User Reviews

Let's begin this movie review with a quick definition of the word "mimesis." The Free Dictionary by Farlex states that "Mimesis" means "the imitation or representation of aspects of the sensible world, especially human actions, in literature and art." Now you don't have to wait for genre legend Sid Haig to explain it to you three-quarters of the way through "Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead."

"Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead" tells the story of a group of fans at a horror convention who are invited to an exclusive after-party. After passing out, each one awakens in the woods outside a farmhouse to find themselves dressed up in different clothing. They soon come to realize that they are pawns in someone's sick re-enactment of "Night of the Living Dead." This time it's not a movie. Its real-life… and people are really dying.

I must say that director / writer Douglas Schulze truly has utilized an interesting concept. Many remakes could save themselves the embarrassment of being inadequate carbon copies if they would take the route "Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead" does with its namesake. Instead of making rehashed updates of iconic films, producers could make a movie about fans of the original who want to act out the events in real life. It could be applied to any horror or slasher movie.

Just picture this: a franchise of films based on the idea. We could have "Mimesis 2: A Nightmare on Elm Street," "Mimesis 3: The Amityville Horror," Mimesis 4: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." The possibilities truly are endless. SyFy Channel or Chiller could even have a weekly "Mimesis" television show. Contestants have to re-live a classic horror film to win prizes and such. I know, this is a review and I'm starting to digress.

Sid Haig ("The Devil's Rejects") is really the only actor in the film who's recognizable in the movie. He plays a horror director who is tired of everyone blaming violence in films for tragic events that happen in real life. I was giddy over a short cameo by Courtney Gains who played Malachai in the original "Children of the Corn." The rest of the cast are basically just victims for the audience to see disposed of in various gory manners.

"Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead" isn't a complete failure as entertainment. It addresses the idea of "life imitating art" that we see come up in the news all the time in a clever manner. However, I can't help but feel that "Scream" did it better back in 1996. A lack of any special features isn't going to help convince consumers that this is the horror movie of the week to spend their hard-earned money on.

I have a very high tolerance for "bad" movies (a term I even have an aversion to use), with a tendency to accentuate the positive. Yet I ran out of patience with this one surprisingly soon.

Maybe what did "Mimesis" in was that the idea was pretty wonderful, and the promise of fun inherent in playing with such a beloved and classic movie was tremendous. I was hooked, and was very interested in seeing how the story unfolded.

Quick bright sides included the selection of an actress who sweetly resembled the blonde from "Night of the Living Dead" (of "They're coming to get you, Barbara" fame), and as I discovered now, the choice of character names following the first names of the original actors. Very nice touches, indicating a loving homage - which further serves to disappoint, given the dismal end result.

Immediately, the film formed frowns. The hero, Duane (AKA, "the black guy"), for example, gives a glass of water to his fallen friend Russell, as obvious as it appears that his throat is chewed off. The reason why the filmmakers did this was to show the water spurting out of the throat, a choice of effect over sanity.

Duane carries Russell out front only to be confronted by zombies who are not making any sudden and threatening moves. Duane decides to leave Russell at the mercy of the zombies, threatening one's suspension of belief in a very uncomfortable way.

This was only the beginning, however. Example after example of unbelievable moves by the players followed in quick succession. I did not make a list of them, not planning on composing a review, but off the top of my head the group finally encounters a mysterious newcomer upstairs, catching on that he is not what he seems. Except for the mother and daughter, the whole group is together, and in unison there should be strength. One measly zombie appears, and what do they do, particularly with two strong men among them? They rush into a room, locking the door behind them. Absolutely ridiculous.

What's more, they lock the newcomer out. How could they possibly do this, given that the newcomer was on the verge of spilling the beans as to why this madness was happening to them. Once again, the choice of plot expedience (he is shown to get killed, but there will be a twist later, during a critical moment when one of the group gets cornered) over reasonableness.

Let's not be naive; horror movies in particular can be notorious for stupid plot turns, but when it's one after the other after the other, in such blatant and glaring fashion, the danger point can easily be reached in getting the viewer disconnected.

Even with the minor and not overt aspects, the filmmakers constantly display their comfort with a lazy and insensible screenplay; they are only concerned with having the story roll along, no matter what.

