DVD Release
Here’s a big surprise, aside from being a horror geek, sci-fi nerd, fantasy dweeb, comic book gonk and midget porn collector…I’m also a cartoon fiend. Honestly, cable TV and cartoons were my real parents and back in the day I could sing the theme song to the “Gummi Bears” cartoon before I could recite the Star Spangled Banner. Call me unpatriotic but I’m really not even sure to this day all of the words to that one but I can tell you without hesitation that “It’s G.I. Joe against Cobra and Destro fighting to save the day” and apparently “He never gives up he’s always there, fighting for freedom over land and air!”
Yeah, it’s like that.
So anyhow, a year or so back a cartoon came across my path entitled, City of Rott. Hmm…a zombie cartoon? To say I was skeptical would be putting it lightly and I wasn’t at all thrilled when I was able to see a trailer. Who knows why but it just didn’t turn my crank. Perhaps I missed the innocence of my beloved 80’s cartoons or I was just burned on the “gore gore gore” mentality that I had come across far too often in horror.
Whatever the case may be, I had to admire the director’s cast iron sack. Creating a horror/zombie cartoon was definitely risky. Nowadays the slightest indication that you’re trying to corrupt the youth of America and GOD HELP YOU. You may end up on the Republican chopping block or as a cause for some crusading Democrat.
After watching City of Rott I’m going to go on record as INSISTING you horror lovin’ parents out there introduce your children to this film. Yes, it’s gory and there are a few potty words but City of Rott has something to say. There’s a message here that needs to be passed along to our offspring before they’re swallowed up by a cold and uncaring society.
Meet Fred…he’s…well…old. Yup, Fred is old and a bit off his rocker but that sure isn’t stopping this old coot from wandering around the big city in search of new shoes! There’s certainly nothing wrong with a senior citizen out looking for a good pair of shoes unless of course the city is filled with millions of mindless, rotting flesheaters intent on ripping your intestines from your convulsing body!
Seems the world’s water supply has been infected with some type of parasitic worms that burrow into your body, make their way to your brain and kill the host. Your corpse is then resurrected by these worms and you wander off in search of screaming sustenance. Despite the massive efforts to save the world from these worms, all attempts fail and the zombies take over.
Fred is no dummy though; he knows the score and doesn’t take shit from any zombie. As long as he has his trusty walker the zombies have no chance.
Wait…did I mention poor Fred was a bit batty?
Apparently Fred’s walker…talks to him. That’s right; Fred carries on conversations and even full blown fights with his walker!
As Fred wanders about in search of shoes he comes across a few living people including an infected nurse, a gun-toting slob and an old man clutching a bottle of prune juice. One by one they all fall by the wayside as Frank, in one form or another, continues on his quest for shoes.
Is there an antidote? Is there a way to stop the transformation? Is the world truly ready for the answer?
City of Rott, on the surface, is a wonderfully gory cartoon but there’s something more. Sudol, as Romero before him, is using his film to address socio-political issues and in my opinion used it to far better effect than Romero’s last outing.
I won’t go too deep into the sub-text because everybody needs to come away from this film with whatever they’re seeking…if that’s nothing more than gore and zombies…so be it.
Personally, I felt City of Rott did a bang up job of serving up the gore as well as the importance of being an individual. Matter of fact, when I asked my 9 year old what the movie was saying he replied with, “It was telling you to think for yourself and be your own person.”
From the mouth’s of babes, folks.
Don’t let that fool you into thinking this is crudely disguised “commentary” though. As I stated above, everybody is going to come away from City of Rott with whatever they went in looking for. There’s no doubt in my mind this is going to satisfy the gorehounds. This film had more slurping, crunching, shredding and moaning than porn filmed in a slaughterhouse. This was by far the goriest cartoon I have ever seen.
Did I mention there are some truly fun winks to the hardcore horror/zombie fans in this as well? If I didn’t just remember keep your peepers trained on the zombie hordes and you may spot some VERY familiar zombies!
Unearthed Films gets a major “thumbs up” from me for snatching this up. Not only do you get a wonderful cartoon for you and your little aspiring goremongers but it’s overflowing with special features!
One last thing I’d also like to bring up before concluding this glowing, and probably creepy, review…Frank Sudol, also referred to as FSUDOL, did everything you see in this film. Everything from the writing, animation, editing, character voices and kick ass techno soundtrack was done by FSUDOL. Now that’s a cast iron set! Keep an eye out for this guy and his next feature, it’ll be guaranteed gold.
