Runtime: 85 minutes
Directed by: Ken Wiederhorn
Starring: Peter Cushing, Brooke Adams, Fred Buch, Jack Davidson, John Carradine
From: Zopix Company
“Aquatic Nazi zombies” was quite the niche that this film filled. Of course I’ve known of this motion picture for years; how could you forget such a premise? Yet it wasn’t until last night that I experienced Shock Waves. It was on YouTube via a channel which streams their own double features; many of those streams aren’t archived any longer, for probably obvious reasons. That’s why I watched it live last night; the other half of that double header will be discussed tomorrow; those two movies shared more in common than I first realized.
The film actually has an in media res opening w/ Brooke Adams. From there are flashbacks to the rest of the movie. A group of people on a ramshackle boat operated by salty captain John Carradine run aground on an island inhabited by Peter Cushing… and those aquatic Nazi zombies. To clarify, they aren’t the slow-moving, lurching zombies of Romero fame. Rather, they are undead villains that were designed in World War II to be “super soldiers”, so yes their movement isn’t of the lurching variety.
Verbal bombs could be dropped on the plot or its pacing, for sure; Shock Waves can be quite languid at times. Be that as it may, the movie has great atmosphere so there’s never not a mood. By far the highlight was an AWESOME 70’s synth score from Richard Einhorn of The Prowler fame. Sure, the characters are mainly stereotypes (such as the abrasive A-hole always yelling at everyone) and their behavior can be idiotic too often. Even then, the scenery-either The Bahamas or the southern rural areas of Florida-becomes eerie & haunting on its own. Furthermore, the aesthetic of the zombies themselves was well-realized.
The wide range of ratings just from my mutuals, re: this movie is not a surprise. Plenty won’t be able to vibe with this yet some love it to death. Me, the score that slaps played a big role in my enjoyment.
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