Writer: Damian Morter
Director: Damian Morter
Three tales of torment
The Eschatrilogy: Book of the Dead is a low budget zombie portmanteau. The film begins post-outbreak, with a lone survivor living in a camp. There are few if any zombies around now, instead he spends his days collecting and burning the bodies of the dead.
Then a stranger arrives, bringing with him a book. This book contains an assortment stories of the outbreak, including its very beginning when a supernatural entity decided to remind humanity that it should be scared of the dark. That story plus two more form the core of the film within the (rather daft) framing story.
If you want hordes of zombies then this film has them en masse: check out the IMDB credits page! However it’s at its best on the small scale. Morter concentrates not on the end of the world but on the individual personal tragedies involved. The result is dark and poignant, don’t expect a lot in the way of heroes and happy endings.
Special mention also needs to be given to the music which is superbly atmospheric and appropriate to the mood of the film without becoming overbearing.
Unfortunately for all its good points this is a low budget production with all the limitations that brings. In particular the acting is patchy – excellent in places but painful in others.
Which is a shame, because it will mean a lot of people will write off what is actually a superior small-scale zombie movie. If you can see past the micro budget and sometimes flawed acting then The Eschatrilogy is a well written and directed piece of film making of the British miserabilist school. I found it powerful and gripping.