C.H.U.D. II – Bud the Chud: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Kevin, Steve, and Katie are an inseparable trio of friends doing some extracurricular snooping in the school science lab when, among the test tubes and beakers, they discover a corpse! But before they can say “Abra Cadaver,” the body disappears, rolling down Route 51 strapped to a gurney. The kids need a spare stiff, and fast. What they find is “Bud the Chud,” a half-dead decomposing humanoid, the result of a military experiment gone haywire. When Bud sets out on a killing spree, the kids, the Army, the police, and the FBI are hot on his trail, trying to save the entire town from becoming “Chudified!”
I hadn’t seen this film in a VERY long time so I was legitimately thrilled to see it again. Very quickly I remembered watching it so many years ago and just how different it is from the original. The “creature” in this film is less like a monstrous being and more like a basic zombie. The thing that sets it apart from regular zombies is that the C.H.U.D. in this film actually have personalities and are more in tone with the undead from the Return Of The Living Dead movies. It’s admittedly not a great movie but it’s one of those that it’s so bad that it’s good kind of movies. The entire time I sat there with a smile on my face and my hands under my chin like a kid again. It’s weird to have that kind of reaction to a B-movie but if you love 80’s horror then you’ll understand where I’m coming from. Gerrit Graham was fantastic as Bud The Chud and his performance was comedic gold in my opinion. It was also kind of fun to see Brian Robbins in there since I mainly know him as a producer but also as an actor from the 80’s show Head Of The Class. The plot is (again) very similar to a zombie film with the C.H.U.D virus being spread a similar way and with it being so predictable it was super entertaining at the same time. There was even an open ending that hinted at a sequel. It’s been so long that a sequel would probably never happen BUT wouldn’t it be cool if it did? Definitely pick this up if you’re a fan of classic horror and the Vestron Video brand from the 80’s. 6/10
Special Features:
Interviews – Talks with Garrit Graham, Tricia Leigh and FX artist Allan Apone
Audio Commentary With Director David Irving
