I seriously don’t know what to make of this movie other than it is all about zombie ass kicking. I was first clued into this movie when a friend managed to get a bootleg copy of this film from the UK because it wasn’t available here in America. I didn’t know what to expect and the story in the movie is something akin to a ridiculous level of disbelief and understanding. Personally I didn’t care for the lack of story, but what interested me was the action and premise. This is without a doubt, a coke binge of action, zombies, mobsters, gun play and sword fighting.
Set in the present where a group of ruthless gangsters, an unknown woman and an escaped convict have met, unwittingly, in The Forest of Resurrection, the 444th portal to the other side. Their troubles start when those once killed and buried in the forest come back from the dead, with the assistance of the evil Sprit that has also come back, come back from ages past, to claim his prize. The final standoff between Light and Dark has never been so cunning, so brutal and so deadly. This is where old Japanese Samurai mysticism meets the new world of the gangster and the gun. Gruesome, bloody and positively bold. (source)
This is just all about gun battles and fighting, a whole lot of a fighting the undead. While the a film whose premise rests on some sort of supernatural horror element, there isn’t really a whole lot of that going on in the film, rather the showcase of the film is how utterly ridiculous the level of violence can be one upped in Versus. A cult hit by every right, Versus really appeals to the fans of the ludicrous action and v-cinema quality style films.
This isn’t a pretty movie to look at in terms of cinematography and acting, but what it lacks in the basics of filmmaking is impressive action sequences that highlight the dedication and talent that is in the movie. It is the pinnacle of underground filmmkaing where to make their mark, they got to just go for it. Versus manages to become this manic, over the top film that realizes what it is and embraces the concept. This has all the hallmarks of a cult classic, from the electronic soundtrack, action, gun play and zombies, couple that with being from a foreign country and hard to find copies at the time, Versus was destined to rule the roost of the cult cinema kingdom.
I was excited to find a copy of Versus available for release here in the states. The new release tightened up some editing areas and added in even more action. Personally, this movie could have just gotten rid of the story line and given me more zombie shooting along with face punches that are handed out like candy. If you have never seen Versus, check it out for an absolutely absurd time.
