In Blakely Alabama on April 12, 1865, the American civil war is winding down. Yankee soldiers have taken over the town. The Confederate soldiers that have not been killed are gathered in a field outside of town. Jeremy (Chad Sheets) is a boy who imitates the Confederate soldiers as he plays. He dons a Confederate uniform as part of his fantasy. Since he is wearing the enemy uniform, the Yankee officer (David Ault) in charge makes him stand with the actual Confederate soldiers instead of with the women and children.
The officer tells the captives that the area in front of them is a mine field, dug by the Confederates, that was responsible for several of his soldiers being killed. He then orders them to cross the field. He says whoever manages to cross the field without triggering a mine and blowing up is free to continue on. Jeremy is believed to be special and possesses supernatural abilities. He is the only one who was able to cross the field without triggering a blast. Once he reaches the other side he is told to turn around and walk, once again, across the mine field.
About a hundred years later two guys from the 44th division of the American Army are out marking an area when they are killed by zombies. Not long after that a squad of soldiers, led by Sgt. Leona Hawkins (Nichelle Nichols), is out on maneuvers in the woods near Blakely. Part of her squad consists of Pvt. Ray Ellis (Maxwell Caulfield), Pvt. Angela Lejune (Talia Balsam), Pvt. Tim Cort (Bobby Di Cicco) and several others, all rookies. After marching around in the woods, Hawkins decides to make camp. The area she picks is in an area where the ground appears lifeless.
While in the woods they find a woman. She says her name is Melanie (Margaret Shendal) and that she lives nearby but doesn’t reveal any more information. Melanie is fascinated by Pvt. Ellis who she believes is the reincarnation of her dead husband. That night, Pvt. Cort wanders away from camp and is killed by a couple zombies. The next day the squad begins searching for Cort. While looking they come upon a rustic cabin. Inside is an old man (Patrick ‘Grampy’ Davis). He appears to be harmless, so they continue on until they find Cort’s body. Hawkins decides to end the maneuvers and return to camp in the morning.
That night, the woods become layered with an eerie fog. In the fog come the zombie Confederate soldiers that died in those woods a hundred years ago, and they are looking for revenge.
“The Supernaturals” was released in 1986 and was directed by Armond Mastroianni. It is and American science fiction horror film. So far there has been no DVD release, just old VHS formats in circulation.
The concept was interesting, but the execution was mediocre. The dialogue wasn’t interesting and the acting was a bit plain. Nichelle Nichols as the hard-ass Sgt. Leona Hawkins was difficult to believe. The zombies were fine, but you didn’t get to see much of them. It’s not a bad movie, but it is a bit drawn out. The atmosphere, however, is nice and creepy. It’s OK but so much more could have been done with the idea than was presented. More zombies and a faster pace would have made the film a lot more fun.
Singer and song writer Maurice Gibb from the “Bee Gees” rock group wrote music for the film, but it wasn’t used. He did have a cameo in the film as one of the Union soldiers.