‘Queens of the Dead’ Review – A Horror Comedy That’s Cool, Kind, and Queer as Hell

Tina Romero, daughter of legendary horror filmmaker George A. Romero, makes her directorial debut with her own take on the zombie genre in Queens of the Dead. This horror comedy follows a group of drag queens, DJs, drug dealers, and club kids who have to fend for themselves as zombies flood the streets of Brooklyn during a warehouse party.

The film is unapologetically made by and for the queer community, and that’s really what makes it sing, despite its flaws. If you’ve ever wanted to see a rag-tag group of gays, girls, and theys—plus a token straight guy—fight for their lives against a horde of shambling, sparkling zombies, then you’re in for a treat.

The zombies here are more glitter and glam than guts and gore. But while some may want a bit more horror in their horror/comedy, the heart and humour is what makes this movie so fun.

Queens of the Dead is an ensemble film, and its emphasis on community and kinship makes it stand out among other movies in the genre. There’s no single hero or final girl here. The hero is really the queer community, and that’s reflected in the broad and colorful cast of characters.

While many of those characters are hilarious and fun to watch bounce off of each other, the characters as individuals feel somewhat underbaked as a result, making it harder to get invested in the individual drama and emotional beats.

For that reason, some of the more serious moments that were meant to elicit emotion didn’t quite land for me. In a way, I wish the movie had leaned even more into the absurdity and comedic side. It is a funny movie, and watching it at Fantasia with an eager and joyous crowd was probably the best way to experience this movie. However, not all of the comedic moments landed, just as not all of the emotional beats landed. I still had a great time overall, but I think a more focused narrative and character work would have made those moments even stronger.

If there’s anyone that’s close to a protagonist here it’s Katy O’Brian’s club manager, Dre. O’Brian is an absolute star. She has so much presence and charisma. Between a bit part in this year’s Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning and her star-making turn in Love Lies Bleeding, it’s nice to see her do lighter fare like this, where she gets to kick zombie ass but also show some comedic chops. I really hope her career skyrockets, because she’s a very magnetic performer.

Jack Haven is the other big scene-stealer as the ditzy blonde intern, Kelsey. This is a far cry from their role in I Saw The TV Glow, and again, it’s nice to see an actor show their range and go from a more intense or serious role to something light and fun, where they’re clearly having a blast and making the audience have a blast with them.

Overall, the whole cast is solid. For a relatively low-budget indie movie, it looks great too. It’s chaotic and colorful, with some fun makeup and costume choices that offer a unique and sufficiently silly interpretation of zombies that is actually pretty refreshing in an era where we’ve seen every iteration of scary zombies imaginable (28 Years Later is another recent fresh take on zombies, but that’s more about what it does with its human characters than its zombie design).

If you’re looking for a truly scary zombie movie, you won’t find that here. This is very much a comedy more than anything else. But it’s also a beautiful ode from a daughter to her father’s legacy, in a way that is very clearly true to her own experiences and vision. If nothing else, the movie feels like a love letter to both queer spaces/communities and to the genre that her father built his career on. There are plenty of fun and clever easter eggs that pay homage to George A. Romero’s films, but Queens of the Dead is, as Tina Romero said in the Q&A after our screening, a movie that her dad would never have made. It’s her movie through and through, and it’s a welcome addition to the zombie canon.

Verdict

Queens of the Dead put a huge smile on my face. It’s a joyous movie that in some ways lampoons the zombie genre and in other ways honours it. It’s funny and silly and kind, and it’s unapologetically gay. If you’re looking for a fun zombie flick with an eclectic cast of (mostly) queer characters and a sense of humour, you’ll likely have a good time with this.