City of the Living Dead (1980)

Review

The movie City of the Living Dead is one of Director Lucio Fulci's movies dealing with zombies. City starts with two stories that slowly come together. Some movies leave you wondering the connection until near the end or at the end of the movie, with City we learn the connection early on.

The living dead in City are different and and yet similar to George A. Romero's. These zombies are slow moving, eat human flesh, and can be killed by being stabbed in the abdomen with a long sharp object. In one scene a man, when confronted by a zombie, closed his eyes and willed the zombie away. These zombies have the ability to appear and disappear at will. They killed by grabbing the victim by the back of the head and crushing their skull causing their brains to spill out. They also killed by locking their victim in a stare, which caused the victims eyes to tear blood and eventually vomit their entire digestive tract. They seemed to be lead by the priest who hung himself because when he was destroyed they all burst into flames. It also may have been that by destroying the priest the gates of hell closed causing them to burst into flames. A priest hanging himself caused the gates of hell to be opened allowing the dead to walk the earth. These zombies killed for the sake of killing, not for food, although in one scene they did eat their victims.

The special makeup effects are good, showing zombies in varying stages of decomposition, and a woman vomit her digestive tract.

The acting in City is not great, but not bad either. The plot is simple and without much character development. This movie is a pure horror film. It has plenty of gore and terror if that is what you seek. The woman vomiting her digestive tract is imaginative and unforgettable. Although most reviews of this movie, I have read, are negative I found it to a good movie. This is a must watch for Fulci fans.

Story

The movie opens with a priest, Father William Thomas (Fabrizio Jovine), walking in the Dunwich Cemetery. While at the same time in New York, a séance is being conducted. The channel, Mary Woodhouse (Catriona MacColl), sees Father Thomas hang himself.

Mary Woodhouse

Father Thomas Hanging

Mary screams then dies.

Mary WoodHouse

In the Dunwich cemetery we see a decomposed head breaking the ground from it's grave.

Zombie rises

The police are called in to investigate the death of Mary. Madam Teresa (Adelaide Aste), who conducted the séance, tells Sergeant Clay (Martin Sorrentino) that Mary died because of something written in the book of Enoch, which was written over 4000 years ago.

Madam Teresa

Sgt.Clay

Madam Teresa goes on to say that horrible things are occurring in some town. In Dunwich a local pervert Bob (Giovanni Lombardo Radice) enters a vacant house gets an inflatable sex doll from it's hiding place and inflates it.

Bob with inflatable

He suddenly notices some nasty black substance with worms crawling in it in the form of an infant.

Black substance

Peter Bell (Christopher George), reporter with the New York Times arrives at the apartment where Mary died.

Peter Bell

The Police Officer at the door refuses to let him in and he leaves. In Dunwich the Bartender of Junie's Bar is talking with two patrons, Mike and Roger, when a mirror inexplicable shatters. Roger states that things have not been the same since Father Thomas hung himself. When the Bartender tries to calm the two the walls crack and smoke comes out. Roger tells the Bartender don't forget who are ancestor's are.

Mike, Bartender & Roger

Still in Dunwich Psychologist or Psychiatrist Gerry (Carlo De Mejo) is conducting a session with Sandra (Janet Agren), when Emily Robbins (Antonella Interlenghi) enters the room and tells Gerry that she has to break their date that evening because she has to meet with Bob. She goes on to say that Bob is a sick and lonely kid. She also does not understand why people hate Bob. Sandra tells Emily that Bob's mother was a woman of easy virtue and that in Dunwich people like that are branded witches. Emily states that she does not believe that that their ancestors where Salem witch burners.

Gerry, Emily & Sandra

Peter arrives at the cemetery were he meets two gravediggers unearthing a body. They tell Peter to leave. Peter walks over to the casket of Mary Woodhouse, which is next to the grave where it will be placed. The two gravediggers walk over and place the casket in the grave then begin to put dirt in the grave. Suddenly they notice its quitting time and leave. While the gravediggers and Peter are walking away Mary wakes up inside of the casket and starts screaming. Peter hears the screaming and uses a pickax to open the casket nearly killing Mary while saving her life.

