Shock Waves (1977) Peter Cushing Nazi zombie horror movie review

[@dannypartridge1928]

Peter Cushing, made everything he played better.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Damn straight!

[@ProfessorOddfellow]

Such a thought-provoking review! That's a really interesting category of film you talk about here, hypnotic/dreamy pacing and echoing visuals that come very close to putting the viewer to sleep ... not out of boredom but because they actually make contact with the viewer's subconscious and penetrate the viewer's avenue (I'm making up vocabulary here) into the dreamworld. (I'm picturing a Donnie Darko-like watery tributary that one possesses, flowing into the Dreamtime, and a movie like Shock Waves offers another rivulet that connects with the viewer's stream, making the connection to the Dreamtime wider and with stronger flow.) I've always considered the medium of film to be a sort of dream in the first place, but what you're talking about here perhaps verges more on a shamanic type of dream, where its pacing and repetition seem more deliberately mesmerizing. Re: the many spoilers at play in this film, that ties with the idea of dreaming, too, eh? I mean, dreams follow a period of waking (history itself as a spoiler, as you mentioned) -- dreams re-edit existing material, right? So the many spoilers and the film being told in flashback play into the way dreaming works by reprocessing events from the waking world. Oh yeah, the zombies submerging their victims -- a beautiful metaphor for "going under" into the Dreamtime. :-)

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Wow!

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

Interesting analysis. They might have done something better for this film with those ideas woven in more explicitly, like in Nightmare on Elm Street (a true classic in my book).

[@IanFindly-iv1nl]

I dig THIS classic! One of the few good and original zombie flicks NOT made by George Romero. The images of the soldiers walking underwater without any artificial breathing apparatus are really creepy, surreal, and memorable. I've always wondered if THAT perhaps inspired the scene with the amphibious ghoul in Fulci's Zombie.

[@christhomas5761]

I watched this movie some years ago and found it to be quite atmospheric and intriguing. I was actually relieved that it was not the usual zombie type film and without all the blood and gore.... The mood of the movie is similar to another 70`s horror film `Messiah of evil` which is another atmospheric zombie movie as well.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Cheers Chris, sounds like I need to check out Messiah of Evil.

[@conversationflex3238]

The BluRay has some incredible and interesting low-budget, filmmaking insights on the commentary by the director. I HIGHLY recommend listening to it. Great stories about Carradine and Cushing too!

[@geoffjoffy]

I thought I'd seen every Peter Cushing film but someone mentioned this and I realised I hadn't seen Shock Waves. Until last night. I wasn't expecting much but was pleasantly surprised. Good film. Obvious low budget but never matter. I enjoyed it.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Good to hear you enjoyed it. I did as well. I think you're right, it doesn't seem to promise much, but they got a pretty good atmosphere out of what they had.

[@geoffjoffy]

@@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse Thanks for the reply.

[@kevinmyles6369]

Loving this review! Instant sub! 👍 Awesome.. Gotta love Cushing and indeed bunch of great shots. Some great moments in this flick! 😍😍

[@pickleeggs3340]

Guilty pleasure film,love the soundtrack

[@ghostlightx9005]

As a wee boy I always thought the main zombie on the front of the cover was Peter Cushing.

[@thefifthdoctor6780]

Picked this gem up new special edition with slip cover 😎👌

[@berliner0]

Another great review🎉

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Thank you!

[@IanFindly-iv1nl]

Awesome review of THIS classic! I'll certainly take it over that hack Dark Matters review of it! One of the few good and original zombie flicks NOT made by George Romero. The images of the soldiers walking underwater without any artificial breathing apparatus are really creepy, surreal, and memorable. I've always wondered if THAT perhaps inspired the scene with the amphibious ghoul in Fulci's Zombie.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Thanks for watching and for taking the time to share your thoughts :) I do love the strange, hypnotic vibe of this film; the striking images; Peter Cushing as a little jewel in the crown.

[@joshua2814]

Surprised you hadn't seen this before, but glad you have now. If you dig that Florida swamp setting, you should definitely check out the William Grefe box set from Arrow that your friend Jambo Shango has been reviewing.

