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Stink of Flesh, The (2004)
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Movie Review by The Gravedigger
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11.08.04
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THE STINK OF FLESH may be one of the most original zombie movies I've ever seen, up there with SHATTER DEAD and I, ZOMBIE. The tag-line for the movie is 'How do you lead an alternative lifestyle when everybody's dead?'The setting is the desert of New Mexico rather than Pittsburgh, and the majority of the zombie scenes happen in bright daylight. A guy named Matool (Kurly Tiapoyawa) survives in this zombie wasteland by killing the walking-dead with his hammer and nine-inch nails. He explains in the movie that the reason he doesn't use a gun is because it's hard to find the ammo. Because he kills them this way he has to get up close and fight them hand to hand, something that you can see he enjoys.He first rescues a young woman trapped in her car by zombies and takes her to a nearby building, which is already inhabited by an old guy and two boys. Matool starts hitting on the girl but she's still in shock from the zombies eating her brother-and so outrightly rejects him. He's a bit pissed because he figures that she owes him for saving her life. A group of zombies end up attacking the building and Matool escapes, though most of the others are eaten.A pickup truck drives by and smashes him with an open door. When Matool wakes up he finds himself in the back of the pickup truck, tied up like a turkey. He's taken into the nearby house by a guy named Nathan, who introduces him to his wife, Dexy. This is one odd couple. Dexy and Nathan had agreed to have an 'open-marriage' and this involves Nathan finding guys for his wife to have sex with. But with the zombie plague going on and all it's somewhat difficult to find living people to maintain their alternative lifestyle. Oh, Dexy also has a sister, Sassy, who participates, a sister who has this deformed conjoined twin sticking out of her torso. It scares the crap out of Matool the first time he sees it.Matool agrees to stay, all too happy to accommodate Dexy's needs. Then, other people arrive at the house, three soldiers. One of them is badly bitten by one of the zombies-and everyone knows what his fate will be. The two soldiers are welcomed in by Dexy. Nathan, however, is getting jealous about guys being with his wife.One day Nathan takes Matool into the back shed, where he keeps a chained up female zombie he likes to look at. Her body is still in good-shape, though she's all gray and snarls. As the movie progresses events become more complicated-and some of the characters turn on each other as the place is overrun by the undead.The zombie and makeup effects are well-done, especially when Matool is shown driving nails into the zombies' skulls. The characters are all very well fleshed-out and the script is solid. I also liked the explaination of why there are both the slow zombies and the 'hyper' zombies.Written/Directed by Scott Phillips (scripter of DRIVE).Check out www.exhilarateddespair.com on how to obtain this movie. If you're a zombie fan you will not be disappointed.
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Rating: 8.0 out of 10.0 - 1 vote cast total
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