Film Review: MALNAZIDOS (VALLEY OF THE DEAD) (2020)

 MALNAZIDOS (VALLEY OF THE DEAD) (2020) Spain 1hr 41mins 

Directors: Alberto de Toro and Javier Ruiz Caldera

"You're telling me that puff pastries got you in this war?!" - Lazano

"The dead are walking. Their blood is dry." - Brodsky

Based on the novel Noche De Difuntos Del 38 by Manuel Martin Ferreras, MALNAZIDOS which translates as "bastards" in English is also known as VALLEY OF THE DEAD and is set during the Spanish Civil War 1938. Republican and Nationalists are forced to work together as a faction of Spanish and German soldiers create a biological weapon that turns people into zombies. Ex-Lawyer turned  Captain, Jan Lozano (Miki Esparbe) and Private Decruz (Manel Llundi) are entrusted on a special mission but fall foul to a group of rebels who hold them hostage just as the dead arise. Between Lozano, the rebel leader Sargento (Luis Callejo) and his group they begrudgingly work together to find the source of the infection and destroy it. 

VALLEY OF THE DEAD does kind of sail on the coat tails of OVERLORD (2018) only less gory and maybe has a little bit of an EXIT HUMANITY (2011) edge to it with the civil war and low budget elements but it is deep seated in the tried and tested zombie aesthetic. It doesn’t go for the crazy Nazi monster/zombie experimentation either but makes sure you know that Nazis are most definitely involved. Its subtle comedic undertones make it huge fun though and it is really well acted by the fairly large cast. The characters all seem to have big personalities and an air of confidence about them. This, I guess, is enhanced by the English overdubbing which, for once, is very well done and entertaining. It has some great action sequences with plenty of sarcasm, profanity and some big bloody scenes. I did enjoy watching this but it certainly adds nothing new to the genre. As far as bog standard zombie b-movies go VALLEY OF THE DEAD is up there with the other average Z flicks of recent times which, in my opinion, is nothing to be ashamed of. 

The zombies are pretty awesome and are in abundance which is always a big bonus for me. They use great practical make up FX and prosthetics to make them bloody, wild and sticky. With crazy red lined eyes, weeping pustules, a shambling gait and gnashing teeth. Nothing to complain about here but I don't recall a lot of memorable kills both towards the zombies and by the zombies themselves. I'm sure there are some but nothing spectacular springs to mind.

I like the idea of the civil war setting as the set pieces, costumes and weapons are all old school, plus the dialogue is quirky, quaint and cheekily polite (on the odd occasion). There is a lot going on and to take in during it's run time of just over an hour and a half which seems to fly by. The body count is high too with the team dropping rapidly in number though some final moments are a little awkward. They cover various terrains from valleys and ravines to the dark, gloomy tunnels of a secluded church, infiltrating the enemy camp and a run away train ride. Annoyingly the ending is a bit of a let down which is disappointing but up until then it holds itself together really quite well.

A victim of the Covid pandemic it's release was first put back to January 2021 then again to September 2021 and finally coming to light in March 2022. VALLEY OF THE DEAD is a competent, well produced, lively and fun zombie movie. If you're looking for something to change the genre then you wont find it here but for the zombie nuts that have to watch every undead movie out there you will have fun with this. As I said earlier I did enjoy this and I am going to give VALLEY OF THE DEAD a score of 3 brains out of 5.

MALNAZIDOS (VALLEY OF THE DEAD) (2020) is currently showing on Netflix.