Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill

Last updated
Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill
Directed byByron Werner
Screenplay byMatthew Yuan
John Yuan
Produced byRick Walker
David Michael Latt
David Romano
Sherri Strain
Chanda Fuller
CinematographyByron Werner
Edited byDavid Michael Latt
Leigh Slawner
Music byRalph Rieckermann
Distributed by The Asylum
Release date
  • October 26, 2004 (2004-10-26)
Running time
88 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill is a 2004 zombie-western [2] slasher film released by The Asylum. Unlike many of the later efforts by The Asylum, this movie is not a mockbuster. The film follows a group of people trying to survive while stranded in Sunset Valley, a desert ghost town inhabited by the murderous spirit of Confederate war criminal, William T. Anderson and his horde of zombies.

Contents

Plot

Cocaine dealer, Darrell, leads a cop on a chase through the desert. She follows him until he throws his brick of cocaine out the window which bursts open on her windshield. Darrel's car breaks down though and he is forced to walk. He comes across “Sunset Valley-population 99”, a ghost town that suddenly materializes out of no where. He stops in the saloon and is attacked by a zombie bartender. Running outside, he finds the town populated with zombies that chase him until he runs into Bloody Bill, who rips out his throat.

A debate team consisting of Gwen, Mandy, Sondra, Buck, Jerry and their coach Avery embark on a trip to tournament in Phoenix when they are carjacked by Earl, Darrell's “business” partner. He is searching for Darrell and holds everyone in the van at gunpoint until they arrive at Sunset Valley—the population sign now at 100. They search the empty buildings when an undead Darrell appears and warns Earl that Bloody Bill is coming before he fully zombifies and attacks Jerry before being shot by Earl. Bill and his zombies descend on the town and Sondra runs off on her own, encountering a young girl zombie. She follows the girl into a house where several zombies are eating human body parts. She tries escaping but is attacked and eaten; the population sign reads 101.

The others take refuge in a house and Jerry tells them the legend of Bloody Bill Anderson: a Confederate war criminal on the run from the Union who was brutally executed by the people of Sunset Valley for his crimes, though not before Bill could make a deal with the Devil grating him supernatural powers. They hear Sondra's cry's outside and upon investigating, find her mutilated body. Buck panics and runs off on his own and Avery fights Earl, wrestling a gun from him when the zombies attack, forcing them to fight together. Mandy, Gwen and Jerry are separated and go off on their own. Buck runs in circles, with every direction he takes leading back to Sunset Valley. He encounters Sandra and other zombies with Bill, who walks up and crushes his skull in his bare hands and the population sign increases to 102.

Mandy, Gwen, and Jerry take refuge in another house where they find a picture of Mary Anderson (who bears a striking resemblance to Gwen noting that Gwen is the reincarnation of Mary Anderson), with a note to Bill on the back. Jerry explains Mary was Bill's younger sister who was hanged by the people of Sunset Valley due to her family ties to Bill and he retaliated by attacking the town. Jerry starts showing delusions and succumbing to his zombie bite. Earl and Avery burst join them and the group resolves to get Jerry to a hospital but Gwen worries about Buck. When Avery opens the door, Bloody Bill stabs him with his rapier and his zombies flood into the house. The remaining four run upstairs and barricade themselves in a room with furniture when Jerry fully zombifies and attacks Earl. Gwen shoots Jerry and Earl, realizing he will zombify, offers to stay behind while the girls escape. He loads up on the last of his cocaine as the zombies break through the barricade. He shoots many of them before encountering Bill. He begins choking Earl, who has a single grenade with him and pulls the pin, dropping it at their feet. It goes off as Gwen and Mandy run away and the population sign inexplicably shows 106, despite only 3 more lives being taken (Avery, Jerry & Earl).

Mandy and Gwen are confronted seemingly by Earl, dressed in Bill's clothes. He pulls out Bill's rapier and stabs Mandy as Earl's removed face falls off Bill's face. Bill chases Gwen who runs but finds herself always returning to the town. The zombies chase her to the church, where Bill keeps a shrine to Mary. It's then that Gwen gets the idea to impersonate Mary, and is able to grab Bill's rapier while hugging him. She uses the sword to decapitate Bill, killing all his zombies in the process. As she is leaving, the town population sign has once again, inexplicably increased, now at 107.

