Making movies is tough but also surviving in the hotbox that is Hollywood, is equally as challenging for creators.
Michael Varrati’s latest feature There’s A Zombie Outside may feel like a straight forward horror film on the surface, but it digs so much deeper and has a lot of layers.
Initially, we follow Adam (Ben Baur), who is in a struggling relationship whilst also turning 40, just as a zombie turns up outside the cabin lodge him, his partner and their friends are staying at. What we find is that this is film within a film, and Baur is actually playing himself in a send-up of the working actor.
While I haven’t seen everything Baur has done to date, this is clearly one of the most layered and juicy roles he has had to date. It is nuanced and clever, and Varrati clearly takes inspiration from film’s such as Wes Craven’s New Nightmare.
There’s A Zombie Outside also has the vibe of Hitchcock, as things happen early on which may not be as they seem, and could need revisiting later on. The lines of reality are blurred, and it’s clear Varrati is having fun playing with audience expectations.
Indie horror mainstay Tiffany Shepis makes an appearance as a law enforcement officer, and up-and-coming actor/producer William Lott provides some comic relief as one of the drunk friends early on.
There’s A Zombie Outside becomes more of a psychological drama, existing in a horror film’s world, but in this case, we are seeing the breakdown of a person’s life because they didn’t fulfil their dreams for an array of reasons.
Varrati comments on the internalised homophobia of Hollywood and how lesser productions are looked down upon by those with money to burn on production. This is much deeper than you may have envisioned.
Varrati’s previous work has been a love letter to horror and comedy, often in tandem, but There’s A Zombie Outside is his ode to filmmaking and, more specifically, the craft and endurance needed to be an actor today.
There’s A Zombie Outside goes to some dark places, but not the ones you may expect, but it is a much richer text for it.
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