Once again, in no particular order -
I DRINK YOUR BLOOD – Primo seventies grindhouse about a hacked off kid who infects a bunch of hippie satanists with rabies by injecting meat pies full of the stuff. Not the best public information film about the dangers of infection, but definitely one of the pivotal down-to-the-knuckle exploitation horror flicks of its era.
CRIMES OF THE FUTURE – I could've gone for virtually any early – mid period Cronenberg flick, which, it could be argued, all model themselves on ideas about infectivity and contagion, though not always pandemic. In this, he's still in his austere 'underground' phase, and its an inhospitable but always interesting exploration of the gender specific 'Rouges's Malady'.
PONTYPOOL – Radio station siege scenario with an infection which is transmitted by language. Maybe it plays out in pretty much standard B Movie fashion, but conceptually it's at least nodding towards William Burroughs.
THE CHILDREN (1980) – OK, so it's about a radiation leak rather than a true infection, but I've been waiting for a chance to slip this on a list ever since 'zombies' came and went. As you can guess, it's about killer kids rampaging in their small American town. It's not very good, but it does have that mesmerising grindhouse feel to it. I seem to remember that the kids all have black fingernails or something? There's something really brutal and a bit heart rending about the fact that the only way they can be stopped is by cutting off their hands.
ISOLATION – Another one which is probably only on this list by the skin of its teeth, 'Isolation' is really about the effects of a wonky experiment in the artificial insemination of cattle. There are concerns about a possible outbreak at one point, hence the farm where it's set is quarantined. Whatever, it's a powerfully atmospheric exercise in glum claustrophobia, and its images of dank rural decay impact as much as the overt, 'Alien'-esque horror aspects.
SEPTIC MAN – See my review, coming up later today!
THE GRAPES OF DEATH – Jean Rollin has an eco-message for us all in what amounts to his attempt at the zombie sub-genre. They're not explicitly zombies however, hence I feel able to include it. I like the way that, although he seems to be trying for a different approach to horror, he can't shake the dreamy feel of his other movies. In other hands it'd be yet more action horror yadda yadda, but with Rollin at the helm it's still sparse, slow, haunting and suffocating.
WILD BEASTS – A spoiled water supply leads to animals freaking out and going on the rampage in Franco Prosperi's swansong. Again, I'm taking liberties with the list criteria here just to bump up a title I want to include, but at least it has to do with contamination, even if no microorganisms are involved. It's a pretty wild movie, dotted with sleazy moments, and again one of those films I find myself watching despite having an aversion to the real animal violence on display, which is as deplorable as ever.
THE CARRIER – A very strange film re-animated by Code Red a few years back. If the set-up sounds standard – a guy poses an infection based threat to his isolated small town home, and the township divides around him as a result – the way it plays out isn't typical at all. Can't remember specifics, but I seem to recall loads of random-seeming religious imagery and something about cats. Really must go back and check this one out again.
EBOLA SYNDROME – Sleazy Cat 3 trash about a dude who causes an ebola outbreak after numerous acts of cannibalism and rape. I'm not sure how it all joins up, but it's a pretty intense, mean spirited ride.
 |