''City of the Living Dead'' ( it, Paura nella città dei morti viventi, lit=Fear in the city of the living dead, also released as ''The Gates of Hell'') is a 1980 Italian

supernatural horror film Supernatural horror film is a film genre that combines aspects of horror film and supernatural film. Supernatural occurrences in such films often include ghosts and demons, and many supernatural horror films have elements of religion. Common theme ...

co-written and directed by

Lucio Fulci Lucio Fulci (; 17 June 1927 – 13 March 1996) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. Although he worked in a wide array of genres through a career spanning nearly five decades, including comedies and Spaghetti Westerns, he ga ...

. It stars

Christopher George Christopher John George ( Greek: Χριστόφορος Γεωργίου; February 25, 1931 – November 28, 1983) was an American television and film actor who starred in the 1960s television series '' The Rat Patrol''. He was nominated for a G ...

Catriona MacColl Catriona MacColl (born 3 October 1954) is an English actress who has worked extensively in both film and television across Europe. She is best known for her work in Italian horror films, as she has appeared in Lucio Fulci's '' City of the Living ...

Carlo de Mejo Carlo De Mejo (17 January 1945 – 18 December 2015) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Rome, De Mejo was the eldest son of jazz composer Oscar De Mejo and actress Alida Valli. After a few minor roles, he had his breakout with the ...

Antonella Interlenghi Antonella Interlenghi (born 6 August 1960) is an Italian stage, film and television actress. She is also known as Antonellina Interlenghi. Life and career Born in Rome, Interlenghi is the daughter of the actors Antonella Lualdi and Franco Inte ...

Giovanni Lombardo Radice Giovanni Lombardo Radice (born 23 September 1954, Rome, Italy) is an Italian film actor, better known to audiences as John Morghen. He first began his career in theater before he starred in Ruggero Deodato's '' The House on the Edge of the Par ...

, and

Janet Agren Janet may refer to: Names * Janet (given name) * Janet (French singer) (1939–2011) Surname * Charles Janet (1849–1932), French engineer, inventor and biologist, known for the Left Step periodic table * Jules Janet (1861–1945), French psych ...

. The film follows a priest whose hanging opens a gateway to hell that releases the undead, where a psychic and a reporter team up to close it before

All Saints' Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the church, whether they are k ...

. ''City of the Living Dead'' was developed after the financial success of Fulci's previous film, ''

Zombi 2 ''Zombi 2'' is a 1979 Italian zombie film directed by Lucio Fulci. It was adapted from an original screenplay by Dardano Sacchetti to serve as a sequel to George A. Romero's '' Dawn of the Dead'' (1978), which was released in Italy with the ...

'', leading him to work with screenwriter

Dardano Sacchetti Dardano Sacchetti (born 1944 ) is an Italian screenwriter who often worked with Italian directors Lamberto Bava and Lucio Fulci. Screenwriting Sacchetti was born in 1944,in Italy. His first screen credit was for Dario Argento's film ''The Cat o' Ni ...

to write a new horror film inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft. The film was greenlit during production of ''

Contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") refers to any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It is used for goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes o ...

'', which Fulci left to begin working on ''City of the Living Dead''. Principal photography was shot predominantly on location in the United States, with interiors shot in Rome. The film was theatrically released in Italy in August 1980, which grossed ₤985 million. It was followed by a release throughout Europe, including a screening at the

Paris International Festival of Fantastic and Science-Fiction Film The Paris International Festival of Fantastic and Science-Fiction Film (french: Festival international de Paris du film fantastique et de science-fiction) was a film festival hosted in France between 1972 and 1989. The event was affiliated with f ...