Cast

Production

The Film had an estimated budget of $750,000 [ citation needed ] This was the first in house movie produced by the Asylum. [3]

Reception

The film received very mixed retrospective reviews. [4] [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Outlaw Josey Wales</i> 1976 film by Clint Eastwood

The Outlaw Josey Wales is a 1976 American revisionist Western film set during and after the American Civil War. It was directed by and starred Clint Eastwood, with Chief Dan George, Sondra Locke, Bill McKinney and John Vernon. The film tells the story of Josey Wales, a Missouri farmer whose family is murdered by Union militia during the Civil War. Driven to revenge, Wales joins a Confederate guerrilla band and makes a name for himself as a feared gunfighter. After the war, all the fighters in Wales' group except for him surrender to Union soldiers, but the Confederates end up being massacred. Wales becomes an outlaw and is pursued by bounty hunters and Union soldiers as he tries to make a new life for himself.

<i>Dawn of the Dead</i> (2004 film) 2004 film by Zack Snyder

Dawn of the Dead is a 2004 action horror film directed by Zack Snyder in his feature directorial debut, with a screenplay by James Gunn. A remake of George A. Romero's 1978 film of the same name, it stars an ensemble cast that includes Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer, with Scott Reiniger, Tom Savini, and Ken Foree from the original film appearing in cameos. Set in Milwaukee, the film follows a group of survivors who try to survive a zombie apocalypse holed up in a suburban shopping mall.

<i>Teenage Zombies</i> 1959 film by Jerry Warren

Teenage Zombies is a 1959 science fiction horror film written, produced, edited and directed by Jerry Warren, and starring Katherine Victor, Don Sullivan, Chuck Niles and Warren's then-wife and production manager Brianne Murphy. Warren wrote the screenplay under his pen name Jacques Lecoutier. Film historian Bill Warren wrote "This dreadful, leaden and depressingly cheap film does have one unusual aspect... it was actually made by Jerry Warren in its entirety."

<i>Burial Ground</i> (film) 1981 film

Burial Ground is an Italian grindhouse zombie movie directed by Andrea Bianchi. It is one of several films released under the alternative title of Zombie 3.

<i>Urban Legends: Bloody Mary</i> 2005 film by Mary Lambert

Urban Legends: Bloody Mary is a 2005 American direct-to-video supernatural slasher film directed by Mary Lambert, and starring Kate Mara, Robert Vito, Tina Lifford, Ed Marinaro and Lillith Fields.

<i>Fido</i> (film) 2006 film by Andrew Currie

Fido is a 2006 Canadian zombie comedy film directed by Andrew Currie and written by Robert Chomiak, Currie, and Dennis Heaton from an original story by Heaton. It was produced by Blake Corbet, Mary Anne Waterhouse, Trent Carlson and Kevin Eastwood of Anagram Pictures, and released in the United States by Lions Gate Entertainment.

<i>Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness</i> 2007 comic book limited series by Marvel

Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness is a five-issue 2007 comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics in association with Dynamite Entertainment, an intercompany crossover in which Ash Williams, hero of the popular Evil Dead film and comic book, finds himself in the Marvel Zombies setting, a world of flesh-eating zombified Marvel Comics heroes.

<i>Marvel Zombies: Dead Days</i>

Marvel Zombies: Dead Days is a comic book one-shot first published in May 2008 by Marvel Comics. It was written by Robert Kirkman and drawn by Sean Phillips, with cover art by Arthur Suydam. It is part of the Marvel Zombies series and a prequel to Marvel's first Marvel Zombies limited series, which had the same creative team. The story shows the events of the zombie plague first infecting the Marvel Zombies Universe.

<i>Dance of the Dead</i> (film) 2008 American film

Dance of the Dead is a 2008 American independent zombie comedy film, directed by Gregg Bishop and written by Joe Ballarini. The film featured Jared Kusnitz, Greyson Chadwick, Chandler Darby, Lucas Till, Blair Redford and Carissa Capobianco. The plot revolves around the mysterious reanimation of the dead and the efforts of several students to save their high school prom from attack.

Denise Boutte is an American actress. She made her film debut starring in the 2004 horror feature Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill and in 2007 appeared in the comedy-drama Why Did I Get Married?. On television, Boutte was a regular cast member on the TBS sitcom Meet the Browns (2009-2011).

<i>Hillside Cannibals</i> 2006 American film

Hillside Cannibals is a 2006 American horror film directed by Leigh Scott and produced by The Asylum. The film is a mockbuster of the film The Hills Have Eyes, another film released around the same month, but its plot also incorporates elements from other films, including Cannibal Holocaust, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and House of 1000 Corpses.

<i>Marvel Zombies Return</i>

Marvel Zombies Return is a weekly five-issue comic book limited series, published by Marvel Comics in late 2009. It is part of the Marvel Zombies series of comic books.

