Acclaimed zombie flick The Sadness coming to Shudder in May

Shudder has acquired the rights to the bloody Taiwanese zombie film The Sadness, which made quite a splash at the Locarno Film Festival, Fantasia International Film Festival and Fantastic Fest.

It won multiple awards, including Best First Feature at Fantasia and Best Horror and Direction at Fantastic Fest. The Sadness will be available to stream exclusively on Shudder in the US, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand beginning Thursday, May 12.

Zombie films have become one of the most popular horror sub-genres, and recent films such as Train to Busan and One Cut of the Dead have elevated the content drastically. Both of those excellent films can also be viewed on Shudder.

The Sadness was shot on location in Taipei, Taiwan, and features a city besieged by violent, sadistic zombies. A young couple (Regina Lei of 76 Horror Bookstore and Berant Zhu of How to Train Our Dragon) are trying to find one another among the chaos.

Shudder general manager Craig Engler says the film “is a brutal, boundary pushing shocker, one of the boldest and bloodiest we’ve ever acquired.”

Engler went on to say that it would probably have a “well-deserved following” after Shudder subscribers have had the chance to watch it.

The Sadness generated trigger warnings from horror film festival higher-ups (quite a feat for a sub-genre prone to extreme gore), and a practical special effects crew spent three months building heads that were designed to spray blood, and even explode.

Director Rob Jabbaz made his feature film debut with The Sadness, and Raven Banner Entertainment is the sales and distribution company. Raven Banner’s Managing Partner Mcael Paszt declared Shudder “hands down the home for The Sadness,” and said he hopes they can maintain a partnership with the streaming platform.

If The Sadness sounds like your kind of film, but you are not currently a Shudder subscriber, check out the website, where new subscribers can sign up for a free 7-day trial subscription.

In the meantime, check out the bloody, age-restricted trailer below.

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