1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:17,460 [MUSIC PLAYING] 2 00:00:17,460 --> 00:00:22,350 NARRATOR: Is this man a zombie, one of the living dead? 3 00:00:22,350 --> 00:00:25,560 Do the witch doctors of Haiti know how to cheat death? 4 00:00:25,560 --> 00:00:28,850 Can they raise corpses from the grave? 5 00:00:28,850 --> 00:00:31,190 Can modern science at last expose 6 00:00:31,190 --> 00:00:33,920 the secrets of zombification? 7 00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:34,740 [BAT NOISES] 8 00:00:34,740 --> 00:00:37,550 Mysteries from the files of Arthur C. Clarke, 9 00:00:37,550 --> 00:00:42,390 author of 2001 and inventor of the communication satellite. 10 00:00:42,390 --> 00:00:45,470 Now in retreat in Sri Lanka, he ponders the riddles 11 00:00:45,470 --> 00:00:47,380 of this and other worlds. 12 00:00:47,380 --> 00:00:59,236 [HORN FANFARE] 13 00:00:59,236 --> 00:01:06,152 [CHORAL BACKING] 14 00:01:06,152 --> 00:01:08,622 [DRUMS PLAYING] 15 00:01:08,622 --> 00:01:15,044 16 00:01:15,044 --> 00:01:19,490 [ANIMALS SQUEAKING] 17 00:01:19,490 --> 00:01:22,970 18 00:01:22,970 --> 00:01:25,400 The subject of this program comes straight 19 00:01:25,400 --> 00:01:27,110 from the horror movies. 20 00:01:27,110 --> 00:01:30,590 For decades, visitors to Haiti in the Caribbean 21 00:01:30,590 --> 00:01:32,480 have returned with unnerving tales 22 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:35,340 of zombies, the living dead. 23 00:01:35,340 --> 00:01:37,800 Travelers tell of men and women who are apparently 24 00:01:37,800 --> 00:01:40,670 killed by some mysterious poison slipped 25 00:01:40,670 --> 00:01:44,470 into their food or drink by a voodoo witch doctor. 26 00:01:44,470 --> 00:01:48,650 But after the funeral, the witch doctor returns to the grave, 27 00:01:48,650 --> 00:01:51,730 usually at night, digs up the coffin, 28 00:01:51,730 --> 00:01:55,600 and revives his victim with another secret potion. 29 00:01:55,600 --> 00:01:59,300 This creates a zombie, a creature half dead and half 30 00:01:59,300 --> 00:02:02,230 alive, who can be sold as a slave 31 00:02:02,230 --> 00:02:06,220 to blindly do its master's bidding. 32 00:02:06,220 --> 00:02:08,940 Well, can we believe a word of this? 33 00:02:08,940 --> 00:02:11,360 Haiti is a dangerous and spooky place 34 00:02:11,360 --> 00:02:14,290 where the truth often lies hidden in darkness 35 00:02:14,290 --> 00:02:16,690 of voodoo and superstition. 36 00:02:16,690 --> 00:02:18,730 So it's not surprising that doctors 37 00:02:18,730 --> 00:02:21,850 and scientists have been reluctant to investigate 38 00:02:21,850 --> 00:02:23,910 the zombie phenomenon. 39 00:02:23,910 --> 00:02:26,070 Yet if there's any truth in it, there 40 00:02:26,070 --> 00:02:28,530 could be very important implications 41 00:02:28,530 --> 00:02:29,510 for modern medicine. 42 00:02:29,510 --> 00:02:32,290 [DRUM MUSIC PLAYING] 43 00:02:32,290 --> 00:02:34,780 NARRATOR: Voodoo possesses the hearts, minds, 44 00:02:34,780 --> 00:02:36,240 and fears of all Haitians. 45 00:02:36,240 --> 00:02:42,810 46 00:02:42,810 --> 00:02:46,460 Their ancestors brought this mesmerizing mix of religion 47 00:02:46,460 --> 00:02:48,100 and sorcery from Africa. 48 00:02:48,100 --> 00:03:01,480 49 00:03:01,480 --> 00:03:05,230 In Haiti, death is truly in the midst of life. 50 00:03:05,230 --> 00:03:09,060 The graveyard dominates the capital, Port-au-Prince. 51 00:03:09,060 --> 00:03:12,350 Everything here speaks of the Haitians' worst fear, 52 00:03:12,350 --> 00:03:14,781 that their dead are not truly dead. 53 00:03:14,781 --> 00:03:17,730 54 00:03:17,730 --> 00:03:20,895 An unlocked tomb is an invitation to the sorcerers. 55 00:03:20,895 --> 00:03:25,190 They steal skeletons, bones, and skulls for voodoo potions, 56 00:03:25,190 --> 00:03:28,250 discarding the shattered coffins. 