The Video Dead

Plot synopsis:
An unsolicited television is delivered to a writer's house. The writer discovers that the only program the television is capable of picking up is a seemingly endless, plotless, black and white zombie film titled Zombie Blood Nightmare. Despite unplugging the television, it reactivates and spawns the film's zombies, who attack and kill the writer. The next day, the delivery men arrive to claim the set, realizing it was meant to go to the Institute for Paranormal Research; they find only the body of the writer, bound in his front hallway and dressed in party clothes.
Three months later, teenagers Zoe and Jeff arrive at the house ahead of their parents, who are moving back to the United States after years abroad. Jeff befriends dog walker April and accompanies her home, where the dog she is watching escapes into the woods. It stumbles upon the zombies that escaped the set and have been living there ever since. The zombies kill the dog, leave it for Jeff and Zoe to find, and follow the pair back to the neighborhood.
That afternoon, a man named Joshua Daniels comes looking for the television set, claiming he bought it at a yard sale and mailed it to the Paranormal Institute after it killed his wife. Jeff turns him away but later that night discovers the television set, which has mysteriously migrated to the attic. A bizarre woman briefly appears on the set, beckoning to Jeff, before a man appears and kills her, revealing her to be a zombie. The man, who calls himself "The Garbage Man", says the only way to prevent more zombies from appearing is to tape a mirror to it.
The next day, the zombies kill April's father, his maid, and their next-door neighbors before laying siege to Zoe and Jeff's house. Jeff, Zoe, and April barricade themselves along with Joshua, who has returned to reclaim the television set. Joshua explains the psychology of the zombies: realizing that they are in a liminal state between life and death, the zombies kill humans out of envy. They are repulsed by mirrors because it reminds them of their own hideousness, and attack when they sense fear. The zombies can be tricked into believing they are dead by wounding and then dismembering them, but they must be left unburied. They can also be destroyed by trapping them in an enclosed space, which causes them to enter a psychotic state and cannibalize one another.
Despite the fortifications, a zombie breaks in and incapacitates April. Zoe and Jeff lock the zombie out of the house after it leaves with April's body. The next morning, Joshua and Jeff head into the woods to hunt down the zombies. Joshua sets traps and takes up a sniper position while using Jeff as bait. Using a bow and arrows, they shoot and incapacitate all the zombies but one, whom they pursue. Joshua is killed, and Jeff gets trapped in a shed, where he discovers April's dead body. The lone remaining zombie wakes the others from their delusions of death and kills Jeff as he decapitates it.
The remaining zombies return to the house, where Zoe is alone. Remembering the zombies only attack when they sense fear, Zoe invites the zombies in, and they become docile. Zoe discovers a mirror on the basement door, tricks the zombies into entering the basement, and they go berserk. After they consume each other, their remains are sucked back into the television, and Zombie Blood Nightmare finally ends.
Sometime later, Zoe's parents come to visit her in the hospital, where she is being treated for post traumatic stress disorder. They unwittingly bring her the possessed television set from the house, hoping a familiar item will aid her recovery. After everyone leaves, the television plays Zombie Blood Nightmare again. Zoe looks at the screen in horror as one of the zombies within the TV looks directly at her and starts growling.

Tags: violence

Review:
I truly recommend this film for any Zombie fan or horror enthusiast simply because it is a prime example of B-Movie Glory.
There is some really great gore in this movie like, zombies and humans getting cut up with chainsaws and zombie decapitations and much more.
"The Video Dead" is a funny trash-movie about a television set that is a gateway to the world of the undead.
The Video Dud. A television set from who knows where allows zombies to enter into the real world.
"Video Dead" tells the story about an old television set.However this is no ordinary TV:it plays only one channel,which shows the same film over and over-a horror film that where bloodthirsty zombies rise from the graves and kill-but also frees undead creatures.3 months later a brother and sister move into the house whose previous owner was killed by zombies.Unbeknownst for them the zombies from the TV set are still hungry and the bloodbath ensues..."Video Dead" has to be one of the cheesiest zombie flicks I have ever seen.The premise is extremely dumb,the acting is bad and the dialogue is horrid.Still the film is very enjoyable,the gore is plentiful and the make-up effects are great.Special credit must be given to Robert Scott,who wrote,produced,and directed the film for making one of the stupidest and most amusing zombie flicks I have ever seen.Give this cheesy piece of trash a look.6 out of 10.Hell yeah!.