, where Fulci won the Audience Award, and in the United States in April 1983. Upon release, the film received criticism for its performances, plot, and graphic violence, but like many of Fulci's films, has developed a

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

Plot

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, during a séance held in the apartment of medium Theresa, Mary Woodhouse experiences a traumatic vision of a priest, Father Thomas, hanging himself in a cemetery of a village called Dunwich. Mary breaks the circle and collapses to the floor when the images overwhelm her. The group presumes Mary is dead and calls the police, who suspect foul play. Theresa warns the police chief of an imminent evil. Journalist Peter Bell begins to investigate Mary's mysterious death and visits her grave as she is about to be buried. However, she is still alive, and Peter saves her after hearing her cries. Peter and Mary visit Theresa, who warns them that according to the ancient book of Enoch, the events Mary witnessed in her visions presage the eruption of the living dead into our world. The death of Father Thomas has opened the gates of

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

through which the invasion will commence on

All Saints Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the church, whether they are kno ...

, just a few days away. In Dunwich, a young vagrant named Bob visits an abandoned house but flees after seeing a rotting carcass. Across town, Gerry, a psychiatrist, is in consultation with Sandra, a neurotic patient, when Emily Robbins, his 19-year-old girlfriend and personal assistant, arrives. She tells Gerry that she's on her way to meet with Bob, whom she has been trying to help. That evening, Emily finds Bob at a derelict garage exhibiting strange behavior. The supernatural apparition of Father Thomas then appears as Bob runs away, smothering to death a frightened Emily with a maggot-covered hand. The next morning, Emily's body is found. Emily's father tells the sheriff and Gerry of his suspicions about Bob due to Bob's previous history of crime. Meanwhile, Peter and Mary leave New York and embark upon their search for the town of Dunwich. That evening, Bob returns to the deserted house, where he sees a vision of Father Thomas. After Emily's funeral, her younger brother John-John sees a ghostly image of her outside his bedroom window. At Sandra's house, the corpse of an elderly woman, Mrs. Holden, appears without explanation on her kitchen floor. Sandra calls Gerry for help, but the body disappears as soon as Gerry arrives. The two search the house but are disturbed by many strange occurrences, such as a window breaking, with the glass then dripping human blood. Meanwhile, Bob has taken refuge in the garage of a local man, Mr. Ross. Ross's teenage daughter Ann finds him and offers him

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various t ...

, but Ross bursts in and attacks Bob, fearful he is trying to seduce his daughter. Ross kills Bob by impaling his head through a drilling lathe. The following morning, Peter and Mary arrive at the graveyard that Mary saw in her vision. They begin searching for Father Thomas' tomb and meet Gerry and Sandra. They go back to Gerry's office to discuss Father Thomas' death when suddenly the four are showered with maggots in an apparent supernatural attack. Gerry then receives a distressing phone call from John-John Robbins explaining his dead sister has returned and killed his parents. They rush over the Robbins' house and try to find the sheriff. While trying to get John-John to safety, Sandra is killed by Emily, who rips Sandra's scalp off. John-John runs through the town's streets and is saved by Gerry, who hands the boy over to the police. Mr. Ross is drinking at a bar when it is suddenly attacked by the re-animated dead people of the town, led by Bob. Ross and two other men are killed, as a state-of-emergency is declared over the radio. Mary, Peter, and Gerry arrive back at the graveyard as the clock strikes midnight and All Saints Day begins. They descend into Father Thomas' family tomb, discovering a cave of skeletal remains and cobwebbed putrescences. Sandra suddenly appears as a zombie and kills Peter before being killed by Gerry, who impales her with a metal spike. Mary and Gerry continue until they face Father Thomas, commanding an army of the undead. Before he can kill Mary, Gerry grabs a wooden cross and disembowels Father Thomas. The priest and the other revived corpses burst into flames and disappear. Mary and Gerry exit from Father Thomas' tomb into the graveyard in the morning to see John-John and the police. Mary is relieved to see John-John survived the ordeal but becomes frightened and screams as everything fades to black.