57 00:03:28,250 --> 00:03:32,540 But the padlocks are there to deny them the ultimate prize. 58 00:03:32,540 --> 00:03:34,010 Here, perhaps, is where the witch 59 00:03:34,010 --> 00:03:35,570 doctors find their zombies. 60 00:03:35,570 --> 00:03:40,980 61 00:03:40,980 --> 00:03:43,500 Outside the capital, the people's fears 62 00:03:43,500 --> 00:03:45,190 are even greater. 63 00:03:45,190 --> 00:03:49,010 Father Jean-Philippe recognizes the power of voodoo and magic 64 00:03:49,010 --> 00:03:51,094 over his congregation. FR. 65 00:03:51,094 --> 00:03:52,660 CLAUDE JEAN PHILIPPE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 66 00:03:52,660 --> 00:03:54,820 INTERPRETER: People believe in two forces. 67 00:03:54,820 --> 00:03:57,900 They believe in God, and they believe in magic. 68 00:03:57,900 --> 00:04:00,175 But to get a quicker response, they turn to magic. 69 00:04:00,175 --> 00:04:04,190 70 00:04:04,190 --> 00:04:07,080 NARRATOR: One of his congregation, Sagesse Ariste, 71 00:04:07,080 --> 00:04:09,940 has an extraordinary confession to make. 72 00:04:09,940 --> 00:04:12,810 Her sister died strangely and suddenly. 73 00:04:12,810 --> 00:04:15,130 To prevent her being turned into a zombie, 74 00:04:15,130 --> 00:04:18,837 her family had to take the most horrifying precautions. 75 00:04:18,837 --> 00:04:19,536 FR. 76 00:04:19,536 --> 00:04:21,310 CLAUDE JEAN PHILIPPE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 77 00:04:21,310 --> 00:04:23,620 INTERPRETER: When you realized that your sister had died 78 00:04:23,620 --> 00:04:26,990 in an unnatural way, what did your family do 79 00:04:26,990 --> 00:04:31,152 to make sure she couldn't be raised from the dead? 80 00:04:31,152 --> 00:04:33,120 SAGESSE ARISTE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 81 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:34,220 INTERPRETER: People say that when 82 00:04:34,220 --> 00:04:37,680 you bury that kind of person, you have to cut them up 83 00:04:37,680 --> 00:04:39,620 so they can't be raised from the dead 84 00:04:39,620 --> 00:04:42,660 like they could be if the body was whole. 85 00:04:42,660 --> 00:04:45,650 They cut off her feet, her hands, and her fingers. 86 00:04:45,650 --> 00:04:48,560 87 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:51,920 They chopped off her head and split it in two. 88 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:54,230 And then they buried her with her head at her feet, 89 00:04:54,230 --> 00:04:56,460 and her feet at her head. 90 00:04:56,460 --> 00:04:58,100 And when they did, that she couldn't be taken. 91 00:04:58,100 --> 00:05:00,611 92 00:05:00,611 --> 00:05:01,311 FR. 93 00:05:01,311 --> 00:05:03,380 CLAUDE JEAN PHILIPPE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 94 00:05:03,380 --> 00:05:05,570 INTERPRETER: It's true, this thing about zombies. 95 00:05:05,570 --> 00:05:08,900 It's a reality that confronts you every day. 96 00:05:08,900 --> 00:05:10,760 Even if it's hard to believe, you 97 00:05:10,760 --> 00:05:12,280 have to accept it as a fact. 98 00:05:12,280 --> 00:05:19,810 99 00:05:19,810 --> 00:05:21,230 NARRATOR: High in the remote hills 100 00:05:21,230 --> 00:05:24,250 above the church, an even more extraordinary story awaits. 101 00:05:24,250 --> 00:05:27,800 102 00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:30,400 In this village lives Wilfred Dorissant, 103 00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:34,000 once an intelligent student, now thought to be a zombie. 104 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:36,430 The villagers are convinced that he is the living 105 00:05:36,430 --> 00:05:39,840 dead, a body without a soul. 106 00:05:39,840 --> 00:05:42,570 Wilfred's loving family cares for him as best they can 107 00:05:42,570 --> 00:05:45,470 with the help of Haiti's leading doctors. 