[@dirtybeard70_Alivein85]

Great eerie atmospheric low budget KlassiK

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Yes, the atmosphere really sets it apart.

[@peterlenham6904]

Brilliant movie. You made a mistake in your review, you said David Carradine when it's John.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Cheers Peter.

[@FrightfullyForgotten]

Oh this is a new viewing for you!!? Thought for sure you'd seen this one. We've been toying with doing this one for quite sometime, remember seeing it back in the 90's on the "Space Channel" here in Canada and liking it. But when we went to revisit it we found there wasn't enough good to say about it to feature as a "recommendation". But it might make it's way into our new "Trash or Treasure" segment. The Story is very cool, and always loved the way the Zombies look in this movie, and all the underwater shots. You pretty much nailed this one right on the head my friend.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Thanks man :) I'm not sure if the dvd is out of print or not, but every time I looked at getting it it's been ridiculously expensive. Found it on youtube and jumped at the chance to finally watch it.

[@FrightfullyForgotten]

@@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse Yes you're right, the dvd is expensive, too much for a movie that's just "ok"

[@superfit60]

Interesting premise, but Pete's not in it enough!

[@ardentemagination5462]

Interesting POV. I'm gonna offer up a different POV just for fun. I saw this film in 1978 when I was 8 years old. I was not allowed to see too many serious adult horror films at the time. So, this movie was a big deal. I saw this before ever seeing Night of the Living Dead. I was allowed to see it because I was a huge Peter Cushing fan (thanks to hammer) This movie spooked the shit out of me because my grandfather had told me all these stories about Nazi experiments prior to seeing it. I was certain Nazi zombies were real and could be put into service at any moment. For years I thought this film was a documentary and still feel it has a docu vibe. Lol

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Damn, that's a great story. Thanks for sharing your memories.

[@bootsandflicks7507]

Another super cool analysis of a 70s horror flick Grumpy!. IMHO it's the best gateway movie for a 10-12 year schoolboy into the wonderful cinema of 70s horror: Giallo, Zombie, Grindhouse, Hammer etc.. And those zombies marching single file out of the sea to a 70s synth soundtrack makes the movie a standout also a must watch. NOT to mention Peter Cushing.

[@boshrek4759]

I’ll check this out!!

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

I hope you enjoy it :)

[@boebender]

Grew up watching this film thanks!

[@michaelknepper9332]

Good review. Couple of years ago I went on a zombie nazi movie binge.I watched Dead Snow, Outpost , Outpost 2, and Nazi Zombies at the Center of the Earth. The first 3 are really good. The last one was only good if you are looking for something stupid fun. Spoiler Alert for this one. It had a cyborg Hitler.

[@monkee5th]

I was 9 years old when I saw this as a double feature at the Drive In in 1977 the other movie was the Deep

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Nice.

[@glyndwr15]

Shock Waves is really one of the better made zombie films of this period. It doesn't have the fandom it deserves, I guess because it's not a particularly bloody film. With that said, it still has fantastic zombie effects courtesy of Alan Ormsby. Special effects of that kind were still in their infancy and generally pretty bad in 1977, so if you judge it according to that standard, Ormsby knocked it out of the park. Also the electronic droning Richard Einhorn score is brilliant and gets stuck in your head after the film is over, quite a lot like many of the images it accompanies. Let's get real about it, a lot of great Italian zombie films of this period aren't great because of their screenwriting, which very often bordered on incoherent. Shock Waves actually has a decent script that is not only coherent but well paced, in my opinion, which actually puts it a cut above. It's got a great idea behind it and those shots of the zombies submerging and emerging from the water a la Carnival of Souls are really effective, especially when combined with the score. It even has flourishes of inspired cinematography, well thought out and effective visual compositions and ideas, like the images of the zombie in the reflection of the water, or the way they filmed the Protorus wreck off in the distance. This is a great film that deserves justice, imo. Another great but semi-forgotten and underrated film that Ormsby was involved with (as the screenwriter this time) is The Night Andy Came Home. That one deserves reappraisal too, I think.

[@IanFindly-iv1nl]

I dig THIS classic! One of the few good and original zombie flicks NOT made by George Romero. The images of the soldiers walking underwater without any artificial breathing apparatus are really creepy, surreal, and memorable. I've always wondered if THAT perhaps inspired the scene with the amphibious ghoul in Fulci's Zombie.

