Review: Flesh Eater (1988)

Since 1968, when George Romero's Night of the Living Dead first hit theaters, there have been a lot of sequels, remakes spinoffs and ripoffs featuring undead flesh-eaters. But few of them have been nearly as blatant in mining Romero's classic for material than Bill Hinzman's Flesh Eater (which has bopped around on video for years under various names, including the even-less-subtle Revenge of the Living Zombies).

Does the writer/director's name sound slightly familiar? It should. Hinzman was the very first Romero zombie to appear onscreen in Night of the Living Dead, stumbling through the graveyard while Barbara and Johnny visit their father's grave, provoking Johnny's immortal line, "They're coming to get you, Barbara." (He was right: the Hinzman zombie kills Johnny and chases Barbara all the way to an abandoned farmhouse, where the rest of the movie takes place.)

In Flesh Eater, a bunch of horny college students (is there any other kind?) go fo a hayride in the woods on Halloween, drinking beer and making out. Meanwhile, a nearby farmer tries to drag a stump off of his property, only to unearth a grave with a satanic marker on it and a coffin with a wax seal with writing on it: "This evil which will take flesh and blood from thee and turn all ye unto evil."

For most people, this would be a sign to call the authorities or, at the very least, to leave the coffin alone and cover it back up. But since this is a low-budget horror film, the farmer is doomed to be a moron, break the seal and open the coffin. And guess who's inside? Yep, it's Bill Hinzman, dressed pretty much the same way he was in Night of the Living Dead. He's not exactly the same zombie, though--Flesh Eater is super-strong, throwing the farmer through the air (with the help of a very visible wire harness) after taking a bite of the poor guy's neck. He also jams his hand into a coed's chest and yanks out her heart and rams his arm through the midriff of another, topless coed.

And that's about all there is to the plot. Hinzman wanders the countryside, putting the bite on any humans he runs across; they turn into zombies; the new zombies wander the countryside, masticating anyone they meet. Wash; rinse; repeat.

One family including a little girl dressed as an angel and a very naked housekeeper (she'd just gotten out of the shower) gets chewed up by Hinzman, then attacks the father when he comes home from work. (A family dinner?) A group of kids having a Halloween party in a barn gets attacked as well, with a kid dressed as Dracula getting his nose bitten off and a girl gets a hook through her leg before she becomes zombie chow. There's a "shock" ending, followed by a setup for a sequel which, thank whichever God you pray to, never followed.

So, is there any reason to see Flesh Eater? Well, the makeup effects by Gerry Gergley are disgusting (i.e., very good), even if they're wasted on an amateur cast that can't act past the level of a sixth-grade assembly, including Hinzman, who does nothing but stumble around, growl and chew meat (and doesn't even do those things all that well). And there is gratuitous nudity, which is always fun.

Beyond that? Not much. Unless you enjoy dull, lifeless (no pun intended) and mostly unfunny Night of the Living Dead ripoffs. In which case, Flesh Eater is perfect for you. Dig in.