108 00:05:45,470 --> 00:05:50,100 He spends the day in stocks to keep him from coming to harm. 109 00:05:50,100 --> 00:05:54,547 His scars point to a past as a zombie enslaved in chains. 110 00:05:54,547 --> 00:05:55,980 MIGUEL DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 111 00:05:55,980 --> 00:05:57,146 INTERPRETER: If you compare the way 112 00:05:57,146 --> 00:06:01,230 he was with what he's like now, that's not my boy at all. 113 00:06:01,230 --> 00:06:03,020 He's an empty shell. 114 00:06:03,020 --> 00:06:04,910 He's a ghost. 115 00:06:04,910 --> 00:06:06,980 NARRATOR: Wilfred's parents can't forget the day 116 00:06:06,980 --> 00:06:08,875 they heard their son had died. 117 00:06:08,875 --> 00:06:11,825 MIGUEL DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 118 00:06:11,825 --> 00:06:14,860 INTERPRETER: When he started to get ill, his eyes went yellow. 119 00:06:14,860 --> 00:06:17,565 120 00:06:17,565 --> 00:06:20,335 ELEANOTTE DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 121 00:06:20,335 --> 00:06:23,520 INTERPRETER: Then he started to lose consciousness. 122 00:06:23,520 --> 00:06:26,010 He would shake his head. 123 00:06:26,010 --> 00:06:27,640 And then at other times, he would 124 00:06:27,640 --> 00:06:30,970 start bellowing like an ogre, and thrashing about, 125 00:06:30,970 --> 00:06:32,200 and throwing himself around. 126 00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:36,730 127 00:06:36,730 --> 00:06:38,980 MIGUEL DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 128 00:06:38,980 --> 00:06:41,060 INTERPRETER: After seven or eight days of sickness, 129 00:06:41,060 --> 00:06:43,270 he died. 130 00:06:43,270 --> 00:06:45,370 When we realized the body was smelling 131 00:06:45,370 --> 00:06:50,830 terrible, starting to rot, we decided to bury him right away. 132 00:06:50,830 --> 00:06:54,990 It was then we knew it wasn't a natural death. 133 00:06:54,990 --> 00:06:58,360 MIGUEL DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 134 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:01,210 INTERPRETER: At that moment, I felt devastated. 135 00:07:01,210 --> 00:07:05,730 If I'd been able to, I would have preferred to die myself. 136 00:07:05,730 --> 00:07:07,480 I felt I had lost all my life. 137 00:07:07,480 --> 00:07:15,670 138 00:07:15,670 --> 00:07:17,730 NARRATOR: The coffin-maker who prepared Wilfred's 139 00:07:17,730 --> 00:07:19,700 body was Renan Fevrier. 140 00:07:19,700 --> 00:07:21,780 He was shocked by its appearance. 141 00:07:21,780 --> 00:07:24,700 He had never seen anything like it. 142 00:07:24,700 --> 00:07:26,680 RENAN FEVRIER: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 143 00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:28,500 INTERPRETER: The smell was awful, 144 00:07:28,500 --> 00:07:30,490 so we decided to put him in the coffin 145 00:07:30,490 --> 00:07:33,850 and bury him immediately. 146 00:07:33,850 --> 00:07:35,860 NARRATOR: Wilfred's body was hugely swollen. 147 00:07:35,860 --> 00:07:38,327 148 00:07:38,327 --> 00:07:39,660 RENAN FEVRIER: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 149 00:07:39,660 --> 00:07:45,040 INTERPRETER: The body was this wide, and this high. 150 00:07:45,040 --> 00:07:47,870 I'd made a coffin, but it wasn't big enough. 151 00:07:47,870 --> 00:07:51,090 So I had to send for another bigger coffin. 152 00:07:51,090 --> 00:07:52,800 But even then, we had to tie it up with rope. 153 00:07:52,800 --> 00:08:01,230 154 00:08:01,230 --> 00:08:04,100 NARRATOR: Wilfred's parents mourned their tragic loss. 155 00:08:04,100 --> 00:08:06,910 They were inconsolable. 156 00:08:06,910 --> 00:08:09,560 But 18 months later, the weekly village cockfight 157 00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:12,260 was dramatically interrupted. 