By Ben Bussey
The zombie-war movie crossover may not be an entirely new idea, but in the vast majority of instances these tend to centre on Nazi zombies. In case that’s getting a bit old (panzer) hat, how does the idea of Napoleonic zombies grab you? That’s the key idea behind new British microbudget horror/wartime drama Fallen Soldiers, from first-time feature director Bill Thomas. Obviously this kind of period piece is going to prove an ambitious undertaking for any modern horror movie, let alone one made on so limited a budget as they clearly had on this one, but thanks to some fairly impressive performances and smart storytelling, Fallen Soldiers manages to be a pretty efficient representation of living dead horror in early 19th century wartime, even if it doesn’t necessarily wind up the most gripping film you’ll ever see.
Making a point of building intrigue from the get-go, much of the early part of the film is set within the confines of a horse-drawn carriage, as British soldier John Cross (Matthew Neal), caught behind enemy lines in Belgium, takes the carriages inhabitants hostage at gunpoint, demanding they take him to a British medical camp across the French border. Naturally, it doesn’t prove the most uneventful ride, and as a curious kinship seems to build up between Cross and his hostage Celine (Eve Pearson) he starts to let her in on the unbelievable story behind his dire situation, in particular the evidence that Napoleon’s forces might be using rather more than guns, bayonets and cannons in a bid to win the war.
Again, it’s clear from watching mere moments of Fallen Soldiers that this was a pretty cash-strapped production, meaning epic Napoleonic battle sequences are obviously off the table. Still, to a large extent these clearly limited resources are used effectively, and it’s obviously a huge help that Neal and Pearson are considerably better actors than tend to be cast in the lead roles of low-to-no budget horror movies, and the sets and costumes are also better than we might expect. The action criss-crosses at a pretty good pace between the hero’s current situation in the carriage and his reflections on a rescue effort that went wrong resulting in his own capture and, eventually, coming face to face with a seemingly supernatural evil. For the most part this present moment/flashback structure is effective. although we do also have a few flashbacks-within-flashbacks, which are maybe pushing it a little.
Still, while the set-up is initially intriguing and the central characters reasonably compelling, it doesn’t take too long for the cracks to show. It’s only natural that we would expect plentiful graphic gore from a zombie movie on any level, but Fallen Soldiers is just a little lacking in that department (the 18 certificate is hardly warranted by modern standards); and while most of the practical zombie make-up is perfectly decent, there is a bit of dreaded lo-fi CGI, notably in a number of fire-based moments, in which sequences which were clearly intended as dramatic wind up coming off laughable thanks to the sub-par digital FX. Many of the supporting performances also fall a bit flat, and the rather sudden ending proves jarring and unsatisfactory.
All things considered, then, Fallen Soldiers may a cut above your standard, no-name, microbudget horror filling up the lower shelves of the supermarket DVD section, but it lacks that crucial spark to elevate the material that bit higher. Still, on this evidence director Bill Thomas has some potential, and I’d be keen to see what he and his crew could achieve with a little bit more money and a slightly sharper concept.
Fallen Soliders is available now on UK DVD and VOD from 101 Films.