Format: Monographie

« In the popular imagination, zombies are scary, decomposing corpses hunting down the living. But since the 1930s, there have also been other zombies shambling across the panels of comic books-zombies that aren’t quite what most people think zombies should be. There have been zombie slaves, zombie henchmen, talking zombies, beautiful zombies, and even zombie heroes. Using archival research into Golden Age comics and extended analyses of comics from the 1940s to today, Corpse Crusaders explores the profound influence early action/adventure and superheroic generic conventions had on shaping comic book zombies. It takes the reader from the 1940s superhero, The Purple Zombie, through 1950s revenge-from-the-grave zombies, to the 1970s anti-hero, Simon Garth (“The Zombie”) and the gruesome heroes-turned-zombies of Marvel Zombies. In becoming immersed in superheroic logics early on, the zombie in comics became a figure that, unlike the traditional narrative uses of other monsters, actually served to defend the status quo. This continuing trend not only provides insight into the overwhelming influence superheroes have had on the comic book medium, but it also provides a unique opportunity to explore the ways in which zombiism and superheroism parallel each other. Corpse Crusaders explores the ways that truth, justice, and the American way have influenced the undead in comics and turned what is often a rebellious figure into one that works to save the day.» [Résumé de l’éditeur]

« D’où viennent les zombies ? Ou plutôt d’où reviennent-ils ? À cette question répond une investigation en forme de traversée de l’imaginaire scientifique et artistique du corps humain, de la Renaissance à nos jours. En contrechamp des films qui ont illustré le genre, d’insolites et fascinantes figures se succèdent : les écorchés du De Humani Corporis Fabrica de Vésale (1543), les « corps sans organes » de Deleuze et Guattari, les variations techniques sur l’homme mécanique, des automates de Vaucanson aux pensionnaires sous hypnose de Charcot. Un tel montage fait apparaître, entre les cabinets de curiosités d’hier et les macabres fantaisies zombie d’aujourd’hui, entre les spéculations de la culture savante et les fictions filmiques, de troublants et vivants échos. Et si la mélancolie des motifs funèbres et des Vanités a bien sa place dans cette fable anthropologique et esthétique, la tonalité qui s’en dégage est à l’opposé : rarement ouvrage érudit aura été comme celui-ci soulevé par une écriture aussi limpide et jubilatoire pour dire l’avènement moderne des morts-vivants. » (Résumé de l’éditeur)

« Historically, zombies have been portrayed in films and television series as mindless, shuffling monsters. In recent years, this has changed dramatically. The undead are fast and ferocious in 28 Days Later… (2002) and World War Z (2013). In Warm Bodies (2013) and In the Flesh (2013–2015), they are thoughtful, sensitive and capable of empathy. These sometimes radically different depictions of the undead (and the still living) suggest critical inquiries: What does it mean to be human? What makes a monster? Who survives the zombie apocalypse, and why? Focusing on classic and current movies and TV shows, the author reveals how the once-subversive modern zombie, now more popular than ever, has been co-opted by the mainstream culture industry. » [Résumé de l’éditeur]

« I Walked with a Zombie (1943), Val Lewton’s second feature for RKO Radio Pictures, was described by critic Robin Wood as ‘perhaps the most delicate poetic fantasy in the American Cinema.’ Following immediately in the wake of the groundbreaking Cat People (1942), Zombie pioneered an even more radical narrative approach yet proved to be the critical and commercial equal of its predecessor, cementing the reputation of both Lewton and his director, Jacques Tourneur. Despite the lurid, studio-imposed title, I Walked with a Zombie is a subtle and ambiguous visual poem that advanced a daring condemnation of slavery and colonialism at a time when such themes were being actively suppressed by government censors. Clive Dawson charts the complex development and production of the project, essential to understanding the concerns of the filmmakers in the context of wartime Hollywood, then analyses the film in detail, referencing a broad range of academic studies of the audio-visual text and distilling new insight into its layers of meaning. Finally, he explores the film’s reception, and the influence it exerted on the horror genre and beyond. Extensive primary research has uncovered a wealth of previously unpublished new material that solves many unanswered questions and dispels various myths about this utterly unique film. » [Résumé de l’éditeur]

« Il est peu d’images aussi marquantes, dans le cadre de l’esthétique contemporaine de l’extrême, que la surenchère transmédiatique et véritablement planétaire des morts vivants. Après une décennie (1985-1995) qui avait connue la « fin du zombie » dans le média qui lui avait été jusque-là le plus propice – le cinéma -, la créature, fidèle à elle-même, renaît de plus belle au tournant du nouveau millénaire, envahissant les plus divers recoins de l’iconosphère globale. Face à une telle invasion, et en syntonie avec la prolifération de « zombie studies », le temps est venu de s’attaquer de front aux morts-vivants, et de rendre compte des mythèmes et des motifs essentiels qui configurent leur esthétique. » [Résumé de l’éditeur]