Like a lot of 70s and 80s Italian horror films, "Nightmare City" is about a TV reporter. He and his cameraman see a potential "scoop" when a mysterious, unmarked plane lands on a runway. The military steps in with hopes of defusing any life threatening danger that may lurk within but to no avail. A cluster of raving, zombie-ish killers come piling out of the plane, killing everybody. From this point, the entire city erupts in violence as the seemingly infected go on a stabbing spree throughout the living population.
Everything is all well and good throughout the better part of the film, though the end is what kills it. I hate to spoil it, so I'll beat around the bush: it sucks and doesn't make a lick of sense. It struck me a last ditch effort at cleverness, but failed miserably and makes for a deeply unsatisfying ending.
The majority, however, is fairly entertaining. Lots of pseudo-zombies stabbing... everything. The stabbing count of this movie is off the fucking charts! Not a lot biting. Stabbing is what these mutants prefer. Stabbing. Lots. The make-up effects on the 'zombies' are pretty simple and unremarkable, but that's easy to get over since "Nightmare City" moves along rapidly. It's not riddled with intricate gore effects at all, which is kind of a disappointment, but there's enough blood to get you through.
In all, I'm a huge fan of Italian horror, but I've never really found Umberto Lenzi's films to really shine in comparison to other notable genius film makers in this sub-genre. I'm a Fulci guy, all the way. Lenzi's other films (that I've seen), such as "Orgasmo", "Eaten Alive!" and "Cannibal Ferox" where not all that spectacular to me, though I can still sit through them with a moderate sense of enjoyment. "Nightmare City" is just okay, as a film. They should have nixed that ending for something better, but what're ya gonna do?
I think this was the first movie to have fast "zombies" in it, even though they're technically not zombies. It's a fun film for me, as I'm obsessed with the era/genre. I love the cheezy music. Not the best by any means, but an essential cog in 70s/80s Italian zombie collection.
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