OUTPOST II BLACK SUN

There appears to be somewhat of a glut of Nazi Zombie movies surfacing on DVD at the moment and, for the most part, I have been a little disappointed with them. I personally put this down to the majority of them having as much narrative depth as a genre ‘shoot ‘em up’ computer game.

That censure, however, couldn’t be levelled at a 2008 movie respectively written and directed by British duo Rae Brunton and Steve Barker called OUTPOST. Although fitting snugly into the Nazi Zombie subgenre, OUTPOST brought the Nazi’s alleged Occult practises into play. With Black Magic as oppose to biology as a rationale for their indestructibility, this SS elite breed are adept living dead war machines and not just in it for the ‘brains’. It’s much anticipated sequel entitled BLACK SUN is soon to be released on DVD in the UK through Lionsgate and Icon.

For those who are unaware, the original OUTPOST followed a hastily assembled group of ex-soldiers in their ‘cash in hand’ mission to the wastelands of Eastern Europe. They soon learn that it is not enigmatic ‘Nazi Gold’ that the cold blooded businessman Hunt (Julian Wadham) is after, but a disquieting piece of machinery that the Third Reich had engineered.

As the propaganda reels of recovered film reveal, the machine’s electro-magnetic energy bending capabilities can be used to build an indestructible army in order to realise Hitler’s dream of world domination. What Hunt and the crew did NOT bargain for was the fact that the subjects of these experiments’ are still in a state of limbo. When dabbling with this technology, the crew might just unleash a perpetual menace into the world with the imperishable supernatural militia…

The sequel BLACK SUN, (possibly due to the majority of the characters’ from the first movie suffering violent ends!) doesn’t simply take the baton of the first movie and run with it. It continues the established narrative with a fresh perspective and new slant.

The story begins with Lena (Catherine Steadman), an American journalist on a mission to avenge her father’s death. Her aim is to complete his work in the hazardous business of bringing Nazi war criminals to justice. Her ultimate goal is to finally track down the elusive Klausener, the Holy Grail of Nazi fiends it would seem.

Her hunt soon takes her to Eastern Europe where a bizarre conflict between inexplicable adversaries and NATO is playing out. It is here she rallies with a Wallace (Richard Coyle) a physicist turned adventurer, who appears to have some very intriguing intelligence on the enemy. Although at loggerheads with each other, the pair team up and ill-advisedly enter the fray. Only after being bailed out by a small British black ops force, does the full extent of the malevolent army reveal itself.

As suggested earlier, I would highly recommend viewing the first OUTPOST before the current sequel. I would even go as far to suggest they make a great double bill if you have a 4 hour time slot due to the complimenting diversity of styles. Where the taut atmosphere of the first picture employed a slow release style that created tension and drip fed the plot to the viewer, the subsequent one assumes the viewer is aware of the mechanics of the story and consequently is a more action packed, and dare I say it, ambitious affair.

The bold move by Barker not to attempt to replicate the first movie brings up another interesting point regarding the pictures respective certification. The original was deemed by the BBFC to be worthy of an "18" while Black Sun, although a seemingly more loaded with onscreen violence, has been granted a 15. That not to say Black Sun feels weak in anyway. It contains some terrifically vicious scenes, particularly when a repugnant new female zombie character, frenziedly stabs away at a soldiers face. Simply put, the differing certifications could merely reiterate the alternate atmospheres of each picture.

What both movies do retain though is the Occult element within in their narratives. It’s this esoteric facet of the plot that is fascinating and which serves to set it apart from its CGI ridden peers.

That said, it stays clear of attempting to give the viewer a history lesson. While it deals with the Nazi’s use of runes, any specific references to Guido Von List and the infamous SS logo are shrewdly avoided. The movie is intelligently vague and confident enough to remain as pure fantasy for the sake of cinema.

The BLACK SUN disc is presented in a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio and the colouring appears a lot more vibrant then it’s purposely toned down predecessor. The soundtrack comes courtesy of Dolby Digital 5.1. I found the sound had a real kick to it which obviously enhanced the action sequences.

As for extras, apart from the mandatory scene selection and optional English subtitles, we get a very nice 36 minute MAKING OF chapter. It offered a great insight into the inspiration and depth of characters along with the production design and make up effects. It’s great fun augmented by some very honest and unpretentious discourse from the writers, producers and the director himself.

Admittedly with just a couple of movies completed, talk of a franchise may seem a little premature. But given the open ended conclusion of BLACK SUN coupled with a third OUTPOST movie, RISE OF THE SPETSNAZ (currently in production), being cited as a prequel, is it reasonable to assume that a 4th movie will indeed become a lead on from BLACK SUN’s quandary?

We shall see...

Review by Marc Lissenburg