Queens of the Dead (2025)
Directed by: Tina Romero
Premise: A group of drag queens and patrons take shelter in a nightclub during a zombie apocalypse.
What Works: Queens of the Dead is a zombie picture but the strongest part of the movie is its portrait of this nightclub and the performers, staff, and customers who occupy it. The movie takes its time getting started but it spends that time establishing characters who are distinct and interesting. There is some backstage drama among the performers and the staff struggle to put on a show and fill the seats. This film has an authentic feel for the queer community and the drag scene. The community gets a bit of a ribbing but it’s clearly coming from a place of affection. The movie is very funny but it also has some poignant moments especially when characters die. Queens of the Dead was directed and co-written by Tina Romero, the daughter of George Romero who directed the seminal zombie films Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead. Tina Romero’s movie works in plenty of homages to her father’s work but the fan service is not distracting or forced and Queens of the Dead has a voice of its own.
What Doesn’t: Queens of the Dead is a horror comedy but it is much more inclined toward the comedy than the horror. That approach is consistent with the characters and the setting; a movie titled Queens of the Dead was inherently going to be silly. However, the zombie threat is undersold. The undead of this picture are shufflers but they are so slow and ineffectual that they’re not very scary. There are some issues with continuity and coverage of the action. The pacing is a bit start and stop. Some parts of Queens of the Dead move along smoothly but the film suffers from a few flat spots and some redundant emotional beats with the characters having the same conversation over again.
Bottom Line: Queens of the Dead is a promising feature film directorial debut from Tina Romero. It’s a bit clumsy and lacks horror but the humor and the film’s empathetic regard for its characters keeps it engaging.
Episode: #1070 (October 26, 2025)