The Video Dead is truly another classic Zombie movie.
Well, they're wrong."The Video Dead", unlike many zombie movies, doesn't try to be the next "Night of the Living Dead".
Not unnecessarily gory, some actually scary scenes (the zombies attack the brother as he hangs helplessly from a tree), and plenty of surprises, including a dead dog, a stripper killed by a "garbage man", and a love interest that gets squelched.
She's afraid of the dog trying to mate with a skunk because apparently this has happened before and she says something like " he gets horny and tries to hump skunks and the skunk sprays him and that gets him even more horny...oh no, what am I going to do?"All in all, I recommend this movie to those who do not expect much and are deeply submersed in the bad horror movie genre..
I loved the characters there's quiet innocent girl April,sex-drug crazed Jeff,and suspicious frightened girl Zoe!Even the zombie's are good and throughly scary especially the one with the glasses (watch it and you'll see what i mean.
Robert Scotts' low budget shocker "The Video Dead" wasn't quite as much fun as this viewer would have liked.
McClelland is very sincere as the guy who knows the answers to the zombie problem, and Jennifer Miro adds sex appeal as the mystery woman from "Zombie Nightmare".Overall, "The Video Dead" is agreeable enough entertainment for lovers of B movies, getting off to a good start and working its way towards a fun finish.Seven out of 10..
Ahh..."The Video Dead." I've always wondered what the answer to the age-old question: "If I had a camera, a couple friends, and some dough...what kind of zombie flick would I make?" The answer is simple...Neon Maniacs.
However, a close second would be "The Video Dead." It really is one of the most wretched movies ever made, but in reality, isn't that why we have zombie flicks?
There really weren't enough messy death scenes in this movie.Anyway, if you're one of those people who has to see EVERYTHING in the horro section at the local Movieland, and the choice is between this or "Xtro2"...get "Xtro2," but come back at 11 pm for "The Video Dead!".
"The Video Dead" is your typical very low-budget, straight-to-video 80s horror that promises you a lot of fun with its gruel and goes on to deliver it despite the limitations.
It was the directing debut of a man who probably loved horror movies and had the right spirit, but at the time was perhaps too inexperienced to realize how bad some of the dialogue was (the "don't ever sneak up on me like that again" scene), and how amateurish some performances came across as.
For the non-existent budget he probably had to work with, the makeup effects are pretty good, and the film does have its fair share of blood and laughs.
"The Video Dead" its a very original zombie movie, just when I thought the zombie genre couldn't offer much new to me, I watch this and it amazes me.
Too bad it didn't come out in theaters in its original release (but I suppose that being a direct to video movie makes more sense), this movie should have gotten more attention, thank god it became a cult movie over the years.I was somewhat hesitant about watching this, I was expecting something along the lines of "Burial Ground" or "Zombie Holocaust" (and I think those movies are charming in their own way), however, it was better than a cheap Italian zombie flick, don't get me wrong, it was cheap and it had some dull and silly moments but it was mostly a fun time.Overall, a really entertaining movie, it has some good elements and its quite interesting.
He says the best way to kill the zombies is to "mess them up" enough so that they think they're really dead.
Video Dead isn't a very well known film, and many of the people that have seen it don't rate it very highly; but don't let that put you off, because under it's crappy low budget exterior is a fun, cheerful little zombie flick with some good ideas to boot.
Rather than follow the same old path of a virus or a curse being the reason for lots of zombie carnage, Video Dead takes the more original idea of having them come out of the television!
It ends up at the house of a middle aged man who lives alone after a mix up with the postal service (it was meant to go to the Supernatural Institute, brilliant!) and pretty soon he finds himself dealing with the zombie hoards.
It's not long before the house falls into the hands a couple of young kids whose parents have bought it, and as the TV is still there; they soon find themselves with the same problem as the previous owner...The film doesn't take itself seriously at all, and while this is in its favour when it comes to the silly dialogue and the plot itself; sometimes it goes overboard with the humour.
The humour does benefit the movie in most other ways, however, as the script provides some laughs and it's obvious that the film was made by people that are fans of the genre.
