The Dead: a zombie road movie finds a new live soundtrack
A plane crashes. The dead rise. Far from home, a man must decide whom he can still trust. The Dead takes a familiar horror premise into the wide landscapes of West Africa. At Razor Reel this Halloween, the journey gets a new soundtrack: Nick Noel & The Red Rose Rogers perform live alongside the film.
A road movie among the living dead
In The Dead, American serviceman Brian Murphy survives a plane crash and tries to make his way through a region where the dead attack the living. He meets Sergeant Daniel Dembele, who is searching for his family. They have different reasons to keep moving, but every encounter makes their chances of surviving alone a little slimmer.
Brothers Howard J. and Jon Ford turned that premise into a zombie road movie. Their undead do not sprint; they advance slowly. That is precisely how a vast, empty space can suddenly feel claustrophobic. There is no safe door to slam shut. The journey is the story, and Murphy and Dembele each bring their own search to it.
A film with a new sound
For the screening in Bruges, local band Nick Noel & The Red Rose Rogers are creating a new live soundtrack. Their musical territory—Americana, blues and rock ’n’ roll—might seem more at home in a dusty road movie than a zombie outbreak. That unexpected pairing is what makes the evening so intriguing: what happens to the rhythm of a scene when musicians in the room respond to the images?
A live score does not rewrite a film, but it can change how you experience a glance, a silence or an approaching figure. If you already know The Dead, here is a reason to see it again. If you do not, your first encounter will be a version that exists only at this screening.
Howard J. Ford in Bruges
Howard J. Ford will introduce the film in person. Together with his brother Jon, he made a film that gives the classic, slowly advancing zombie room to roam—quite literally. For Razor Reel, the film, a Bruges band and the filmmaker’s presence make this a Halloween celebration that extends beyond the screen.
The Dead – Live Soundtrack: Nick Noel & The Red Rose Rogers screens on Saturday 31 October 2026 at 8:00 pm in the Magdalenazaal. Howard J. Ford’s introduction is free. The evening is presented in collaboration with CC Brugge.