Shock Waves (1977)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Ken Wiederhorn

Writers:

John Kent Harrison (writer)
Ken Pare (writer)

Release Date:

15 July 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Once They Were Almost Human! Beneath the living... Beyond the dead... From the depths of Hell's Ocean! The Deep End of Horror!

Plot:

Visitors to a remote island discover that a reclusive Nazi commandant has been breeding a group of Zombie soldiers.

Plot Keywords:

Island | Zombie | Soldier | SS Commander | Dinghy

Cast

Peter Cushing	...	SS Commander
Brooke Adams	...	Rose
Fred Buch	...	Chuck
Jack Davidson	...	Norman
Luke Halpin	...	Keith
D.J. Sidney	...	Beverly
Don Stout	...	Dobbs
John Carradine	...	Captain
Clarence Thomas	...	Fisherman
Sammy Graham
Preston White
Reid Finger
Mike Kennedy
Donahue Guillory
Jay Maeder	...	Zombie

Also Known As:

Almost Human (UK)
Death Corps

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:PG | France:-12 | Iceland:16 | West Germany:18 (original rating) | Australia:M | Norway:16 | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Italy:VM14

Filming Locations:

Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Company:

Zopix Company

Trivia:

The film was shot in 35 days in 1975.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Rose is sitting alone in the boat as it starts to drift away from the group, the boom and mike are briefly visible over Keith's head as he begins calling to her.

Movie Connections:

References Carnival of Souls (1962)

Nazi Zombies: Underwater Pests of the SS.

This is a great little film that combines two of the 70s most popular horror movie themes: monsters in the water and undead zombies. It also features the always-wonderful Brooke Adams (from "Invasion of the Body Snatchers") in a major role, not to mention both John Carradine and Peter Cushing.

A group of vacationers being taken on a cruise around some unspecified tropical islands experiences some trouble when a decades-old ship appears out of nowhere and rams their boat. The "ghost ship" is populated by undead SS soldiers who were created to survive both underwater and on land, and it goes without saying that they have no friendly intentions.

The new castaways take refuge on an island inhabited solely by Peter Cushing, a former Nazi commander who was in charge of the "Death Corps", and their host gives them a hasty explanation about what they're all up against.

The rest of the film is the tourists and sailors being stalked and offed by the zombies, who have really wrinkled skin and wear groovy goggles. Unlike the standard flesh-eating zombies of 70s horror, these undead guys don't wanna bite you, they just wanna hold you under the water until the bubbles stop. Genre fans hoping for some cannibalism or guts will be disappointed.

The visuals in the movie are sometimes striking. The underwater shots of the zombies are bizarre, as are the scenes of them rising up out of the ocean (or whatever body of water happens to be handy). Most of the action takes place on the island, which features a deserted resort that is pretty creepy in itself. A couple of the shots reminded me of "Carnival of Souls", with one or two scenes of undead faces looming just under the surface of the water.

The editing is a bit choppy and slightly incoherent. It seems like a few scenes establishing the characters were excised, as well as some other exposition such as the fate of the tourists's boat (what DID happen to it, after all?). The pacing is also not for all tastes, since this movie never builds into a all-out assault or anything, but it's an enjoyably creepy chiller in the classic 70s style. This is a prime candidate for DVD rediscovery. Watch it if you can find it.