86. Biozombie (1998) - Dir: Wilson Yip
Woody Invincible and Crazy Bee are two wannabe coolies who sell bootleg VCDs at a video store in a mall. Woody and Crazy think they are cooler than Ekin Cheng and Takeshi Kaneshiro combined, but, in all actuality, they are not. Jelly and Rolls, two hotties, and the victims of Crazy's and Woody's flirtations, also work in the mall as hair-stylists. Unbeknownst to these four mall-rats, the government has entered into a shady deal with some low-life triad arms-dealers, and are about to unwittingly unleash a plague of the evil dead upon the city. It's Clerks, meets Dawn of the Dead, meets The Young and Dangerous in this Hong Kong genre mash-up.
Although Biozombie is a low-budget film, through and through, it is well made, well written, and a ton of fun. While the film's location feels a little cheap, and slightly underpopulated (it is clearly a limited set, and costs were spared on hiring extras), these drawbacks do not hinder the film's ability to engage. What could have ended up as just another me-too, straight-to-video schlock fest, winds up being a surprisingly well made and silly romp through a mall infested with the, poorly made-up, undead, and the small group of heroes brave enough to fight them, or perhaps too aloof to run.
Almost the entire film rests upon the shoulders of the two male leads, and they are more than capable of carrying the load. Played by Jordon Chan and Sam Lee, now two Hong Kong veterans, Woody Invincible and Crazy Bee are the perfect nonchalant heroes, and a great comedy-duo. The characters strike a perfect balance: they are fun to laugh at, easy to laugh with, heroic enough to root for, and not stupid or annoying enough to wish death upon. Whether they're marveling at the size of a mechanic's manhood, playing House of the Dead (by the way Uwe Boll, Biozombie called and wants its video game back), killing zombies, or just chillin' out with the ladies, Woody and Crazy always come off as affable guys, while their friendship feels authentic.
While Biozombie does have loads of the undead, it is very light on the red stuff - there really isn't much gore to speak of. Normally I am turned off by un-gory zombie flicks (I rarely see the point), but when the film is this much fun and well made, I can look past a lot of things. It also looks great despite its modest budget, and actually contains one of the greatest split-screen camera techniques I have ever seen. It also features the coolest use ever of a Gameboy camera, one that I am shocked to have never seen before, or since. While it is slick, the style never gets in the way of the story, a common problem with some hip genre cinema. Wilson Yip never over does things, and even when he draws upon images and ideas from video games and pop-culture, he does so in a fresh and exciting way, and he does so with restraint.
Like Shaun of the Dead which came after, Biozombie is a film that relies upon the strengths of its characters. It is all too easy to populate these kinds of films with “I can't wait for them to die,” characters, or characters who are memorable only for being killed off in creative ways. Such is not the case with Yip's genre send-up. Although the characters often cross into caricature territory, they still possess an endearing quality that transcends mere genre conventions. In a word, Biozombie is memorable, and I often find myself reflecting fondly on specific scenes, long after rewatching the film. It is consistently funny, a few times touching, a little cheesy, sometimes creepy, and totally entertaining.
