Zombeavers: A Review of Horror That Dares to Be Absurd
In our “Scary Movie” section, we feature reviews of horror films that, for various reasons, didn’t make it to wide theatrical release.
Three friends head to a secluded cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway. They’re looking to disconnect from the world and forget everything, including their boyfriends. However, their desire backfires when deadly, mutated zombie beavers, the result of a ruptured barrel of radioactive waste, descend upon the area.
Some movies are predictable from the trailer – or even just the poster. In the case of “Zombeavers,” the title alone is enough. A film with that name immediately suggests a lighthearted, satirical tone. Crucially, the black and absurd humor doesn’t prevent the film from being a genuinely gory horror flick, complete with bloody wounds, nauseating (in a good way) makeup, and plenty of situations that make you laugh and cringe simultaneously at the onscreen mayhem.
Director Jordan Rubin has a long history as a writer for various comedy programs and spent several years writing the MTV Movie Awards. This experience is evident in “Zombeavers.” Rubin readily sacrifices realism and plausibility for the sake of an effective shot or a potentially killer joke. For example, in the midst of the “zombeaver” invasion, two characters attempt to have sex, while in another scene, they “whack” the breaking-through critters under the floorboards in the style of a classic arcade game. The beavers themselves look deliberately “plushy,” which only adds to the overall atmosphere of outrageous hooliganism – especially when the characters start turning into “zombeavers” (which, incidentally, strongly resemble the “rats” from Andrei Konchalovsky’s “The Nutcracker”).
Is it Deliberate or Accidental Trash?
With films like this, there’s often the suspicion that the creators are “faking it” unintentionally, rather than deliberately. After all, nothing is easier than slapping together a cheap, amateurish production and dismissing any criticism with a laconic “what did you expect from trash?”. It’s impossible to say for sure in such situations, but in “Zombeavers,” Rubin seems to have a clear understanding of what he wants to achieve. It’s a slightly awkward but fairly sincere attempt to bend the rules of cheap “monster movies” to take them to a new level.
Final Thoughts
And it almost succeeds. The infrequent but welcome quotes and homages are pleasing, the short running time (less than 80 minutes with credits!) prevents sagging, there’s nudity, and the characters die in a completely unexpected order. Plus, Courtney Palm is wonderfully good as the most promiscuous of the three friends – we don’t know what she’s doing here, but her mere presence adds an extra point to the film.