Review – I Walked with a Zombie

Fans of the low-budget, black and white, minimalist approach to horror movies that producer Val Lewton made famous should enjoy this one, which some critics consider his best ever. Personally, I’m a little more partial to Cat People, but this is a fine film as well. I was particularly impressed by the treatment of the Black characters. Like just about every other voodoo movie ever made, you couldn’t exactly describe it as racially sensitive. But at least a couple of the non-white characters were portrayed in a sympathetic light. The plot follows the adventures of a nurse who travels to the island of St. Sebastian (presumably somewhere in the Caribbean) to care for the peculiar wife of the local land baron. As it turns out, the wife is peculiar because she’s a walking corpse. As usual with Lewton’s work, some of the movie seems a little awkward and dated now, but there are still a few genuine chills to be found. Worth seeing