Peter Bell

Mary in casket

Later at Madam Teresa's apartment Madam Teresa, Mary and Peter discuss what is occurring in Dunwich. Mary states that Dunwich is the city of the living dead. Madam Teresa states that the gates of hell have been opened and that if they do not get to Dunwich and close the gates by All Saints Day the dead will rise and take over the earth.

Emily finds Bob crying on a mattress in a building. When she goes over to find out the reason they hear a noise.

Bob & Emily

Bob throws Emily down and runs away. Emily gets up and starts running but trips. Father Thomas grabs her by the hair and starts rubbing some nasty, slimy substance in her face.

Still in Dunwich Tommy Fisher (Michele Soavi) and Rose Kelvin (Daniela Doria) are in a jeep talking and making out. When they look out of the jeep they see Father Thomas hanging.

Tommy Fisher

When they turn on the jeep's headlights to have a better look the Father disappears. Father Thomas reappears next to the jeep staring at Rose, who stares back helplessly. Rose starts foaming at the mouth and tearing blood. Then her digestive tract starts coming out of her mouth while Tommy watches.

Rose vomiting

Father Thomas then grabs the back of the Tommy's head crushing his skull and exposing his brains.

Peter and Mary begin their trip to search for Dunwich. Mary tells Peter that a priest by hanging himself opened the gates of hell and that the priest must be destroyed in order to close them. They come across a church where they learn where Dunwich is and that it was built over Salem. At the Emily Robbins crime scene Dr. Joe Thompson (Lucio Fulci), the Pathologist, tells Sheriff Russell (Robert Sampson), Gerry and Emily's Father that Emily appears to have died from a heart attack. But he can't explain the horrified expression on her face. Everyone believes that Bob killed her.

Gerry, Dr. Thompson, Sheriff Russell & Emily's father

Still in Dunwich at Moriarity and Sons Funeral Home a woman is viewing the body of Jane Holden. Emily's father, mother, brother (John John) and Gerry are visiting looking for the body of Emily. Emily's body is still being prepared. Gerry walks over to the body of Jane Holden and is told by the funeral home director that Jane died last evening of fright. They all get to view Emily then leave. After they leave, the assistant who prepared Emily's body takes Emily's pearl necklace. When he reaches into Jane's coffin to take some jewelry he gets bitten, then we hear him screaming.

At Junie's bar, the bartender is talking with Mike and Roger. The bartender tells them that Tommy and Rose went to a movie last night and have not been seen since. The bartender says that he thinks that Bob is responsible for all of the disappearances and deaths in Dunwich. Roger says that two years ago Bob took his daughter Ann into the woods and that there is no telling what would have happened to her if they had not found them in time. Bob returns to the house where he keeps his inflatable doll. While walking down a hall, Father Thomas appears hanging from the ceiling then disappears. Bob runs and hides in a car in Roger's garage. Ann comes into the garage where she has hidden some marijuana. She sees Bob and gets in the car so they can smoke a joint together. Just then Roger comes in and sees Bob with his daughter. He fights with Bob and kills him by running a drill through his skull.

Bob

Back at home John John is in his room and hears noises outside of his window. When he looks out he sees Emily whose face is horribly disfigured. He runs into his parent's room and tells them that Emily is back and that she wants to get him.

Emily

Sandra is at home painting when she hears a noise up stairs. She calls Gerry and tells him to come right away because she is having a nervous breakdown. When Gerry arrives at Sandra's house she takes him into her kitchen where they find the body of Jane Holden lying on the floor. They leave the kitchen and hear another noise in the kitchen. When they go back the body is gone.

Gerry & Sandra

We see the dead feet of someone hiding behind a partition elsewhere in the house. Gerry drives Sandra to Moriarity and Sons Funeral Home and rings the doorbell. No one answers but when they drive away we see a shadow come to the door.

Peter and Mary arrive at the Dunwich cemetery where they meet Gerry. Peter, Mary and Gerry go to Gerry's house where they meet Sandra. Mary tells Gerry and Sandra everything.

The rest of the movie shows the four attempting to find the grave of Father Thomas and close the gates of hell.

Father Thomas

Tommy Fisher

Rose

Sandra

Zombies