I Walked With a Zombie

1943

I Walked With a Zombie

Critics Consensus

Evocative direction by Jacques Tourneur collides with the low-rent production values of exploitateer Val Lewton in I Walked with a Zombie, a sultry sleeper that's simultaneously smarmy, eloquent and fascinating.

92%

TOMATOMETER

Reviews Counted: 26

73%
liked it

Audience Score

User Ratings: 5,020

TOMATOMETER

N/A
All Critics | Top Critics
Average Rating: N/A
Reviews Count: 0
Fresh: 0
Rotten: 0

AUDIENCE SCORE

73%
Average Rating: 3.6/5

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Movie Info

RKO producer Val Lewton seemed to thrive upon taking the most lurid film titles and coming up with pocket-edition works of art. Saddled with the studio-dictated title I Walked With a Zombie, Lewton, together with scripters Curt Siodmak and Ardel Wray, concocted a West Indies variation on Jane Eyre. Trained nurse (Frances Dee) travels to the tropics to care for Christine Gordon, the wife of seemingly abusive Tom Conway. At first, Dee merely believes her patient to be comatose. But as the drums throb and the natives behave restlessly, Dee tries to bring her patient back to life by jungle magic. Conway is racked with guilt, believing himself responsible for his wife's condition; his guilt is stoked by Conway's drunken brother James Ellison, who has always loved Gordon. Utilizing very limited sets and only a handful of extras, director Jacques Tourneur manages to evoke an impression of an expansive tropical island populated at every turn by voodoo worshippers. Many of the sequences, notably Frances Dee's first languid stroll into the midst of the native ceremonies, have an eerie dream-like quality that pervades even the most worn-out, badly processed TV prints of I Walked With Zombie.

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Cast

James Ellison
as Wesley Rand
Frances Dee
as Betsy Connell
Tom Conway
as Paul Holland
Edith Barrett
as Mrs. Rand
James Bell
as Dr. Maxwell
Christine Gordon
as Jessica Holland
Theresa Harris
as Alma
Sir Lancelot
as Calypso Singer
Darby Jones
as Carre Four
Jeni Le Gon
as Dancer
Richard Abrams
as Clement
Martin Wilkins
as Houngan
Jieno Moxzer
as Sabreur
Arthur Walker
as Ti-Joseph
Katheleen Hartfield
as Dancer
Clinton Rosemond
as Coachman
Alan Edmiston
as Mr. Wilkens
Norman Mayes
as Bayard
Melvin Williams
as Baby
Vivian Dandridge
as Melisse
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Critic Reviews for I Walked With a Zombie

All Critics (26) | Top Critics (4)

View All Critic Reviews (26)

Audience Reviews for I Walked With a Zombie

Although he went on to make much better films, Jacques Tourner's I Walked With a Zombie is not anywhere near a waste of time. There are some genuinely creepy moments (although they're repeated in other Val Lewton productions) and some very lovely cinematography. There's not really much of a plot to speak of and our leading lady has very little to do in the second half of the movie, but there's some good stuff here. Worth a late night viewing.

Tim Salmons
Tim Salmons

Super Reviewer

I Walked With a Zombie is full of beautiful photography, fantastic set design and stunning direction from Jacques Tourneur. The acting's pretty much what you'd expect from a low-budget 40s horror movie but there's so much more going on that makes up for it. The scene on the way up to the homefourt was fantastic as was the scene that introduced Jessica. Legitimately scary shit. The story kind of scatters a bit by the time you get to the end and a few things were kind of unclear to me but at that point you don't really care. This movie is a moodfest orgy for the eyes.

Michael Gildea
Michael Gildea

Super Reviewer

Ripe with that subtle eerieness that Lewton and Tourneur have become known for. I like this one a little more every time I see it. It's the kind of film that creeps up on you.

Randy Tippy
Randy Tippy

Super Reviewer

A well-made moody & creepy film but I think it feels a bit rushed, Could have been a bit longer & better

Arash Xak
Arash Xak

Super Reviewer

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