158 00:08:12,260 --> 00:08:14,550 A disheveled figure appeared. 159 00:08:14,550 --> 00:08:18,620 The spitting image of Wilfred stood before the crowd. 160 00:08:18,620 --> 00:08:21,320 His friend, Verdieu Durozel, was amongst 161 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:23,201 the astonished witnesses. 162 00:08:23,201 --> 00:08:24,600 VERDIEU DUROZEL: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 163 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:27,540 VERDIEU DUROZEL: When Wilfred saw me, he recognized me, 164 00:08:27,540 --> 00:08:29,980 but he couldn't remember my name. 165 00:08:29,980 --> 00:08:32,109 I was amazed, because I'd seen him dead, 166 00:08:32,109 --> 00:08:34,309 and I'd gone to his funeral. 167 00:08:34,309 --> 00:08:38,230 And then to see him alive, I just couldn't understand it. 168 00:08:38,230 --> 00:08:38,970 It was a miracle. 169 00:08:38,970 --> 00:08:41,309 170 00:08:41,309 --> 00:08:43,929 NARRATOR: The news that Wilfred had returned as a zombie 171 00:08:43,929 --> 00:08:45,760 spread like wildfire. 172 00:08:45,760 --> 00:08:48,970 Soon, it reached the ears of his father. 173 00:08:48,970 --> 00:08:51,270 MIGUEL DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 174 00:08:51,270 --> 00:08:53,570 INTERPRETER: I saw him, and it was him. 175 00:08:53,570 --> 00:08:56,490 I recognized marks on his body. 176 00:08:56,490 --> 00:08:58,730 I was afraid, but I didn't want to show 177 00:08:58,730 --> 00:09:00,920 this to my wife, or anyone. 178 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:05,750 I put on a brave face, even though I was dying in my heart. 179 00:09:05,750 --> 00:09:08,050 NARRATOR: When she saw his hand, Wilfred's mother 180 00:09:08,050 --> 00:09:09,290 knew it was her son. 181 00:09:09,290 --> 00:09:11,090 ELEANOTTE DORISSANT: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 182 00:09:11,090 --> 00:09:13,370 INTERPRETER: I recognized him by his feet, 183 00:09:13,370 --> 00:09:15,290 and also by this finger. 184 00:09:15,290 --> 00:09:17,460 When he was at school, he used to play football. 185 00:09:17,460 --> 00:09:19,810 And one day, he broke his finger. 186 00:09:19,810 --> 00:09:21,600 Then when he returned, I recognized 187 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:22,860 his finger and his feet. 188 00:09:22,860 --> 00:09:24,310 So I knew it was him. 189 00:09:24,310 --> 00:09:26,980 190 00:09:26,980 --> 00:09:29,440 NARRATOR: The family set out to discover who could have 191 00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:31,920 turned Wilfred into a zombie. 192 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:34,740 They suspected Wilfred's uncle, Bellavoix. 193 00:09:34,740 --> 00:09:37,430 He's been involved in a bitter family land dispute. 194 00:09:37,430 --> 00:09:42,040 195 00:09:42,040 --> 00:09:43,890 Bellavoix was arrested. 196 00:09:43,890 --> 00:09:46,770 He was brought to the provincial capital of Les Cayes 197 00:09:46,770 --> 00:09:47,700 to face trial. 198 00:09:47,700 --> 00:09:51,740 199 00:09:51,740 --> 00:09:54,180 This unique case was heard by the chief 200 00:09:54,180 --> 00:09:57,620 of the criminal court, Judge Jacques Pierre. 201 00:09:57,620 --> 00:10:00,620 Haitian law takes zombification seriously. 202 00:10:00,620 --> 00:10:03,250 The penal code runs it a crime. 203 00:10:03,250 --> 00:10:07,288 It states that zombification should be treated like murder. 204 00:10:07,288 --> 00:10:09,160 JUDGE JACQUES PIERRE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 205 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:11,150 INTERPRETER: I have heard a lot about these cases, 206 00:10:11,150 --> 00:10:14,550 these zombies, these dead people who come back to life. 207 00:10:14,550 --> 00:10:17,900 208 00:10:17,900 --> 00:10:20,830 Bellavoix Doricent confessed that he had killed Wilfred 209 00:10:20,830 --> 00:10:21,975 Dorissant with a powder. 