White Zombie

TCM's Dave Karger introduces White Zombie, 1932.

Ben Mankiewicz introduces White Zombie, 1932.

Opening by independent producer-director brothers Edward and Victor Halperin, Madeline and Neil (Madge Bellamy, John Harron) arrived in Haiti, their coachman (Clarence Muse) alert and “Murder Legendre” (Bela Lugosi) lurking, in White Zombie, 1932, often cited as the first "zombie" movie.

Evil Hatian entrepreneur “Murder Legendre” (Bela Lugosi) at the cemetery with Beaumont (Robert Frazer), who’s paid him to bring back Madeline (Madge Bellamy), whom they had to kill, as a zombie, reviewing his own zombie posse en route, in White Zombie, 1932.

Maybe the best sequence in the picture, revealing the sugar mill in Haiti, staffed by zombies and owned by “Murder Legendre” (Bela Lugosi), visited by neighbor Beaumont (Robert Frazer), who wants him to bewitch his lady guest, in the pre-code independent horror quickie White Zombie, 1932.

Bela Lugosi stars in the first and still one of the best movies about the dead who walk, White Zombie (1932) with trailer narration by Criswell (Plan 9 From Outer Space).