Movie Review: "Bridge of the Doomed" (2022)
Bridge of the Doomed Movie Review
Written by Stuart D. Monroe
Released by Mahal Empire and Gravitas Ventures
Directed by Michael Su
Written by Adrian Milnes
2022, 81 minutes, Not Rated
Released on November 4th, 2022
Starring:
Kate Watson as Sgt. Hernandez
Robert LaSardo as General Vasquez
Michael Paré as Colonel Charon
Rich R. Rendon as Sharrock
Sarah French as Susan
William “Bill” Connor as Big Jim Gill
Dee Cutrone as Mrs. Gill
Review:
I’ve developed a fondness for Mahal Empire fare (Art of the Dead, Attack of the Unknown, Death Count). The independent horror spirit is alive and well in their films, and they are always a good deal of fun that doesn’t take itself too seriously. That indie vibe is doubly necessary in a zombie action film; you need plenty of the wet stuff paired with in-your-face action. The bar, after all, has been set pretty high with the zombie craze of recent years brought about in large part by The Walking Dead. It’s a saturated market.
In Bridge of the Doomed, a rag tag group of soldiers are charged with holding a small but apparently critical bridge that honestly looks to be in the middle of nowhere. The zombie apocalypse is raging across the U.S.A., and the situation is bleak…but holding this bridge will save a ton of lives. Leading the unit is three-star General Vasquez (Robert LaSardo; Death Race). His right hand is Colonel Charon (Michael Paré; Once Upon A Time in Deadwood). The unit on the ground is led by the formidable Sgt. Hernandez (Kate Watson; Fatal Memory) and includes a noob, a tired old veteran, and supreme asshole Private Sharrock (Rich R. Rendon; Bloodthirst). The zombie horde isn’t their only problem, though- something under the bridge is picking them off one by one. Surrounded on all sides by death, they’d better not run out of ammo!
Bridge of the Doomed hits the ground running and doesn’t slow down for the entire blistering 81-minute runtime. It rolls from one blood-soaked event to the next at a breakneck pace and doesn’t waste a ton of time on character development outside of General Vasquez and Sergeant Hernandez. Fear not, though- what Bridge of the Doomed lacks in heavy-handed drama it more than makes up for with a cubic fuckton of dead zombies and an inspired number of disembowelments of screaming victims.
Sure, the CGI is a little cringey at times (I’m looking at you, raging river), but it’s entirely necessary in a low-budget film with literally hundreds of zombie kills. It simply can’t be all practical SFX. When it’s time for getting hands on and chewy with the gore, the zombies of Bridge of the Doomed do it with some gusto. The variety of zombies is another high spot, both in terms of movement style and nastiness of visage.
Robert LaSardo cuts a mean figure as generals go (and who doesn’t love a little LaSardo action), but it’s Kate Watson’s portrayal of the hyper-dedicated Sgt. Hernandez that drives the narrative. She’s good, too- believable and bad ass in the same package. The rest of the soldiers frankly pale in comparison, though Private Sharrock is an out and out riot at times. He’s a brutal stereotype, but the funny thing about stereotypes is that there’s plenty of truth there, too. You probably know a Sharrock. I damn sure do.
Then there’s the matter of the creature under the bridge. Is it a juiced-up zombie? A werewolf? A ravenous cannibal? The truth is even better: the creature is finally revealed to be a hybrid Gill Man/oversized Ghoulie that harkens back to the days of monsters in rubber suits in the best way possible. I’ll admit the build up didn’t have me entirely sucked in, but the reveal is a genuine thing of low budget beauty. I found myself thinking of the monster created by The Savinis for their film in Locke & Key, and you can’t complain about that.
First and foremost, I’ll always be a massive junkie for zombie films. Even with the overabundance of undead fare that’s out there, Bridge of the Doomed has a place between Z Nation and Redneck Zombies. Now to be fair, Bridge of the Doomed is nowhere near as low budget as Pericles Lewnes’ 1987 classic; that’s merely my personal ranking on my own zombie entertainment list (and I love me some Redneck Zombies…ask my wife). The same energy exists in Bridge of the Doomed. It’s a film that is by no means perfect, but when viewed through the low-budget lens you’ll see a film that’s got surprising heart, reliable humor and action in fairly balanced measure, and a commitment to doing things the drive-in way (as someone who’s much better at this critic thing than I am likes to say).
Grade:
3.5 out of 5.0 stars
