Dead Set

[Mardroid]

Gotta love a happy ending eh?

[spoiler]Actually I wish there had been at least a couple of survivors. Or if they had at least left it ambiguous. Particularly the boyfriend who went through all that journey only to die shortly after reuniting with his girlfriend. That being said, it was certainly realistic. (Well appart from the producer shouting, "Go on eat it, it's full of shit" after he'd been torn in half and was being eaten alive.)[/spoiler]

A great zombie series though. (Not that their are many to compare with, but this certainly raises the bar high, and compares well with films out there.)

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

In the words of Mrs X, "That was the only way it could end".

The best ending to a zombie film I've seen. It compares to the original (cut but on the DVD) ending of 28 Days Later, where [spoiler]the main character dies, and the survivors just get up and move on[/spoiler].

Some top notch Dawn and Day of the Dead references (the producer in Dead Set is the "human asshole" characacter need for any zombie film, and dies [spoiler]the same way as the knob in Day of the Dead - the army sargeant - even down to the "eat it" line[/spoiler]).  Then there was the obvious shopping mall nod to Dawn in the Dead Set credit sequence.

In connection with a zombie outbreak, how DO you survive? I plan on heading for an island, where there is a finite and destroyale number of zombies. However, that plan assumes I only need to wait for the zombies to decay. Is that a viable plan, or do you think they stay "healthy" indefinitely?

[Eldritch]

Watched the first three eps in one go & posted this to friends:



Spoilers maybe


It's ok; I'll watch the final 2 eps willingly enough. Brooker was deliberately disingenuous though when he described it as "unashamed populist schlock," which is oxymoronic when hitched to the zombie genre. There's nothing populist about graphic head stavings or cannibalism and there never will be.
There's an initial hint of nudity & titillation - genuine Big Brother populist schlock in other words - that never transpires, but really I reckon he was tacitly warding off expectation of anything new, ground-breaking or distinctive here. It was billed as a horror comedy & satire, but it's not funny (the horror is too strong for that) and, while the premise is notionally satirical, the execution isn't.
 
Also, the more I see fast zombies, the more I appreciate Romero's shamblers: the slow, inexorable, irresistible stupidity of the masses looming, closing...
Genius.

Then watched the final 2 eps & mailed this:
More Spoilers maybe:



Saw the last of it tonight. Revised my opinion of it, to the good. The satire is more brutal (in your face, evisceratingly in one scene) towards the close. Also there is an explicit (in both senses of the word) homage to the most infamous death in Day Of The Dead, followed by some extraordinarily faithful Romero-esque zombie iconography.
It's to immediately be re-broadcast as a movie on E4 on Saturday & that would be the one to see.
 
Overall, liked it quite a bit.

[Keef Monkey]

I loved it, absolutely loved it. Wasn't what I expected at all (thought it was going to be far lighter in tone) but it totally blew me away.

[spoiler]Even after a week of it though, the intensity of the last episode took me off-guard and actually left me feeling a bit upset which doesn't happen often. It was always obvious the producer was going to get the worst death, and the more of an arse he acted the more I looked forward to it, but when it happened I didn't relish in it, rather found it quite disturbing. Like to think of myself as pretty hardy when it comes to horror, but it genuinely freaked me out and me and my lady sat in silence for a full minute after it ended with our jaws on the floor.

It was an incredibly grim climax, and it was obvious the house would be compromised, but the sheer apocalyptic vibe was breathtaking, and I actually found it more intense than 28 Days Later and whatnot.[/spoiler]

It all looked remarkably good too, reckon it'll do great if they sell it onto America. Compare it to any episode from Masters Of Horror and it mops the floor with them, and it did brilliantly with a low budget (went to see the awful Saw V the same day which looked like a shit tv movie in comparison). Have always loved Brooker but still didn't expect this to be quite as good as it was, being a new avenue for him. Not a bad performance in there either.

