Todd Sheets has always gotten a lot of hate. And you're probably sitting there thinking "Well, no shit! Did you see Prehistoric Bimbos In Armageddon City?". And I'd have to answer that with an unfortunate yes. And yes. Not his finest hour and nine minutes. But I'll still go on record and say that I don't think whatever hate Sheets may get is really justified. Especially if you're only familiar with his very early stuff. Sure. These so-called films are annoying, really, really bad in every way a Horror film can possibly be bad, and they're not half as funny as they're intended to be. But the thing about Todd Sheets' early stuff is that it's not really stuff at all.
In the late 80's and early 90's, Todd sheets and pals fucked around a lot with cameras and gore FX, not so much making movies as practicing for the day he starts making movies. Little hour long gorefests that weren't really meant to be seen by anyone except Todd Sheets and pals. But one day, an offer was made to Todd to get those "movies" out there. A deal was made, and from what I've heard, this is a decision sheets now regrets, due to the fact that his entire reputation as a director has been based on these practice movies. By 1993, Todd Sheets was ready to start making something more. A legit movie he could be proud of. His first movie, as he now calls it. But unfortunately for him, many others may not realize this. Today, we're going to talk about what many do consider Todd sheets' finest hour and ten minutes. A film inspired by every zombie movie ever made, and one of the few shot-on-video Horror flicks which represent the 90's. This is Zombie Bloodbath.
As we begin, we witness an accident at a chemical plant which quickly spreads a disease, which infects everyone within seconds. Some of the FX and over acting is hilarious, and lets us know exactly what kind of movie we're getting in to, here. Exactly. A really, really bad one. But still an entertaining one. As we get a slight peak into the lives of a couple families in the suburbs, we're treated to some of the most hilarious acting the B-movie world has to offer. None more hilarious than Todd Sheets' good pal, Jerry Angell, who was a regular in Sheets' practice movies. A man with a face which screams "dim-witted white trash", Angell makes this otherwise bottom of the barrel zombie flick far more entertaining than one would expect. Not everyone can pull off a mustache and a mullet with bangs, but this man can. Take one look at him and you know in your heart that his delivery is every bit as hilarious as you would assume.Not everyone can be Jerry Angell, but there's plenty of fun moments involving over acting and attempts at character development. Once the zombie outbreak reaches their destination, Sheets wastes no time breaking out the gore. But there's more to this movie than all that. At times, there are moments, while comically bad, are meant to be heartbreaking and powerful, as family members sob over lost loved ones, and even resorting to suicide. Not exactly as effective as The Walking Dead, but they do get points for trying. Considering the budget Sheets was working with, here, this movie really isn't as bad as it may seem at first glance. It's certainly more ambitious than a lot of shot-on-video flicks from this era or any other.
Taking your film making to a higher level is one thing. But doing so by making a zombie movie would probably be a huge pain in the ass. So respect goes to Mr. Sheets. However, I've always found it funny that he considers Zombie Bloodbath his first actual movie, discarding the seemingly hundreds of movies he did in the years leading up to this. Sure. They're clearly inferior. Some of them, unwatchable. But take a movie like 1989's Zombie Rampage, for example. Inferior, yes. But not THAT much worse than Zombie Bloodbath. Not enough to be flat out disowned. Personally, I even prefer that one over this one, myself. But like all his earlier, inferior efforts, Zombie Bloodbath is a labor of love, and a homage to the superior efforts which came before it. Zombie Bloodbath must have picked up enough success to satisfy Sheets and whoever else, as there were two sequels released over the next few years, while the popularity of these types of movies would continue to die a slow death.After the Zombie Bloodbath Trilogy, Todd sheets would continue making movies for a short time, until finally throwing in the towel. Although, he has returned to directing these past few years. However, I still have yet to get a hold of any of them. Something that is definitely on my to do list. Todd Sheets will never be known as the master of the S.O.V. And he'll probably never get the respect he deserves as a micro-budget filmmaker who did so by his own rules. But when so many S.O.V. Horror pioneers gave up on their dreams in the late 80's, Sheets carried on the tradition throughout the 90's, making shitty movies not for the money, but because that's what he enjoyed doing. So good for him, as others never got a chance to make their Zombie Bloodbath. Love his movies or hate them. Todd sheets made movies. And nobody can take that away from him. 5/10
#Review