It has to be said that the plotting is a bit muddled, and the film often switches pace between zombie horror, teen comedy and general weirdness; but it doesn't matter as Video Dead was obviously never meant to be a serious film, and as a lightweight bit of fun; it certainly serves its purpose.
After moving into a new house, a man and his sister find that a strange series of events begins shortly after receiving a strange gift where a group of zombies emerge out of a TV set and begin killing people, forcing them to turn to a former owner for help in battling the strange creatures.There was quite a lot to like with this one.
The film was clearly made on a micro-budget, although the settings and the zombie makeup were, for the most part, pretty solid.
First time watch.This had a little strange plot, well it new at the time, I liked the idea of Zombies come out of a TV set, The zombies did look a bit scary.
Despite having chuckling zombies, another one that kinda looks like David Bowie and an honest to god chainsaw wielding zombie, it emerges as curiously bland with precious little in the way of a cheese-mosphere, if that makes sense.It can't make up its mind on whether it's a horror or straight up comedy, and basically fails to leave any sort of impression.It's not totally dissatisfying, as there are some individual scenes that are sure to elicit a chuckle, but it's just completely forgettable stuff.I'd recommend it purely for fans who can remember cool VHS covers back in the day, and wish to see this one solely for completion purposes, but overall, it's a disappointing affair, and more crap than craptastic.5/10.
'The Video Dead' feels much more like a student film, held together with Scotch tape and chocolate-syrup blood and looking more like no-budget-1970 than 1987, the year it was made.
The film turns into a teen-horror and the characters are given glimpses of another world beyond the screen in which a vampish seductress taunts and a hero garbage man is in search of the escaping zombies.
With some schlocky gore and a plot drifting from comedy, to stoner movie, to chainsaw wielding buddy adventure, I suggest just sitting back, turning your logic-cap off, and having a laugh at this one; without being at all good, it's not all bad..
The zombies looked like they had just dropped out of Zombie Acting School (assuming they ever went) and Jeff, at least his acting made me laugh, in fact this entire movie was hilarious!
i recommend it to anyone that likes to see ugly, bad acting guys getting 'seduced' by an even uglier girl, laugh out loud dialogue and the most unscary zombies i've ever seen.
Because the zombies looked like people wearing latex and paint....Oh man you could see where the real skin began and the latex ended,also these zombies had the ability to laugh and they showed interest in materials and they cared how they looked....and as you know the classic zombies only care about killing the living.The acting was horrible!
Of course there is always the not so special effects (the crappy lightning, blood,and smog).But, this movie was very enjoyable to watch and a great laugh.....its a stupid stupid movie.Also I liked the ending,that was actually pretty cool.If you liked Troll 2 and/or Children Should'nt Play with Dead Things you'd love this!!!!.
Bad Acting, Exploitation, and character zombies.It's about a TV that gets delivered to a house and the residents are found dead.
The dog (the best actor in the film) dies with a ball stuck in its throat and then zombies come out of the tv.Later ther boy gets seduced by a zombie in the TV and then the "Care-taker" warns him to get rid of the TV.Then the great "Dead-Alive" wanna be stuff happens with the zombies in the neighborhood and becoming characters (Ie The Bride, Iron Head, Four Eyes) and the bride gets a chainsaw!A must to watch for bad horror and zombie fans..
One of the worst horror films I've ever seen (and that's saying a lot coming from me, click on my name you'll see) with the most inept script your bound to find and with some of the worst effects and acting is a ripoff of Demons and Night of the Living Dead.
When watching the movie played on the TV (kinda like The Ring), the movie infiltrates real life - which means zombies try to eat you.I wish there was a little more explanation of the TV set's origins but that's a small complaint considering it's a zombie flick.
Take the worst "actors" and "actresses" (they just hold the script and read it, not exacelly acting) you've ever seen, no plot what so ever, the cheapest location ever(a house), a stupid script, zombies who laugh and have emotions( i guess the director wanted to make intelligent zombies), take all that and you have the worst movie ever.
Well for a 1987's zombie movie, then "The Video Dead" wasn't all that bad, but...
It wasn't overly interesting either.The effects were actually pretty good considering the age of the movie, and the zombies do look nice, I will give them that much.
Of course, compared to the stuff in todays movie, then sure it is out of date, but still it was good to see.Story-wise, then "The Video Dead" failed to deliver a properly entertaining one.