Cast

as Peter Bell *

as Mary Woodhouse *

Carlo De Mejo Carlo De Mejo (17 January 1945 – 18 December 2015) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Rome, De Mejo was the eldest son of jazz composer Oscar De Mejo and actress Alida Valli. After a few minor roles, he had his breakout with the ...

as Gerry *

as Sandra *

as Emily Robbins *

as Bob * as Rosie Kelvin *Fabrizio Jovine as Father William Thomas * as John-John Robbins *

Michele Soavi Michele Soavi, sometimes known as Michael Soavi (born 3 July 1957)Baldassarre, Angela (1999) "The Great Dictators: Interviews with Filmmakers of Italian Descent", Guernica Editions, is an Italian filmmaker, actor, and screenwriter best known fo ...

as Tommy Fisher *

Venantino Venantini Venantino Venantini (17 April 1930 – 9 October 2018) was an Italian film actor.Robert Sampson as Sheriff Russell * as Teresa *Enzo D'Ausilio as Deputy *

Luciano Rossi Luciano Rossi (28 November 1934 – 29 May 2005) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 67 films between 1966 and 1987. He was born and died in Rome, Italy. Partial filmography * ''Ten Italians for One German'' (1962) - German Soldier ...

as New York Police Officer ;Uncredited *

as Dr. Joe Thompson *Nat Bush as Sgt. Clay * Michael Gaunt as First gravedigger *

Perry Pirkanen Perry Pirkkanen is an American actor. He is best known for starring in the 1980 Italian cannibal film ''Cannibal Holocaust''. In the movie he is erroneously credited as 'Perry Pirkanen'. Pirkkanen, then a student at New York City's Actors Studio, ...

as Second gravedigger

Production

After ''

'' grossed over 1.5 billion lire in Italy, director

began working on a new horror script with screenwriter

. Elements of the story are influenced by the work of H.P. Lovecraft, such as naming the town the film is set in Dunwich, after Lovecraft's ''

The Dunwich Horror "The Dunwich Horror" is a horror novella by American writer H. P. Lovecraft. Written in 1928, it was first published in the April 1929 issue of '' Weird Tales'' (pp. 481–508). It takes place in Dunwich, a fictional town in Massachusett ...

''. Sacchetti noted that Fulci had just reread Lovecraft before working on the film's script, stating he wanted to re-create a Lovecraftian atmosphere. In Sacchetti's original writings, the story is not set in Dunwich, but Salem. This script also includes characters not used in the film, such as Mike, a homeless man who is devoured by cats and reappears later in the film as a zombie. Sacchetti recalled that, after completing the script, it was shelved for some time, due to their commitments to other projects. Fulci did not want to work with ''Zombi 2'' producer Fabrizio De Angelis again and convinced Renato Jaboni of Medusa Distribuzione and

Luciano Martino Luciano Martino (22 December 1933 – 14 August 2013) was an Italian film producer, director and screenwriter. Biography Born in Naples, the brother of the director and screenwriter Sergio Martino, he was active in the cinema industry since the ...

and Mino Loy of Dania and National Cinematografica to contribute. The project was

greenlit To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead". Film industry In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...

during the production of ''

'', which Fulci left with his assistant director, Roberto Giandalia, to finish principal photography. Early choices for the cast included ''Zombi 2'' star

Tisa Farrow Theresa Magdalena "Tisa" Farrow is a retired American actress and model. Early life Farrow was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Irish-born actress Maureen O'Sullivan and Australian-born film director John Farrow. She is the yo ...

as Mary Woodhouse, Fiamma Maglione as Sandra, Aldo Barberito as Father Thomas and Robert Kerman as Mr. Ross; they were replaced by

, Fabrizio Jovine and

Venantino Venantini Venantino Venantini (17 April 1930 – 9 October 2018) was an Italian film actor.Christopher George Christopher John George ( Greek: Χριστόφορος Γεωργίου; February 25, 1931 – November 28, 1983) was an American television and film actor who starred in the 1960s television series '' The Rat Patrol''. He was nominated for a G ...

were specifically hired to increase the film's commercial prospects; Fulci's on-set relationship with the latter was turbulent, leading him to nickname George "the dog with the cigar". MacColl had recently made her film debut in the title role of the

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is ...

adaptation ''

Lady Oscar , also known as ''Lady Oscar'' and ''La Rose de Versailles'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Riyoko Ikeda. It was originally serialized in the manga magazine '' Margaret'' from 1972 to 1973, while a revival of the s ...

