Bong of the Living Dead (2018)-Have You Ever Seen the Zombie Apocalypse………………On Weed?!?- Fitz of Horror Review

Written by Bryan Fitzgerald (Fitz of Horror) April 2, 2018

Don’t go in with high expectations, just go in high– Fitz

Synopsis- A group of friends and zombie movie buffs have their life long dream come true. As their provisions run low, reality begins to set in and they realize that the zombie apocalypse isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. 

I really had no idea what to expect going in with Max Groah‘s stoner horror/comedy Bong of the Living Dead but what I saw was a fresh and pretty smart take on the zombie genre. There were obvious nods to Kevin Smith films (mainly Clerks) and more zombie movie references than you can shake a blunt at. There is great character development with some childhood flashbacks and lots of getting high while engaging in deep pop culture/zombie movie conversations and this is all before the main title hits the screen in the opening sequence.

The end of the opening sequence when the stoners realize that their life long fantasy of an impending zombie apocalypse is actually happening right in front of them,  the look on Hal’s (Daniel Alan Kiely) face sums up the movie perfectly!

After the credits roll at the beginning of the film (I know right?!) we see that our group (Hal, Christ,Tara, Kate and Jon) have wanted this apocalypse their whole lives and thought they were prepared. Hal seems to be the most gung ho of the group when it comes to facing this hoard of the living dead but his buddies get on board quickly and after getting stoned, of course, they take to the streets decked out in homemade armor with everyday tools as weapons and also their trusty “Clintonville Slugger” baseball bat that has been fashioned into a functional weed pipe that hits hard in more ways than one.

Once out into the neighborhood outside of their house, the group sees that the surrounding neighbors have formed factions to dispatch of this zombie outbreak in their own unique ways but there seems to be a lack of the undead (for now) and an abundance of judgmental assholes. This zombie apocalypse was definitely not what they expected it to be.

After the gang solemnly retreats back inside the comfort of their own home we are treated to some excellent montages that show the group having fun, getting stoned and becoming quite good at simple zombie killing activities that they have created. As some time has passed via montage, they finally run out of greenery and the movie takes on a more serious tone as friendships are tested, hoards of zombies descend on their home and it is time to fight or run. We soon see if our seemingly prepared group actually has what it takes to survive.

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. There was solid dialogue carried out by the cast although a few of the characters seemed to overact at times early in the film. The editing and montage sequences were very well done and the movie had a very professional looking overall “cleanliness” to it. Any acting issues were certainly overcome by the second act and the characters became quite endearing.

BOTLD is definitely a zombie film you should check out! It pays homage to the genre and emulates with love films like Clerks and Shaun of the Dead while bringing its own originality and flavor to a genre that at times can seem overdone or redundant.

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