Zombieland - Historical and Institutional Factors

1. Institutional factors for the making of Zombieland was to actually get 'extras' who would play the parts of the zombies. This was a decent production where it was important to have all of the factors needed or else the movie would have failed. For example, the carnival where the sisters create there own retreat is necessary because it is essential to the climax. The carnival set a stage where the heros finally kill off most of the zombies and they get a sense of relief as if everything is going to peaceful now. In addition, the carnival is known as a 'fun thing' so in this case it represents the fun in fighting zombies in other words... adding comic relief to the intended horror in these creatures.

2. After WWII, atomic warfare and rumors of alien visitations expanded the zombie genre into the realm of science fiction. In Creature with the Atom Brain(1955), a sterling artifact of this era, ex-Nazis use atomic zombies to murder the district attorneys cops and gangsters who get in their way. The films historical context consist of African and Haitian voodoo. The first 'zombies' were known as silent souls who behaved as slaves who were seen working the night shift in Haitian bakeries, mills and factories. The sight of these unsettling imaginations of the night formed a prototype for cinematic zombies. Now a days zombies are taken for granted, they are incorporated in video games and basic media to the point were people are used to the idea; the excitement has worn out.

III. Socio-Cultural context

Zombies are known to be the flesh-hungry undead whom were often in the form of ghouls and vampires. They come from the world of mythology and date back to The Epic of Gilgamesh where the goddess Ishtar promises: "I will knock down the Gates of the Netherworld,/ I will smash the door posts, and leave the doors flat down,/ and will let the dead go up to eat the living! / And the dead will outnumber the living!

Religion also played a roll in the creation of zombies. According to West African Voodoo a dead person can be revived by a sorcerer. They stay under the control of the sorcerer since they have no will. Often times, zombie souls were kept in vials for good luck and were sold to clients and later God himself would come to take back the soul. It is said that if you feed a zombie salt then it returns to the grave.