<i>The Book of Zombie</i> American zombie film

The Book of Zombie is a 2010 American independent horror film written by Erik Van Sant and directed by Scott Kragelund, Paul Cranefield and Erik Van Sant. Brian Ibsen, Larisa Peters, Andrew Loviska, Paul Cantu, Bill Johns, Adrienne MacIain, Andy Evans, Adam Gehrke, and Elissa Dowling star as survivors of a Mormon-themed zombie attack.

<i>The Dead Dont Die</i> (1975 film) 1975 American horror film

The Dead Don't Die is a 1975 American made-for-television neo-noir horror thriller film set in the 1930s, directed by Curtis Harrington from a teleplay by Robert Bloch, based upon his own story of the same title that first appeared in Fantastic Adventures, July 1951. The film originally premiered on NBC on January 14, 1975. The film uses the traditional Haitian concept of zombies as resurrected slaves of the living.

<i>Afterlife with Archie</i> Comic book published by Archie Comics

Afterlife with Archie is a comic book published by Archie Comics beginning in 2013, depicting a zombie apocalypse that begins in the town of Riverdale in an alternative reality. It is written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, with art by Francesco Francavilla, and is inspired by a zombie-themed variant cover which Francavilla did for an issue of Life with Archie.

<i>Zombeavers</i> 2014 film by Jordan Rubin

Zombeavers is a 2014 American horror comedy film directed by Jordan Rubin, based on a script by Al Kaplan, Jordan Rubin, and Jon Kaplan. The film follows a group of college kids staying at a riverside cottage that are attacked by a swarm of zombie beavers. A trailer for the film was released in early February 2014 and went viral. The film had its world premiere on April 19, 2014, at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film was released in the U.S. on March 20, 2015. In December 2014, Zombeavers was released on DVD.

<i>Spider-Gwen</i> US comic book series

Spider-Gwen is an ongoing comic book series published by Marvel Comics that began February 2015. The series revolves around Gwen Stacy of Earth-65, an alternate universe version of Gwen Stacy that debuted in Edge of Spider-Verse #2 as part of the 2014–2015 Spider-Man storyline "Spider-Verse". Spider-Gwen explores a universe where Gwen Stacy was bitten by the radioactive spider instead of Peter Parker, leading her to a career as the Spider-Woman of her world.

<i>Zoombies</i> 2016 American film

Zoombies is a 2016 American science fiction action horror television film directed by Glenn R. Miller and written by Scotty Mullen. It stars Ione Butler, Andrew Asper, Marcus Anderson Kim Nielsen, LaLa Nestor, Brianna Chomer, Aaron Groben, Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau, Tammy Klein, Isaac Anderson, William McMichael and Reuben Uy. Taking place at the soon-to-be-open Eden Wildlife Zoo, the film follows a group of staff members and college students as they find themselves being attacked by the zoo's animals who have turned into aggressive and bloodthirsty zombies after being infected by a mysterious virus.

Matthew "Matt" and John Yuan, also known collectively as The Yuan Twins, are American twin actors, writers and comic book artists. They wrote the micro-budget zombie film, Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill for The Asylum in 2004 for producer David Michael Latt. As of 2022, they are the deputy publishers of First Comics.

<i>Aquarium of the Dead</i> 2021 film by Glenn Miller

Aquarium of the Dead is a 2021 American zombie comedy-horror science fiction film directed by Glenn Miller and written by Marc Gottlieb and Michael Varrati. The film stars Vivica A. Fox, Eva Ceja, and D. C. Douglas. It is a spin-off to The Asylum's Zoombies franchise. The film features zombie-like aquatic animals.

References

  1. Byron Werner; Chelsea Jean; Jeremy Bouvet; Gergory Bastien; Denise Boutte (2004). Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill (DVD) (Motion Picture). United States: Asylum Home Entertainment. OCLC   57655552 . Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  2. Miller, Cynthia J.; Riper, A. Bowdoin Van (2012). Undead in the West: Vampires, Zombies, Mummies, and Ghosts on the Cinematic Frontier. Scarecrow Press. ISBN   978-0-8108-8544-8.
  3. "The Video Graveyard: Death Valley: The Revenge Of Bloody Bill". www.thevideograveyard.com.
  4. Fisher, Carl (2020-01-12). "Horror Movie Review: Death Valley: The Revenge Of Bloody Bill (2004)". GAMES, BRRRAAAINS & A HEAD-BANGING LIFE. Retrieved 2023-07-29.
  5. J. (2022-07-14). "Bloody Bill in the valley of continuity problems". Only Death Is Real. Retrieved 2023-07-29.
  6. "Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill (2004) – HORROR MOVIE REVIEW". SCARED STIFF REVIEWS. 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2023-07-29.