'', and would be cast as the lead in Fulci's later films '' The Beyond'' and ''

The House by the Cemetery ''The House by the Cemetery'' ( it, Quella villa accanto al cimitero) is a 1981 Italian horror film directed by Lucio Fulci. The film stars Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni, Giovanni Frezza, Silvia Collatina and Dagmar Lassander. It ...

''. When she was approached for the film, she felt that the script was "badly written" and almost declined taking part. "It seemed to me like a series of special effects without a story", she said in an interview in 2011. She called her agent from her hotel room to seek his advice; he told her to take the role, because "nobody was going to see the film anyway"—a prediction that MacColl later noted would prove to be incorrect. Film historian and critic Roberto Curti stated that, according to the Public Cinematographic Register, filming was published as beginning on March 24, but it was more likely that filming had not begun until April 1980. The shooting schedule allowed for shooting on location in

and six weeks in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

, as well as two weeks in Rome at De Paolis Studios for the special effects scenes. The decision to shoot in Savannah was dictated by the film's low budget, particularly to avoid conflict with unions regarding the importation of most of the film's cast and crew. The special effects scenes included a scene where the cast is attacked by

maggot A maggot is the larva of a fly (order Diptera); it is applied in particular to the larvae of Brachycera flies, such as houseflies, cheese flies, and blowflies, rather than larvae of the Nematocera, such as mosquitoes and crane flies. En ...

s via two wind machines and 10 kg of maggots. To surprise Fulci, one crew member took some of the maggots and placed them in his pipe tobacco, which Fulci only learned about after a few puffs of what he was smoking, angering him immensely. Fulci would later theorize that this incident led to his future illness, as he underwent heart surgery in 1985, suffered a ventricular aneurysm, contracted

viral hepatitis Viral hepatitis is liver inflammation due to a viral infection. It may present in acute form as a recent infection with relatively rapid onset, or in chronic form. The most common causes of viral hepatitis are the five unrelated hepatotropic vi ...

and developed

Cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue rep ...

of the liver. Many of the film's gory and graphic scenes were not included in the original scripts or story, such as the scene where a character vomits their own intestines. This scene was performed by having Daniela Doria spit up baby

veal Veal is the meat of calves, in contrast to the beef from older cattle. Veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, however most veal comes from young male calves of dairy breeds which are not used for breeding. Generally, v ...

intestines and then having her head replaced with a replica for further vomiting. The scene where Peter smashes open Mary's coffin with a

pickaxe A pickaxe, pick-axe, or pick is a generally T-shaped hand tool used for prying. Its head is typically metal, attached perpendicularly to a longer handle, traditionally made of wood, occasionally metal, and increasingly fiberglass. A stand ...

was shot in New York, but the interior of the coffin was shot in Rome. MacColl recalled that she would blink every time the pickaxe hit the coffin: "It was just a nervous reaction. And Lucio was getting crosser and crosser. He pulled me out of the coffin and shouted: 'I'll show you how easy it is!' So he climbed into the coffin and did the same shot without blinking. 'If I can do it, you can do it', he said."

