NIGHTMARE CITY (1980, INCUBO SULLA CITTÀ CONTAMINATA) – Episode 299 – Decades of Horror 1980s

“The autopsy categorically excludes an extraterrestrial being. His molecular structure includes him in the human race.” Wait! Does that mean… atomic vampires are human? Join your faithful Grue Crew – Crystal Cleveland, Bill Mulligan, Chad Hunt, and Jeff Mohr – as they discuss Umberto Lenzi’s atomic vampire flick Nightmare City (1980, Incubo sulla città contaminata). … or is it a zombie flick?

Decades of Horror 1980s
Episode 299 – Nightmare City (1980, Incubo sulla città contaminata)

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ANNOUNCEMENT
Decades of Horror The Classic Era is partnering with THE CLASSIC SCI-FI MOVIE CHANNEL, THE CLASSIC HORROR MOVIE CHANNEL, and WICKED HORROR TV CHANNEL
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Across All OTT platforms, as well as mobile, tablet, and desktop.
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Synopsis: An airplane exposed to radiation lands, and blood-drinking zombies emerge armed with knives, guns, and teeth! They go on a rampage, slicing, dicing, and biting their way across the Italian countryside.

• Director: Umberto Lenzi
• Writers: Antonio Cesare Corti (as Tony Corti); Luis María Delgado (as José Luis Delgado); Piero Regnoli
• Selected Cast:
  • Hugo Stiglitz as Dean Miller
  • Laura Trotter as Dr. Anna Miller
  • Maria Rosaria Omaggio as Sheila Holmes
  • Francisco Rabal as Maj. Warren Holmes
  • Sonia Viviani as Cindy
  • Eduardo Fajardo as Dr. Kramer
  • Stefania D’Amario as Jessica Murchison
  • Ugo Bologna as Mr. Desmond
  • Sara Franchetti as Liz the Maid
  • Manuel Zarzo as Col. Frank Donahue (as Manolo Zarzo)
  • Tom Felleghy as Lieutenant Reedman (as Tom Felleghi)
  • Pierangelo Civera as Bob
  • Achille Belletti as TV Station Technician
  • Mel Ferrer as General Murchison
  • Ottaviano Dell’Acqua as Zombie Outside TV Station (uncredited)
  • Roberto Dell’Acqua as Zombie (uncredited)

For this episode, your 80s Grue Crew wades through the poop-covered zombies (yeah, we know they’re atomic vampires) in Umberto Lenzi’s Nightmare City (1980). Or maybe you prefer one of these titles: Attack of the Zombies? City of the Walking Dead? Invasion by the Atomic Zombies? And those are just the English titles! Lenzi uses a unique blend of zombie and vampire tropes (does that make them zompires or vambies?) that confuses some of the Grew Crew (Jeff) just a little bit. Yes, these atomic vampires/zombies are intelligent, work together, and use weapons, but they don’t seem able to talk. Thank heavens for small favors. Then there’s the ending. It’s maybe the worst (or best, depending on your point of view) ending ever, times two! Remember. We take the hits so you don’t have to.

At the time of this writing, Nightmare City (1980) is available to stream from Wicked Horror TV, Kanopy. Mometu, Flix Fling, and assorted PPV options. It is available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. 

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode, their 300th, will be something special. As the Grue Crews from Decades of Horror Classic Era and 1970s have done, the 1980s Grue Crew will each list their favorite horror films by year for the 1980s. We’re looking forward to it. In the meantime, what are your 1980s horror favorites by year? 

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