[@2011Stylus]

You're always dead on. If any one character would have made a single smart choice at any time, it would have helped a lot. It's a film that could have been something special. As it is, it's fun to visit now and again but, ultimately, a wasted opportunity in a lot of ways.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Thank you :)

[@davidlow862]

Who was the British answer to Vincent Price: Peter Cushing or Christopher Lee?

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

I'd have to go with Peter Cushing.

[@davidlow862]

@@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse You have chosen...wisely.

[@Blackhawk19892]

I'm heartbroken Peter Cushing passed away before he got the chance to narrate any of the zombie army games purely because of this film. 'Project Ragnarok was designed to bring the dead back to earth to fight Hitler's war. The Fuhrer and his generals would remain safe in the lost civilization beneath the earth of course.' Cries out for his perfect tone.

[@vinniegiordano3243]

Joe Bob said the same thing about low budget films. It's not the technical aspects of the film that make it bad, it's the script!

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

Jennifer's Body used the same last girl standing narrative flashback and it tanked at the box-office also at 200x the budget.

[@HeavyMetalTones]

this is a great movie hey i see The Slaughtered Lamb has been taken down

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Yeah, that's a real shame.

[@HeavyMetalTones]

bound to happen he kept putting so many movies up that a copyright infringement was bound to happen. It’s one of the reasons i have not yet set up a KZbin music review page. All that work just for someone with a shit load of cash to say No you can’t talk about or play any part of my music. Most of the bands i would review would be cool because they are mostly underground would love the interaction. I also don’t like to be negative when i review i like to give the band pointers. I am not out there making the music so what gives me the right to tell them they are doing it wrong. Rant over ha ha ha. The website i review for is almost finished it’s refurbishment www.metal-roos.com.au take look when it’s back up. Might not be your cup of tea ha. Keep up the good work your lust for life is refreshing

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

Mate, yes. I think music copyright is even thornier on here than film and TV. Give me a nudge when the website is up and running again.

[@Grandmastergav86]

I found this film to be a bit of a damp squib tbh

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

That's fair enough. It needed a better script that actually built to something.

[@jessemoore7081]

It had some effective eerie moments along with some atmosphere, and the premise had alot of horror potential. Shock Waves was just sorely lacking in "shock". It would gear up in fits and starts only to meander and slow the pacing down even more. It got really tedious. It doesn't help that other than the class acts of Cushing and Carradine, the cast of characters were largely forgettable without any sort of care or screen presence. Even the additions of those two legends were ultimately wasted. There aren't any money shots to speak of, nothing to really remember... and it's blandly tame even by 70's PG standards. If there's ever a movie worth remaking, it's this one.

[@GrumpyAndrewsHorrorHouse]

I can't really fault any of your criticisms, I guess I was in a mood to forgive a lot of them when I watched it.

[@jessemoore7081]

@Grumpy Andrew's Horror House Aye I hear ya. I wasn't hating the movie when I was watching it, it was building up to something promising. I just felt it didn't keep its promise. These "unstoppable" killing machines were just lurking around drowning people or playing wack-a-mole in a pond. They could be stopped by having their glasses taken off. The movie wanted to be this terrifying movie, but it couldn't handle picking up the weight of terror. Also doing horror in broad daylight is a tough sell to succeed in. I didn't hate it, I was just really disappointed. I, too, am a forgiving viewer typically.

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

I've been thinking this would be a good time to remake Shock Waves with the media hyping the white supremacy/Nazi boogeyman lately. The only thing I can't imagine is getting that gritty film stock exposure and look from modern equipment. It might actually be worth shooting on film again. Getting someone with old analog synths would be good for the soundtrack. I loved the feel of the original soundtrack, but the score could have been improved upon. The 'themes' such as they were were very repetitive and not very melodic.

[@deej8983]

Damn man this movie has a great premise and it’s got some great actors but it doesn’t do it for me. I think the setting was fantastic and Cushing was superb but it kinda just ends and there’s nothing else that makes this movie pop out to me. Sadly I found it rather average but I’d like to try it again eventually