For example, the masterminds apparently hired actors to play the zombies. (Among others, the large bald man, the long-haired one with the pitchfork, and the lady who took a bite out of the mother's leg.) What actor would possibly expose him or herself to the possibility of death or serious injury, in the playing of a role? (And on the other side of the coin, why would they have consented to commit deadly violence upon others?)

The undoing of the movie, in short, is a total contempt for the intelligence of the audience. The resulting disgust on the part of the viewers becomes all the more enhanced, given that the film could have been so much more.

The number of glowing reviews for "Mimesis" here at the IMDb is stupefying. Hardly far-fetched to conclude at least some are the handiwork of production insiders, which is somehow a poetic fit to the dishonesty of the movie.

As a final note, I was curious about the identity of the police "lieutenant" interviewed at the very end, so charmingly wooden, I suspected he was given the role for his probable connection with "Night of the Living Dead" - as perhaps another example of a loving homage. Unfortunately, this person does not appear to be among the IMDb's cast listing.

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This movie is about a group of people who go to a Horror convention and while there they are "invited" to a "party" on a farm. They all end up waking up in strange clothing and find themselves in a familiar situation, familiar if you're a 'Night of the Living Dead' fan! - Now when I heard about this movie and after I saw the trailer I was kind of looking forward to seeing this because of the idea of it (don't want to give too much away). And with a cameo by Sid Haig in it I was thinking it would be at least decent, but after watching it I found myself a bit disappointed by the film as it didn't live up to the potential that it could have had. The plot, although imaginative, failed in the delivery by the director in my opinion. But in saying that a few people will like this movie if they are new to the genre. All I can give this film is a 3.5 out of 10.

Caught this clunker at its premiere in 2011. Then I completely forgot about it until I needed to look up some information about its crew. When I came to IMDb and read three glowing reviews, I wondered what those reviewers were smoking that night. I remember Mimesis as a very low budget horror flick that neither horrifies nor entertains. Ridiculous premise, dumb plot, wooden one-dimensional characters and all the usual zombie film clichés. Bunch of twenty-somethings cower in a farmhouse while (spoiler alert) phony zombies shamble around outside, trying to lure them out and pick them off one by one. Problem is, there is only a handful of "zombies", they move as slowly as tortoises and lack any weapons that might pose a real threat. Here's a tip for the guys in the house: open the door and stroll down the road. You can even walk backward and thumb your nose at the zombies as they recede into the distance. This is an altogether failed homage to the Night of the Living Dead, listlessly directed by Douglas Schulze, who did not impress me as a very capable director. One good shot in the movie, the rest bland and boring. And the performances, with a few exceptions, were just plain awful. Production design totally lacking. The film had decent makeup effects, though. Awful sound. Cameos by Sid Haig and Courtney Gains do nothing to save the film from the obscurity it deserves. Overall, Mimesis looks and feels like a high-school film project.

I love Sid Haig and zombie movies. I thought this would be a great film, but...

The best way to watch this film is not to read the title or any review. The title lets you know that the whole zombie scene is a set up. The film would have been better served if the title and box description didn't give so much away and if the film stayed in character longer. In my opinion this would have been a better film if they would have stolen "Cabin in the Woods" scenario where the zombies would be real under the control of people. The film seemed to end just when it was getting started.

Note: Never eat someone else bloody body organs raw as there is a bevy of blood borne pathogens out there.

Parental Guide: F-bombs. No sex or nudity.

While I agree with some of the points the detractors gave the movie, I don't agree completely. Some of the acting need brushing up (and one particular actress was exceptionally awful IMHO), but they're not so bad to the point that they're unwatchable. Some of the actors' portrayals are commendable. The low budget vibe actually pays greatly to being a homage of the original film. I actually originally wanted it to give a 6, but opted to give it a point more because I honestly believe that all fans of the original movie should give this one a shot.

The effects are enough to make you cringe at the right moment. While the execution falls flat in some places, I feel that it's worked as a whole. I'm not a fan of slasher flicks per se, but this one works for me.

So, overall, I liked the movie. I doubt that it'll be a classic like the movie it pays homage to, but hey, who knows? I didn't think Romero thought that his Night of the Living Dead would turn out so successfully either. And I'm sure that when it first came out, it was met with some negative feedback from some critics, too.