We’ve written extensively about the hit independent horror anthology ‘III Slices of Life’ before here at the ZRC; we reviewed it under a previous title, ‘Slices of Life’, attended the World Premiere in Chicago at the Portage Theatre, and have conducted considerable outreach to director Anthony Sumner and one of the stars of the film, Deneen Melody. On the whole I think it’s been a very positive and productive dialogue, and Mr. Sumner’s next film, ‘By Her Hand She Draws You Down’, was indeed far more Zombie Friendly, though our interaction came too late to influence that.

It seems that much of the unfortunate treatment of Zombie-kind in ‘III Slices of Life’ was accidental, or the result of misunderstandings about the needs, hopes and fears of the Differently Animated Community. In a way, this makes the film all the more important for the Movement, because unintentional prejudice is often the most prevalent and the hardest sort of prejudice to combat. In practice, people under the influence of these negative stereotypes are your target audience to attempt to sway, and yet, being unaware of the impact of their own beliefs and actions, those same individuals can be very difficult to reach.

So The Zombie Rights Campaign is taking the unusual step of recommending that our readers rent the movie from their local cable or television providers while it is available On Demand, and see the film for themselves. Perhaps you can share it with some friends and family who are not as enlightened about Zombie Rights, and use it as a teachable moment. After watching the film, you might ask some of the following ZRC approved discussion questions:

–Are the Zombies in W.O.R.M. better or worse people post Zombification? Have they not, in fact, become more honest about their feelings and motivations? Don’t we value such honesty as a society?

–If it’s acceptable to kill white color office drones who happen to be jerks, would it be acceptable to end long-running comedy series The Office with a bloody massacre? Why or why not? Likewise, should Scott Adams end Dilbert by having the long-suffering engineer execute first the pointy-haired boss and then everyone else who symbolizes corporate stupidity? Why, or why not?

–Isn’t the government response suspiciously rapid for an unforseen outbreak of a new ‘illness’? Does this movie raise concerns about the involvement of the Military-Industrial Complex in producing nanotechnological weapons? If the workers in W.O.R.M. were Zombified as a result of actions taken by their government or its contractors, doesn’t that make their response a coverup, even a conspiracy to deny the civil rights of the now-Zombified staff?

Think about these questions and others as you watch the movie, and, where possible, use it as a chance to open a meaningful dialogue. Plus, the other segments aren’t unfriendly to the Differently Animated, and there are even some adorable ghost/demon children who get a very sympathetic portrayal.

Content advisory: III Slices of Life contains scenes of violence against the Differently Animated, considerable gore, some rather gross special effects and situations, and perhaps most disturbingly, you see rather a *lot* of longtime ZRC Ally Marv Blauvelt.

Just so you’re aware. Now go rent it.

Tags: Movies, Social Justice, ZRC Reviews

This entry was posted by John Sears on Monday, March 21st, 2011 at 4:13 pm and is filed under Zombie Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.