Release

''City of the Living Dead'' was distributed theatrically in Italy by Medusa Distribuzione on 11 August 1980. It grossed a total of 985,238,798

Italian lire The lira (; plural lire) was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. It was first introduced by the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1807 at par with the French franc, and was subsequently adopted by the different states that would eventually f ...

domestically, a figure described by Curti as "somewhat disappointing". The film was distributed theatrically throughout Europe, including West Germany on September 11, 1980 and France on December 10, 1980, as well as the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal. The German edit of the film distributed by Alemannia/Arabella was about 10 minutes shorter than the Italian version, removing some dialogue scenes but keeping the gory scenes intact. In Paris, the film was screened as ''Frayeurs'' at the ''Festival international du film et de science-fiction''. At the festival, the film won the "Grand Prix du Public" (The Audience Award). The film was released in the United Kingdom on May 7, 1982, where it was passed by the

BBFC The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of fi ...

after the drilling scene was cut. In the United States, the film was released on 8 April 1983 and was originally promoted as ''Twilight of the Dead'', which resulted in a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not disc ...

order from United Film Distribution Company, due to the title's similarity to their own film,

George A. Romero George Andrew Romero (; February 4, 1940 – July 16, 2017) was an American-Canadian filmmaker, writer, editor and actor. His ''Night of the Living Dead'' series of films about an imagined zombie apocalypse began with the 1968 film of the ...

's '' Dawn of the Dead''. This resulted in the distributor, Motion Picture Marketing, withdrawing the film and re-releasing it with a new title, ''The Gates of Hell''.

Home video

In West Germany, the film became part of a press campaign against the home video distribution of violent films. This was part of a June 1984 news report on channel ZDF titled ''Mama, Papa, Zombie - Horror für den Hausgebrauch'', about the availability of violent films to minors. Prior to this screening, horror films such as ''

Maniac Maniac (from Greek μανιακός, ''maniakos'') is a pejorative for an individual who experiences the mood known as mania. In common usage, it is also an insult for someone involved in reckless behavior. Maniac may also refer to: Film * '' ...

'' and '' The Beyond'' were released uncensored in Germany. However, following this report, ''City of the Living Dead'' was banned in West Germany, while VHS tapes of the film released in 1983 (under the title ''Ein Zombie hing am Glockenseil'') were confiscated after a 1986 hearing by the District Court of Munich. Continuous re-releases of the film in West Germany with content removed led to truncated releases of the film as late as 2001 in Germany. The film was released on DVD in the United States by Anchor Bay in 2000, and on DVD and

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

Blue Underground Blue Underground is an American company specializing in releasing authoritative editions of cult and exploitation movies on Blu-ray Disc and DVD. It was originally formed as a shell company to oversee 'making of' documentaries during founder ...

in 2010. In 2018,

Arrow Video An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers ca ...

released a limited edition 4K remaster of both the ''City'' and the ''Gates'' versions in the United Kingdom. In 2020, the ''Gates'' version was given a Blu-ray release in the United States as an online exclusive item.

Reception

Contemporary

A reviewer in the Italian newspaper ''

La Stampa ''La Stampa'' (meaning ''The Press'' in English) is an Italian daily newspaper published in Turin, Italy. It is distributed in Italy and other European nations. It is one of the oldest newspapers in Italy. History and profile The paper was fou ...

'' referred to the film as "not recommended for easily impressionable viewers" and added that the film was a sign that Fulci had "reached expressive maturity", with a story that grew progressively to make an "expressive nightmarish atmosphere", concluding that the film was a "

grand guignol ''Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol'' (: "The Theatre of the Great Puppet")—known as the Grand Guignol–was a theatre in the Pigalle district of Paris (7, cité Chaptal). From its opening in 1897 until its closing in 1962, it specialised in natura ...

spectacle". Giovanna Grassi of ''

Corriere della Sera The ''Corriere della Sera'' (; en, "Evening Courier") is an Italian daily newspaper published in Milan with an average daily circulation of 410,242 copies in December 2015. First published on 5 March 1876, ''Corriere della Sera'' is one of I ...

