and ridiculous – it should be farcical to the point of oblivion – yet succeeds due to the family dynamic being so organic and natural. Thus, cementing Lee Min-Jae's feature an utter delight to watch with its joyous central characters and wonderful execution regarding the horror genre.
