Sam and Mattie have been friends for years, united by their passion for film; the pair had one shared childhood dream – to make a zombie movie. Enlisting the help of Sam’s brother Jess, as well as many other friends and family, their dream became a reality. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, one which saw the duo become American household names, Spring Break Zombie Massacre released in 2016. New documentary Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie tells the warts and all story about how that little film came into being.
Directed by Jess Suchmann and Robert Carnevale, Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie documents the history of Sam and Mattie before, during, and after, making their feature debut. The film begins at the beginning and delves into the past of both men. The pair, both born with Down’s Syndrome, connected at a young age at the special olympics and have been inseparable ever since. Along with their families, they spent several years recreating scenes from their favourite movies on home video tape. The idea to create a full-length film came via text and their families immediately got on board to help. What makes the prospect so interesting and refreshing, is that everyone agreed to two simple rules – one, the film had to be fun, and the second, Sam and Mattie had total control.
Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie isn’t simply a documentary, it also boasts the added bonus of featuring Spring Break Zombie Massacre. The film doesn’t play in its continuous entirety, Suchmann and Carnevale occasionally take the opportunity to dip behind the scenes to give further insight into specific scenes. This added context enables the viewer to fully appreciate what the team achieved. Structurally, Sam & Mattie Made a Zombie Movie is a hybrid of documentary, making of featurette, feature film, and a series of special features all rolled into one. This rather unique concoction sometimes starts to veer off track, though never long enough to lose the viewer. What it does offer is the perfect one-stop shop for all things Sam & Mattie; fans of their movie will be thrilled to own a piece of that movie history in this unusual format.
Our core movie is exactly what you would expect – a zombie movie with delusions of grandeur – but made on a modest sub $70k budget. The make-up and effects are ropey and wobbly in places, the story and script are never going to win awards, but it is a lot of fun. Spring Break Zombie Monsters taps into that same vein as Tommy Wiseau’s The Room, but manages to one up it by being passably good rather than just laughably so. Although money, or the lack thereof, is apparent, it oozes fun and frivolity and the set was clearly an entertaining endeavour.
From a watchability standpoint, Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie has that same easy charm and accessibility as a documentary such as Catfish. Jess’ narration offers a more intimate approach to the story-telling. His love for both his brother, and his brother’s friend, is abundantly clear and gives the movie warmth to complement Sam & Mattie’s heart. Tonally, the finished product is not too dissimilar from that of Justin McConnell’s Clapboard Jungle. McConnell’s film is never afraid to shy away from the tough side of the industry, here too we are presented with the stark reality of the fickleness of films. It also doesn’t hide the tougher aspects of Sam and Mattie’s lives. Other filmmakers might have been tempted to push for overtly feel-good saccharine, the team here instead opt for a more bittersweet and honest portrayal of their subjects’ lives. It’s frankness is needed to ground things, but never gets in the way of that simple watch sensation. A documentary about fun, family, and film, Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie, proves that with a little will and spirit, we all have a movie lurking within.
Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie is available on digital platforms now.
Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie
Summary
A bitterly sweet account of the sheer determination and drive of two friends, and their local community, to achieve the impossible dream.
