When did Zombies change?

[nin_ninja]

When did zombies change from the reanimated dead into humans and other creatures becoming infected and in turn infecting others? I really don't care, but I always make a point of saying that enemies are "infected" instead of zombies in games like L4D and Resident Evil.

Your thoughts and opinions on the changes to zombies.

EDIT: I'm saying that zombies have changed over the years, which isn't a bad thing. I was just curious when and how this change occurred.

 

[monkey_man]

Aren't they both after the brains? Also, I think dead Island has the dead guys reanimated thing. In the trailer where the girl gets bitten and chased etc, she dies and turns. So I guess not all zombies are merely infected? I dunno.

 

[JamesStone]

Reanimated humans is magic. Infected is science, sometimes silly, others well done (somewhat rare tough).

So it´s just an adaptation to modern eras. Simple.

 

[Totenkopf]

As far as I know it was the movie "28 Days Later" which started the whole thing with the rather fast "infected".

Personally, I'm quite glad about that fresh air in the genre.
Just think about, without it we wouldn't have pearls like Left 4 Dead and Killing Floor.

 

[DexterNorgam]

Yea, I'm indifferent to the changes. If it walks like a zombie, sounds like a zombie... I'm not sure that while being eaten by one of the "infected" I'd feel any better than if it were an actual "zombie".

One thing I will say for infected as opposed to zombies, it sure did allow them to move a lot faster and in the case of l4d (still one of my favorite games) it opened the door for special mutations.

 

[Smasngrab]

The zombie apocalypse came and went, the zombies are now employed, productive members of our sosciety. Just look at the streets from 7 to 9 in the mornings and then again around 15.00 to around 18.00. Plenty of zombies there, but dont bring you shotgun, you will get into trubble...

 

[Captain Pancake]

Zombies are not by default reanmiated corpses. The term can be applied to anything that has lost all mental function, yet continues to function as far as obtaining food is concerned.


So yes, L4D's zombies are rightfully zombies. Matter of fact, they're the closest anyone's gotten yet to how a real life zombie apocalypse might actually go down.

too right, bastards' have got to be fast enough to catch us first.

I may be wrong, but I think it can be Attributed to Danny Boyle's 28 days later, in which the 'infected' are physically identical to humans but mentally null. It takes the principles of classic zombies: the overwhelming 'horde' as a psychological weapon as well as the fact that they are basically us to create the horror, but ramps up the intensity by making them faster. this 'reimagining' was incredibly popular, as it allowed the frantic aspect of other horror staples to be incorporated into the zombie archetype, and as with many popular things it stuck.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Three words 28 Days Later since that when they introduce faster zombie like being and also the word "inected".
I'm pretty much bored with the zombie craze since it everywhere now (zombie modes in some games and even Marvel did a zombie theme series).

 

[CatsAttackAgain]

Zombies are things that don't think but act. There may be something I've gotten wrong or forgotten. The very specifics are left up to the creators.

 

[Zykon TheLich]

too right, bastards' have got to be fast enough to catch us first.

I may be wrong, but I think it can be Attributed to Danny Boyle's 28 days later, in which the 'infected' are physically identical to humans but mentally null. It takes the principles of classic zombies: the overwhelming 'horde' as a psychological weapon as well as the fact that they are basically us to create the horror, but ramps up the intensity by making them faster. this 'reimagining' was incredibly popular, as it allowed the frantic aspect of other horror staples to be incorporated into the zombie archetype, and as with many popular things it stuck.

It wasn't the first to do that, some of the old return of the living dead films from the 80's had 'zombies' that could run, use weapons and other stuff, they were pretty silly though, couldn't call them horror...maybe schlock horror is the right term.

 

[Ordinaryundone]

Zombies were originally just humans who were being mind controlled by voodoo. Your "typical" zombie was referred back then to be a ghoul. If anything, a reanimated corpse is diverting from the traditional description of the zombie.

 

[thylasos]

Night of the Living Dead had all recently-deceased corpses reanimating, if I remember the radio and television announcements in the movie correctly.

Dawn of the Dead had infection, leading to death and reanimation.

Not-zombies, not dead people who'd been reanimated, but infected living people who look a bit like zombies, started, on the silver screen at least, with 28 Days Later, AFAIK.

Proper zombies, as far as George Romero and I are concerned are "dead... they're all messed up." Necrotic tissue can barely walk, let alone run and so on.