Also, does NO-ONE else fancy Jaime Winston? I've had my eye on her ever since that Hewlitt pilot and her attention-saving nudity in Donkey Punch, but everyone I know seems to think she just looks like a miniature version of her dad.

Oh, and just to add to an already overlong post, NEW SCREENWIPE THIS MONTH! I could kiss Brooker, I really could.

[paulvonscott]

Gah, just went to watch the rest but the last episode hasn't taped, luckily it's on again tonight.

The roughtop thing is very reminiscent of the remake Dawn of the Dead, but not a reference I guess.

Yeah, it's great.  Charlie Brooker has done a good job, bit of a poacher turned gamekeeper, but he's pulled it off.

Has renewed a little of my faith in Channel 4.  And I think it's great that Big Brother has been used.  It's amazing they got Davina and all those ex-contestants in as well as the sets etc.  Not a fan of reality shows, but it's just a clever idea, very well done.

Sadly have no faith in my ability under pressure if (I mean when) a zombie outbreak occurs.  I'd be like the wretched Eldon character, completely bloody useless and making completely bloody useless comments.

Anyway, I'll be getting the DVD.  My favourite show this year tied with Dexter.

[TordelBack]

I could kiss Brooker, I really could.

No surprise there, if'n you fancy Ray Jr!

[johnnystress]

Tonight on E4-
22:00     Dead Set
      
A special feature-length version of the zombie horror series set in a fictional Big Brother house, featuring all five episodes

[Roger Godpleton]

It occurred to me that the producer actually "won" cos he didn't turn into a zombie. Your thoughts?

I concur that Jaime Winstone is a very fine young woman.

[Tiplodocus]

Enjoyed it much more than I thought I would after the initial episode.

Some of teh character turnarounds were a bit quick for my liking and the ending did seem terribly rushed but overall it did actually get to me slightly and left me feeling unpleasant and wondering more than once or twice today what I would do in that situation.

I think my favourite scene was the arrival of the armed coppers; just because it makes you think "Oh, I know where this is going" but then doesn't.

The unremitting bleakness of it all was one thing that struck me; even in DAWN OF THE DEAD (my favourite zombie movie - both versions) there's a kind of faint glamour and coolness attached to their situation that this just did not have.

Top marks toe E4 - must send them the script for my Zombie opus "Pure Dead Brilliant".

[Lobo Baggins]

I concur that Jaime Winstone is a very fine young woman.

Agreed, but not when she does that scowly face and looks almost exactly like her dad...

[paulvonscott]

Just seen the last episode, ood stuff.

However, last episode spolier ahead...

When they decided to [spoiler]kill or cripple the producer I just said fuck them, and was glad to see the horrible human bastards die.[/spoiler]

Hurrah!  A triumph!

[Mardroid]

Also, does NO-ONE else fancy Jaime Winston? I've had my eye on her ever since that Hewlitt pilot and her attention-saving nudity in Donkey Punch, but everyone I know seems to think she just looks like a miniature version of her dad.

She's quite cute certainly (although I wonder if I'm too old to fancy her. Naaah. As the young lady is over 18, s'ok...)

And despite my earlier comments of "I wish it had been left ambiguous at the end or had at least one or two survivors," on thinking about it further, I think it works out well as it is.

[Colin YNWA]

Just watched it all in one go. While I know such talk is dangerous straight after watching something I think I can safely say. BEST. ZOMBIE. FILM. EVER!

Loved it. Funny, scarey and incredibly human all at the same time. Charlie Brooker is a genius.

[deus x machina]

Liked it.

No problem with 'fast' zombies.

[spoiler]Fire extinguisher is possibly best zombie death ever put to film.[/spoiler]

Grim and funny.

I agree, great touch and great camera use
Been working away but good to see that my thread has been used well. I've only managed to watch the first one up to now but have them all on sky+ ready to watch

[Tiplodocus]

Something else that just struck me about this:

[spoiler]Zombie Pippa was actually more attractive than alive Pippa.[/spoiler]
Probabaly very deliberate.