'' found the film too dependent on gore, lacking atmosphere, and "incoherent and stretched beyond measure". The review went on to praise actor

and Frizzi's score. A review by Pierre Gires of ''L'Écran fantastique'' found that the film left viewers in a series of "bloody and hallucinatory events that leave little room to breathe" and was "very well edited, with a lively pace". The review concluded that the film was a "definitive film after which it will be useless to revisit the same subject matter", and that it "ranks Lucio Fulci amongst the best craftsmen of the certain branch of the ''

fantastique ''Fantastique'' is a French term for a literary and cinematic genre that overlaps with science fiction, horror, and fantasy. The ''fantastique'' is a substantial genre within French literature. Arguably dating back further than English lan ...

''". Geoff Andrews of ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an engine ...

'' found the film "laughably awful" with a "nonsensical plot", and that it "could just conceivably be the disreputable movie that surrealists would have loved." John Pym of the ''

Monthly Film Bulletin ''The Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 to April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those with ...

'' called it a "silly, meandering horror" film, concluding that "there is not much to discuss and little to recommend." Alan Jones of ''

Starburst MicroPro International Corporation was an American software company founded in 1978 in San Rafael, California. They are best known as the publisher of WordStar, a popular early word processor for personal computers. History Founding and early su ...

'' praised the film as being "what popular cinema was all about", adding that "Shadow, claustrophobic atmosphere ndfull on menace is the crux of this and there is no doubt in my mind that Fulci is the master of such manipulation." Jones went on to call out negative reception of Fulci, stating that anyone who described Fulci as a hack annoyed him, noting that "in each of his recent films he has made, there are so many worthwhile merits. At this stage in the game his talent cannot be called merely accidental." In the United States, some critics derided the acting in the film, including J.A. Conner of the ''

Santa Cruz Sentinel The ''Santa Cruz Sentinel'' is a daily newspaper published in Santa Cruz, California, covering Santa Cruz County, California, and owned by Media News Group. Ottaway Community Newspapers, a division of Dow Jones & Company bought the paper in 19 ...

'' ("intense overacting"), Tom Brown of the ''

Times Recorder The ''Zanesville Times Recorder'' is a daily newspaper based in Zanesville, Ohio, that serves Muskingum County Muskingum County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 86,410. Its count ...

'' ("horribly acted") and Eleanor Ringel of ''

The Atlanta Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger between ...

'', with the latter stating that the only appeal of the film was in seeing the predominantly European cast attempting to adjust to "Fulci's muddled vision of Middle America". More critics dismissed the film due to its violent scenes, such as Jay Carr of the ''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Gl ...

'' ("a film only a diehard necrophile could love"), Dick Fleming of ''

The Daily Times ''Daily Times'' may refer to the following national newspapers: * ''Daily Times'' (Nigeria), newspaper published in Nigeria * ''Daily Times'' (Pakistan), newspaper published in Pakistan ''The Daily Times'' may refer to the following newspapers: * ...

'' ("scenes purely for the sake of shock value") and Ringel declaring it an "idiotic sleaze fest with nothing to offer but an abundance of filmed animal innards".

Retrospective

On review aggregator website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, ''City of the Living Dead'' currently has an approval rating of 46% based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 5.80/10. Robert Firsching of

AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cul ...

wrote that while the film "suffers from the same shortcomings present in much of Fulci's other horror films", it also "benefits from Fulci's ability to create and sustain an intensely creepy atmosphere", though he ultimately called the film "a dry run for the blend of graphic shocks and surrealism atmosphere that Lucio Fulci would perfect with '' The Beyond''."

References

Footnotes

Sources

* *

External links

* * * {{Lucio Fulci Films about suicide Italian zombie films Films directed by Lucio Fulci Films scored by Fabio Frizzi 1980 horror films Italian supernatural horror films 1980 films Italian ghost films Films set in New York City Films shot in Georgia (U.S. state) Films shot in New York City Films shot in Rome Films shot in Savannah, Georgia 1980s Italian films