 

[sephiroth1991]

Zombies like any other genre fiction monster are always been changing in order to keep it fresh, the first real zombie film was the 'White zombie' which was about a young woman's transformation into a zombie at the hands of an evil voodoo master. However years later George Romero introduced a new style of zombies which became very popular, which are the undead monsters. Not sure when but 28 days introduced a more living zombie which was inspired by a sort of rabies infection, which became popular just like the one before. Even games have shown the progress of zombies from Resident Evil having the normal undead ones to Left 4 Dead introducing different types in order to keep things fresh. You hear alot of the time people saying "Oh another zombie film/game" however people still enjoy zombies because they are a ever changing thing, they would of became more stale if they simple kept to the voodoo zombies of old.

In my opinion there is no proper zombie since they can take on many forms and still be enjoyable as the last be it slow undead, fast living or possessed people.

 

[Evidencebased]

Reanimated humans is magic. Infected is science, sometimes silly, others well done (somewhat rare tough).

So it´s just an adaptation to modern eras. Simple.

I finally got around to reading World War Z and I thought it married the magic and science aspects together quite nicely. The zombieness is infectious and is therefore attributed to a mysterious "virus" of some kind but the actual mechanism remains unknown, and it's pointed out that many of the zombies' characteristics shouldn't be possible for something that has only been infected by a virus (the infected people die and are reanimated, and still manage to move without circulation or oxygen, etc., which is not something any virus should be able to accomplish!)

I agree that it's an adaptation to modern eras, both adapting to what modern people will believe (few adults believe in "magic") and to what modern people fear (unstoppable contagion and epidemics are a huge concern in a world where disease can spread across the globe as fast as a passenger jet.)

 

[Jamash]

28 Days Later wasn't the first film to feature fast moving infected Zombies.

25 years before 28 Days Later, David Cronenberg's film Rabid [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabid_%28film%29] featured swift Zombies that were the result of a mutated form of the Rabies virus.

I doubt that Rabid was even the first film to feature fast moving Zombies and/or Zombies caused my an highly infectious disease, it's probably quite a common feature of Biological Apocalypse scenarios and the concept has certainly been knocking around for longer than 9 years.

 

[6_Qubed]

I DEMAND EQUAL RIGHTS FOR ALL POSTLIVING HUMANS REGARDLESS OF ETHNIC ORIGIN

(sorry)

 

[Hipsy_Gypsy]

Aren't they both after the brains? Also, I think dead Island has the dead guys reanimated thing. In the trailer where the girl gets bitten and chased etc, she dies and turns. So I guess not all zombies are merely infected? I dunno.

That was "Return of the Living Dead" zombies but they don't die no matter what you do! Made the pain of rotting go awayyy~. Burning just seems to amplify the zombie problem... although I think in the fourth film, they could be killed via electrocution apparently.

OT: I've always thought of zombies as the stereotypical shambling, usually brain-dead, living-flesh-craving corpses. Though I do remember one film where a zombie was missing his legs from the knee down yet he literally ran after the characters. It might have been the first "Return of the Living Dead" but I'm not entirely sure.

Actually, speaking of those films, anyone recall its iconic Tarman? He's a cousin to the muppets!

Zombies like any other genre fiction monster are always been changing in order to keep it fresh, the first real zombie film was the 'White zombie' which was about a young woman's transformation into a zombie at the hands of an evil voodoo master. However years later George Romero introduced a new style of zombies which became very popular, which are the undead monsters. Not sure when but 28 days introduced a more living zombie which was inspired by a sort of rabies infection, which became popular just like the one before. Even games have shown the progress of zombies from Resident Evil having the normal undead ones to Left 4 Dead introducing different types in order to keep things fresh. You hear alot of the time people saying "Oh another zombie film/game" however people still enjoy zombies because they are a ever changing thing, they would of became more stale if they simple kept to the voodoo zombies of old.

In my opinion there is no proper zombie since they can take on many forms and still be enjoyable as the last be it slow undead, fast living or possessed people.

Listen to the Guru!


x

 

[Fingers O'Toole]

Pretty certain that the entire change from American slow zombies to British fast zombies was at least popularized by Danny Boyle's "28 Xs Later" series (in the same way that Romero's "X of the Dead" series moved the concept of zombies from foreign voodoo into western viral pandemic).

Granted, the concept may have been created by smaller, lower budget film(s), but the radical revamp throughout zombie media definitely stems from 28 Days' success.

 

[Mcupobob]

Zombies are not by default reanmiated corpses. The term can be applied to anything that has lost all mental function, yet continues to function as far as obtaining food is concerned.

Just like Rick Perry, zing.

OT: I saw a site that had a detailed history of zombies and how they went through changes in the media and such.

Not the same one but its still pretty good.

http://nevadasagebrush.com/blog/2007/10/29/zombie-movie-time-line-continued?/

The traditionally zombie is slow walking, shambling, moans, and likes brains.