RAW REVIEW — NAKED ZOMBIE GIRL

Every now and then a film title comes along that just MAKES you pay attention.
Naked Zombie Girl is one such title.
Twenty years ago, when I was a spotty faced teen, if I had seen this title on a video store shelf, I might actually have exploded.
Luckily I'm slightly more stable now, so I was able to contact the makers of this short film (although it still clocks in at about half an hour which is pretty substantial for a horror short!) to see if this film could POSSIBLY live up to that title.
Luckily, the gang behind this film are fantastic people and were kind enough to send me a copy for review.
Surely I could only be disappointed, right? Read on...

Naked Zombie Girl (2014)

Dir: Rickey Bird Jr

Starring: Meghan Chadeayne, Ali Dougherty, Joshua Keith Mathews, D.T. Carney, Ron Hanks, Coryn McBride, Kenny Mount, Jason Sanders, Robin Steffen, Shaun Paul Piccinino, Rickey Bird Jr.

SPEEDY SYNOPSIS: I’ll try not to spoil too much here, but read on at your own risk.

The film opens with three people, two girls and a guy, fleeing the scene of a zombie attack, driving a 1971 Cadillac Fleetwood Broughman along a dark and desolate freeway. Barbara (Chadeayne) and Jill (Dougherty) are prostitutes according to the official synopsis for the film, but there's not really any evidence of that in the film. Both girls are, quite understandably, freaking out a little upon witnessing hordes of walking corpses pouncing on unsuspecting folk and taking big juicy bites out of their flesh.

Unfortunately for EVERYBODY in the Cadillac, the third passenger Tony (Mathews) is one of those unsuspecting folk. A few closeups of a grossly gory, oozing bite on Tony's arm are enough to ensure we all know where this is going.

After pulling over to try to find help for the rapidly fading Tony, the group find themselves circled by a horde of rotting, shuffling and ravenous undead, with one particularly hideous ghoul acting as leader.

As the situation becomes desperate, Barbara is forced to flee, her dress torn away in the chaos. She takes refuge in a ramshackle toolshed surrounded by groaning, deadly zombies.

Slowly, the horde starts to batter their way into the shed. All seems hopeless... until Barbara spots a chainsaw in the corner. Then things get REALLY interesting...

BEST BITS (mild spoiler warning): Before I go any further, I know what a lot of you will want to know: So just how accurate is that title?

Yes, there are zombies. Lots of them. Yes, there is a girl. A very pretty one.

And YES, she does get naked. Like, for most of the film. However, the way in which the film is shot does a very clever job of masking her nudity for most of the film. Chainsaws, zombies, gallons of blood, conveniently styled hair: these all do a great job of blocking the view and preserving Meghan Chadeayne's modesty.

And that isn't the only thing that is clever about this film. Lovingly wearing its grindhouse and Night of the Living Dead influences on its arm, Naked Zombie Girl is fantastically made. The camera work, direction and even special effects are legitimately great. Bird and his crew clearly know what they're doing and manage to keep this barebones premise exciting throughout its entirety.

And it's not just the film-makers who should be proud of their work here. Meghan Chadeayne really is a revelation. Throwing herself into what must have been a very awkward role with real gusto, actress and model Chadeayne completely carries the film.

She reminded me a little of Zooey Deschanel, with her big emotive eyes, and with little to no dialogue, she completely commands the screen. Plus when she turns full-on badass with chainsaw in hand, she kicks all kinds of undead behind!

The shot of a goresoaked Chadeayne, chainsaw in hand, staring down a legion of bloodthirsty zombies felt instantly iconic. Not since Bruce Campbell's turn in the Evil Dead has such a certified ass-kicker been born in a flurry of blood, guts and brains! I hadn't seen Chadeayne before this film, but I expect we'll be seeing a lot more of her in the future (not like that, you filthy lot!)

Chadeayne's turn could easily have overshadowed the rest of the film, were it not for the fact that the rest of the film is of such a high quality. The soundtrack, the incredible gore effects, the genuinely unsettling and intimidating D.T Carney's performance as the deadly boss zombie - this film takes a silly if titillating premise and turns it into a bona fide horror experience.

WORST BITS (mild spoiler warning): 
There really are very few issues with this short. Some people may feel that the characters are a little underdeveloped. This is entirely Barbara's story so everybody else gets very little to work with. I felt that this could have been rectified a little during  the lengthy initial driving sequence. It was artfully shot and really built the mood, but perhaps a few more snippets of dialogue could have given us a bit more of an insight into the characters?

Also, for those of you that are starting to get annoyed with the faux grind house, 'scratchy film, missing reel' effect, this one does that too. But look at the title! If ever a film was entitled to embrace the schlocky b-movie feel of grindhouse cinema, SURELY Naked Zombie Girl is that film!
Finally, while the effects work was sterling throughout, it did slip ever so briefly during one particularly ambitious shot, but it still worked very well and just added to the charm and feel of the film. No biggie.

One more problem: I really could have done with more! If this short can drum up enough interest to warrant a full-length expansion of the tale (and I thoroughly believe it will) I'd love to see what else is in store for Barbara and her trusty chainsaw.

VERDICT: It would have been very easy to take this title and churn out a sleazy, gratuitous and shoddy effort, confident that the promise of naked flesh and, um, rotting flesh would have guaranteed an audience anyway.

That everybody involved in this fantastic film clearly put in some hardwork is all to apparent and is a real testimony to everybody involved. This is clearly a labour of love and you can't help but get carried along for the ride. 

Yes, there is plenty of naked flesh and splatter for your buck, but there's also a lot, lot more to keep you attention.

This is a rip-roaring grindhouse throwback with blood, guts and heart in the work of everybody involved. Come for the title, stay for a tremendous performance by Chadeayne and an absolutely brilliant achievement by Ricky Bird Jr.
There are no details yet re: a UK release but my readers over in the States can get themselves to various film festivals where it will be screening. In the meantime, checkout and like the film's official facebook page, then prepare for a helluva good time when you do get to sit down with Naked Zombie Girl. You will be surprised!

If you haven’t already, do please check out and like the Hickey’s House of Horrors Facebook page, which you can find here. It gives you a nice quick link to any new posts on this blog, plus regular news updates from around the web. I check the Internet so you don’t have to! Alternatively, follow me on twitter: The House@HickeysHorrors

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed your stay.