Why are horror fans so scared of God? Are they afraid of receiving some kind of final retribution from the Lord for all their hours of sitting in front of the TV, watching gory slasher after gory slasher desecrate everything that he has created? Or do they think that maybe, by admitting that there’s something more to this life – an afterlife – that they aren’t hardcore enough?
The reason I ask is because many of the reviews of GOSPEL OF THE LIVING DEAD: GEORGE ROMERO’S VISIONS OF HELL ON EARTH seem not to really talk about the book, but instead about the reviewers’ hatred of all things sacred, some even going as far as to say how dare the Christians try to invade “our” territory.
That’s reverse sanctimonious BS and all it does is sway people away from what is a really intriguing, interesting book that actually tries to provide not answers, but merely reasons for the way characters and society manifest themselves during the downward spiral of the Romero zombie flicks.
But even more so, author Kim Paffenroth never preaches or even quotes scripture outright – instead, he parlays the seminal zombie films with the works of Dante, equating them with his DIVINE COMEDY trilogy of INFERNO, PURGATORIO and PARADISO, comparing how the character’s quests and strifes, mannerisms and downfalls are very much like the ones in those books.
It’s a thought-provoking way of looking at the films, but I seriously doubt that even Romero really looks at them that way. Of course, Romero’s explanations of each film as a societal mirror also are explored by the author to a lesser extent, but that’s kind of been done before. It’s the theological theories he draws from that make for the most engrossing parts of the book.
At only 135 pages (plus a little more than 50 pages in notes and sources), Baylor University Press’ GOSPEL OF THE DEAD is a quick read, but also a great one for horror fans with an open mind. That’s probably the main caveat: You can’t go into this book with an automatic deity-hating mind frame. Go into it not as someone trying to be converted, but as someone open to the ideas of others. Drop the pretension and you may discover a few deeper intricacies to the zombie film than you knew were there.
Also, this is not really about the book content, but I have to make note that I love the cover design. Mixing a LAND OF THE DEAD-type poster design with a Christian cross is an incredibly striking image, and one out of which I wish prints were made. –Louis Fowler
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