210 00:10:21,975 --> 00:10:26,450 211 00:10:26,450 --> 00:10:30,030 He was found guilty, and was sentenced to life imprisonment 212 00:10:30,030 --> 00:10:30,890 with forced labor. 213 00:10:30,890 --> 00:10:35,650 214 00:10:35,650 --> 00:10:37,530 NARRATOR: Wilfred's death certificate was used 215 00:10:37,530 --> 00:10:39,550 as evidence during the trial. 216 00:10:39,550 --> 00:10:41,520 Before his apparent death, he'd been doing 217 00:10:41,520 --> 00:10:43,720 well as a student in Les Cayes. 218 00:10:43,720 --> 00:10:45,940 By chance, Judge Pierre had a second job 219 00:10:45,940 --> 00:10:49,722 as principal of Wilfred's college, and knew him well. 220 00:10:49,722 --> 00:10:52,500 JUDGE JACQUES PIERRE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 221 00:10:52,500 --> 00:10:53,920 INTERPRETER: I was amazed when I saw 222 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:56,300 this young man was still alive. 223 00:10:56,300 --> 00:10:58,950 He had changed completely. 224 00:10:58,950 --> 00:11:00,780 He'd lost his memory. 225 00:11:00,780 --> 00:11:02,260 He could not speak. 226 00:11:02,260 --> 00:11:03,980 He couldn't understand anything at all. 227 00:11:03,980 --> 00:11:07,980 228 00:11:07,980 --> 00:11:10,030 During the trial, Wilfred Dorissant 229 00:11:10,030 --> 00:11:14,440 was classified as a zombie-- scientifically speaking, 230 00:11:14,440 --> 00:11:17,630 defined as an individual raised from the dead, 231 00:11:17,630 --> 00:11:20,260 and reduced to slavery by a sorcerer 232 00:11:20,260 --> 00:11:21,650 who's taken away his soul. 233 00:11:21,650 --> 00:11:24,260 234 00:11:24,260 --> 00:11:26,650 NARRATOR: In this case, the Haitian state recognized 235 00:11:26,650 --> 00:11:28,810 Wilfred as a true zombie. 236 00:11:28,810 --> 00:11:31,330 But far more often, claims of zombification 237 00:11:31,330 --> 00:11:33,150 turn out to be false. 238 00:11:33,150 --> 00:11:35,670 In the 1930s, this woman was recognized 239 00:11:35,670 --> 00:11:39,850 by her astonished family as Felicia Felix-Mentor. 240 00:11:39,850 --> 00:11:42,860 She had apparently died nearly 30 years earlier, 241 00:11:42,860 --> 00:11:45,110 but now she was alive. 242 00:11:45,110 --> 00:11:47,170 The case was investigated by government 243 00:11:47,170 --> 00:11:51,420 health officer and famous psychiatrist, Dr. Louis Mars. 244 00:11:51,420 --> 00:11:53,460 The family told him they'd identified 245 00:11:53,460 --> 00:11:55,460 the woman from her limp. 246 00:11:55,460 --> 00:12:00,330 Felicia, who died, at been crippled by a broken leg. 247 00:12:00,330 --> 00:12:03,940 DR. LOUIS MARS: I investigated about the broken leg 248 00:12:03,940 --> 00:12:07,140 because it was a focal point where 249 00:12:07,140 --> 00:12:12,660 something should be clear about what happened exactly, you see? 250 00:12:12,660 --> 00:12:16,220 X-ray was made and there was not trace of fracture. 251 00:12:16,220 --> 00:12:18,600 The leg was not broken. 252 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:20,130 NARRATOR: Mars suspected the limp 253 00:12:20,130 --> 00:12:22,950 was caused by malnutrition. 254 00:12:22,950 --> 00:12:29,430 She was well fed, and then she started to walk normally. 255 00:12:29,430 --> 00:12:32,330 NARRATOR: The real Felicia could never have walked normally. 256 00:12:32,330 --> 00:12:36,370 Mars realized this was an impostor, a mental patient. 257 00:12:36,370 --> 00:12:37,870 DR. LOUIS MARS: A mental patient, 258 00:12:37,870 --> 00:12:45,055 but without a broken leg, no direction-- a mental patient. 259 00:12:45,055 --> 00:12:49,710 260 00:12:49,710 --> 00:12:51,420 NARRATOR: But other extraordinary cases 261 00:12:51,420 --> 00:12:53,860 are not so easily explained. 