"Any zombie movie owes an allegiance to George A. Romero. His Night of the Living Dead brought the subgenre back to life for a new generation, establishing a canon so complete that any director, consciously or not, is doing their own spin on its own beats. That makes Queens of the Dead such an ironic addition to said canon. Romero's daughter, Tina Romero, helms the horror in her feature debut."
"Her version of the story would end up flipping the script on the zombie thriller entirely, starting with its queer cast and colorful, glammed-up setting. Queens unleashes a zombie outbreak on the island of Manhattan during a wild night out, focusing its action on a queer bar in the heart of the city. That alone allowed Romero to implement plenty of changes to the story structure her late father made famous."
"Queens makes clear - either through its sparkly-skinned zombies or through characters' winking dialogue - that this is not a George Romero film. Sure, there will be similarities between his work and his daughter's, but Tina Romero was much more interested in the reckoning that a zombie apocalypse would bring to the queer community. For all its fantastic elements, it's really about humanity, making it a potential entry point for the horror-averse: "We put glitter in the blood; it's going to be OK.""
George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead revitalized the zombie subgenre and set canonical beats that influence filmmakers. A feature debut reimagines those beats, shifting focus to a queer, glam-gore perspective. The film stages a zombie outbreak across Manhattan during a night out, centering action in a queer bar and exploring community infighting and a queer reckoning. Zombies receive playful, sparkly treatments and dialogue leans winking and camp. The narrative emphasizes humanity over traditional horror while aiming to welcome horror-averse viewers with a lighter, celebratory approach.
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