The Horde (La Horde) (2010)

The Horde (La Horde) (2010) IMDB Link

France has become the premier European country when it comes to producing horror films with some top class films being produced over the last few years. Although Le Horde is a little more conventional that the likes of Switchblade Romance and not quite to the standard of other French outputs of late, it’s still an entertaining zombie film that’s excellently made.

The storyline is extremely simple; a group of cops storm a rundown apartment block with the intention of freeing their comrade who has been taking hostage by a group of gangsters. Said cops are thwarted by the gangsters though and held hostage themselves. That’s the least of their problems though as a there has just been a zombie outbreak and the apartment block seems to be attracting more than its fair share. The cops and the gangsters have to form and unlikely partnership in order to fight their way out of the building and hopefully survive through the night.

The zombie’s in this blood soaked French film are not your slow rambling along types, this zombies are fast and extremely strong which adds a whole new level of menace to the situation. Yes the story is simple and is reminiscent of Assault on Precinct 13 but it’s the perfect setup for plenty of mindless zombie action. The only problem is that the midsection of the film is surprisingly light on bloody action which is strange for a film of this type. It certainly picks up in the final act though as all hell is let loose with plenty of blood and gore. There are some nice characters to be seen here, particularly the wise cracking old war veteran whose weapon of choice is a Gatling gun. The final scene is also quite brave and not one you would likely see in a Hollywood film.

Le Horde does exactly what it says on the tin, it offers some great zombie action with nice effects and plenty of gore. Incredibly bland story aside, it’s an entertaining watch, particularly for zombie fans.

6/10