The story in "The Video Dead" is about two teenagers who are looking after a newly bought house, waiting for their parents to return from abroad.
The zombies in the film were pretty good, except they were kind of smart and liked to play jokes.
It's clear that whoever made this film is a true horror fan.The plot itself is fantastic, I mean, zombies coming out of a TV that plays b-movies?
A shame they never made a sequel!Overall, the title and plot says it all - don't expect anything serious in this film, it's simply cheap and cheesy zombie fun that b-movie horror fans will love.
***SPOILERS***   ***SPOILERS*** The Video Dead stands on it's own as the most entertaining of the low budget zombie films.Synopsis: Two delivery men go to a quiet suburban neighborhood and deliver an old television to a writer who lives alone.
Eventually, the zombies come out of the television into the real world, and 3 months later the deliverymen return to find the poor writer dead.
The acting is horrible, but how good would the actors be for 80's, low budget zombie flicks?
(They do eat themselves, in the end).If you're a zombie fanboy like me and have this film at your local video shack, give it a whirl.
This is an important factor because, if you look at films like those of Lucio Fulci, interesting, original, or grotesque effects can really help make a film much more special.Overall, 'The Video Dead' isn't going to be the type of zombie flick that will live down as one of the greats alongside those of George A.
They enter our world through an evil television set from a movie called "Zombie Blood Nightmare." They terrorize a small neighborhood and kill several citizens.
To top it all off, in order to kill the zombies (one of whom looks exactly like David Bowie), you must "convince" them that their dead.
I remember renting it from the video store all the time as a kid, and being completely terrified of the zombies portrayed in the film.
However, he accepts it, and that night, he is continually annoyed when the TV keeps automatically turning itself on and showing an old black-and-white horror film called "Zombie Blood Nightmare", which is a seemingly plot less movie about the undead rising from their graves and wandering through fog-covered woods.After turning on a few more times, Henry gets mad and unplugs it.
I won't spoil the ending for you, as it is pretty entertaining to watch, and will keep you both amused and scared at the same time.To this day, this is my favorite zombie film.
A pretty likable take on the zombie genre, this '80's low-budgeter should prove good for a view by any horror fan.
Good setting, likable characters (the brother looks like a young Emilio Estevez), some truly goofy lines and colorful zombies make this worthy.
"The Video Dead" tries to provide the concept of zombie-movies with a couple of new twists, rules and characteristics, but it's all pure nonsense and actually too moronic for words.
For example: zombies can't stand to look into mirrors as they don't like to be confronted with the fact they're dead.
One thing I like about the film is the zombies, who all get their unique characters and personalities.
However there is a great chainsaw death and some other great gory scenes that will stick with you for a while.All in all a pretty cool movie but if you're a fan of classic zombies like Night of the Living Dead you may not be entertained.
The back of the video suggested that the movie was about zombies that rise from the dead and attack the living.
The zombies wreak havoc upon the poor soul who happens to be living in the house at the time, and the next scene shows the dead man propped up against a wall wearing a party hat with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth and his eyes wide open.'Three months later', a new family moves into the house.
Instead, these zombies think they're 'actually' alive and that they only want to kill the things that remind them that they're dead...
In order to film a great zombie movie, you need two things: at least one really good gross out scene, and you absolutely need to have the * CHAINSAW* !!
The plot is basic: a TV is sent to the wrong address, turned on, and the undead cast of an old zombie movie is emerging through the TV screen, entering the real world to perform some...real kills.
Slow moving and featuring WAAAAAY too many fade to black shots, this movie has okay effects, but the plot is just sort of there without any real meat, and the zombies follow a set of rules where they can't be killed unless the are locked in a room to eat each other and if you act unafraid, they can't hurt you.
All I could remember of this film for years was the scene where she's standing at the front door of the house with the sun setting and she says to the rather confused zombies: "How nice to see you all!
Knowing and doing, however, are two very different things, and the zombies are not likely to go quietly.......With a title like this, you should expect something a little cheesy, but with something about it.This film has nothing about it.
Bad acting, a 36-year old lady trying to play an early-20s college girl, flimsy zombie make-up, and bizarre ways to kill the TV creatures all add up to an unintentionally hilarious movie that borders on unwatchable."The Video Dead" fails because it's meant to be taken seriously to an extent.