In this podcast we discuss and review Before Dawn, the debut feature-length film of Emmerdale star, Dominic Brunt. Following on from this we interview David Moody where we talk about Before Dawn, zombies, the Autumn series and the state of horror. We reference the likes of The End of Alice by AM Homes, Taken, The Seasoning House, Maniac and many other films and books.

Topics

[0:56] Synopsis of Before Dawn

[2:39] The beginning and initial set-up

[4:55] The Vauxhall Astra

[5:44] The problem with the title ‘Before Dawn’

[6:19] The opening scene

[7:30] Handheld camera work

[8:49] The garage scene

[9:35] Development and relationship between the two characters; holes in logic

[10:27] Zombie cliches

[12:00] Lessons from a Film Studies Lecturer

[12:25] Dominic’s passion for horror and zombies

[13:25] Did Dominic take on too much in filming, editing and acting?

[14:40] Initial reaction to Before Dawn from FrightFest and other websites & magazines

[16:30] Do horror fans expect less from the horror genre than they do other genres?

[24:00] The state of horror films – declining standards and dumbing down?

[25:57] How Before Dawn compares to other low budget horror films

[27:34] Let’s have a moratorium on zombies and twinkly vampires

[28:06] Second half of Before Dawn *spoilers*

[31:50] Parallels between Before Dawn and last week’s film, Chained

[33:10] Fast zombies

[36:14] Final thoughts

[37:20] Thank you to our early listeners

[38:08] Interview with David Moody

[38:45] David Moody’s reaction to Before Dawn

[42:37] Meeting Dominic Brunt

[44:16] Should we give concessions to films with a limited budget?

[45:46] David Moody and zombies: where it all began

[48:34] How Night of the Living Dead stands up today

[49:48] Should we be concerned with debating fast and slow moving zombies?

[51:19] Would slower zombies have worked in Before Dawn?

[52:52] Are zombies losing their fear factor?

[54:55] The American and British approach to comedy and zombies

[55:48] Initial release of Autumn

[56:50] Where do we go from here with zombies?

[58:15] CGI in horror

[59:41] David Moody’s work on-screen

[1:03:11] Found footage and POV films

[1:06:00] Remakes

[1:07:24] Taken 2

[1:10:14] Confronting taboos and respecting sensitive subject matter

[1:12:25] The closeness of zombies to us; Them vs Us

[1:14:05] Are gangs and chav culture the new zombies?

[1:18:44] The appeal of the apocalypse in Them or Us

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Resources

Before Dawn review

Buy Joe & Me by David Moody

David Moody interview

Buy Before Dawn (UK)

Dominic Brunt interview

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