Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead: Return of the Nazi Zombie

Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead is gloriously violent and all kinds of fun. Director Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow, Hansel and Gretel) is a maestro of mayhem who turns the violence and humor up to 11. He has found a way to make head smooshes, decapitation and blood eruptions palatable via his offbeat humor. The antics never seem mean-spirited because Wirkola infuses his films with a glee filled imagination that incorporates blood-letting very well.

Dead Snow 2 focuses on recently armless Martin (Vegar Hoel) fleeing from a Nazi zombie horde led by the nasty Colonel Herzog. The Nazi zombies killed his friends (you gotta watch Dead Snow) and after a day of hell he narrowly escapes the undead jerks. While in the process of driving away he rips off the arm of Colonel Herzog and crashes his car in a snowdrift. He is rescued and by pure B-movie happenstance his arm is replaced by the Colonels. This leads to innocents being murdered, terrible attempts at CPR and a police manhunt.

Eventually, Martin is joined by three Americans who call themselves the Zombie Squad. The three twenty-somethings heard reports about a zombie presence and flew to Norway to assist in Martin’s battle. The trio led by Daniel (Martin Starr) quickly prove to be in over their heads as they marvel at the craziness before them. They’ve only watched Zombie films so they are surprised that these Nazi zombies do not resemble the Dawn of the Dead creatures. Nevertheless, they provide a plucky presence and give us a very funny Evil Dead nod.

Dead Snow 2 plays like a combination of early Sam Raimi and Peter Jackson gore flicks. The film is splatteriffic and features moments that should not be entertaining. For instance, while the Nazi zombies are wrecking havoc they see a women in a wheelchair trying to escape. The poor women falls backward in the chair and her head is promptly crunched into oblivion. The humor is so far out there you don’t take offense.

Dead Snow 2 is so full of life and ludicrous characters that you can’t help but enjoy the ride. We are blessed with likable characters, cheeky one-liners and a zombie sidekick who routinely gets killed and brought back to life (Martin’s hand revives dead zombies). Just when you think the gore can’t get any crazier we get a massive Russian zombie vs. Nazi zombie battle. It is excessive (miles of intestines are pulled), inventive and ends on a tank fist fight.

Dead Snow 2 is most certainly not for everybody. It follows the sequel rules of bigger is better and never attempts to stay on the rails.  It is a genre film that is told well and with its tongue in cheek. The movie worked for me because Tommy Wirkola speaks my cinematic language. He has a genuine love of horror and his films walk a tight rope of violence and humor. Dead Snow 2 is a celebration of randomness that plays like a roller coaster. The film throws you all over the place but the tracks and foundation are safe.

Watch Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead. Appreciate the mayhem. Hope that you never have to battle Nazi zombies.