Way too many genre fans do not know that modern zombies evolved from Haitian spirituality. They also do not want to listen when people tell them that films have given them the negative portrayal they think is the gospel. This is why Maya Annik Bedward’s new documentary Black Zombie is doing a lot of love and labor to help people play catch-up. The film educates people on the beliefs and practices that led to cinematic zombies. It also points out what was lost, or flat-out disrespected, as these undead creatures became more mainstream.
One of the things that stands out is how Black Zombie honors Vodou. Most movies paint it as something evil or treat it with Westernized disdain. Many of us can easily clock this as typical racism. However, it also makes it harder to find a caring and nuanced approach. This documentary is a refreshing change of pace because it allows believers to explain their experiences. It also lets them weigh in on some of the major zombie films and how far they strayed from the source. Obviously, White Zombie, Night of the Living Dead, and The Serpent and the Rainbow come up. The film respectfully points out their flaws while discussing how they shaped most of our understandings of a culture they failed to understand.
Zombies 101
The interviews with historians, genre folks, and Vodou practitioners are a huge part of why this film works. While it feels like Zombies 101 for a few of us, Black Zombie is going to educate a ton of people who have not Googled these things. The documentary breezes through a lot of useful information that leaves diehard zombie fans wanting more. However, not everything is about us. Professor Tananarive Due drops a couple of bars about zombies representing otherness and the invasion of otherness. If that doesn’t make a few of us open our laptops and start a couple of essays, then we need to call it a year already. As usual, she summed up the rants most of us have in our group chats with brevity and ease.
Again, Black Zombie is not the deep dive that I wanted. However, it was a really cool pop quiz for Blerds like me. More importantly, it’s going to hopefully be a jumping-off point for people who have not done the research yet. In that way, it is effective on top of filling a huge gap in the genre. We need documentaries breaking down where things come from, how even filmmakers with the best intentions leaned into stereotypes, and how we got here. Otherwise, we’re never going to be able to change it and make space for filmmakers who want to do better.