262 00:12:53,860 --> 00:12:57,320 Angelina Narcisse always brings two bunches of flowers 263 00:12:57,320 --> 00:12:59,340 when she visits the cemetery. 264 00:12:59,340 --> 00:13:02,320 She comes to mourn her dead brother, Clervius. 265 00:13:02,320 --> 00:13:04,730 She lays one bunch at the grave where Clervius 266 00:13:04,730 --> 00:13:07,970 was finally interred in 1994. 267 00:13:07,970 --> 00:13:10,370 The other is for the tomb where he was buried 268 00:13:10,370 --> 00:13:11,870 more than 30 years earlier. 269 00:13:11,870 --> 00:13:14,450 270 00:13:14,450 --> 00:13:16,690 ANGELINA NARCISSE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 271 00:13:16,690 --> 00:13:19,140 INTERPRETER: My brother was a zombie. 272 00:13:19,140 --> 00:13:22,560 The first time he died, I was really upset. 273 00:13:22,560 --> 00:13:25,104 NARRATOR: 18 years later, he reappeared. 274 00:13:25,104 --> 00:13:26,570 ANGELINA NARCISSE: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 275 00:13:26,570 --> 00:13:28,280 INTERPRETER: Someone told me that Clervius 276 00:13:28,280 --> 00:13:31,255 was in the marketplace, so I went down there. 277 00:13:31,255 --> 00:13:33,480 A crowd had gathered. 278 00:13:33,480 --> 00:13:37,082 I went right into the middle of it, and there he was. 279 00:13:37,082 --> 00:13:39,130 That was a big shock. 280 00:13:39,130 --> 00:13:40,165 I was beside myself. 281 00:13:40,165 --> 00:13:43,890 282 00:13:43,890 --> 00:13:45,350 NARRATOR: Clervius Narcisse is also 283 00:13:45,350 --> 00:13:48,220 remembered by two retired missionaries, Joy 284 00:13:48,220 --> 00:13:50,090 and Eldon Ausherman. 285 00:13:50,090 --> 00:13:53,350 They spent a lifetime caring not only for the poor of Haiti, 286 00:13:53,350 --> 00:13:55,880 but also for its zombies. 287 00:13:55,880 --> 00:13:58,960 ELDON AUSHERMAN: Now there is, there are the two 288 00:13:58,960 --> 00:14:03,050 zombies, Tifam, it's not the total picture, 289 00:14:03,050 --> 00:14:06,740 and Narcisse, together. 290 00:14:06,740 --> 00:14:09,840 He was buried about a mile of two, two miles out 291 00:14:09,840 --> 00:14:14,930 of Lestere in a country cemetery. 292 00:14:14,930 --> 00:14:18,050 And it was quite a feeling standing there with him, 293 00:14:18,050 --> 00:14:19,500 looking down at his own grave. 294 00:14:19,500 --> 00:14:23,096 [CHUCKLE] That was really something else. 295 00:14:23,096 --> 00:14:24,910 [SLIDE SHOW SOUNDS] 296 00:14:24,910 --> 00:14:30,420 This is Narcisse and his wife, a dead man taking, you know, 297 00:14:30,420 --> 00:14:32,020 legally dead and everything, taking 298 00:14:32,020 --> 00:14:34,280 his-- taking a wife, a bride. 299 00:14:34,280 --> 00:14:37,050 Was quite an event in in that area. 300 00:14:37,050 --> 00:14:40,710 [CHUCKLE] It seemed rather strange to us, of course. 301 00:14:40,710 --> 00:14:42,660 [SLIDE SHOW SOUNDS] 302 00:14:42,660 --> 00:14:46,000 He was a very kindly gentleman, very nice gentleman. 303 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:48,050 We could sit by the hour and listen to him. 304 00:14:48,050 --> 00:14:51,230 He could keep you spellbound for an hour, or two hours. 305 00:14:51,230 --> 00:14:52,410 He'd tell you all about everything. 306 00:14:52,410 --> 00:14:53,650 [SLIDE SHOW SOUND] 307 00:14:53,650 --> 00:14:56,410 [INAUDIBLE] in the morgue, according to this-- the story 308 00:14:56,410 --> 00:14:57,690 I heard him tell us. 309 00:14:57,690 --> 00:14:58,900 He was conscious. 310 00:14:58,900 --> 00:15:00,390 Yes, he was put in a coffin. 311 00:15:00,390 --> 00:15:04,490 And that's when he said he could feel that nail in his cheek. 312 00:15:04,490 --> 00:15:06,210 He was inside the box, and he said they 313 00:15:06,210 --> 00:15:08,110 had driven a nail right in. 314 00:15:08,110 --> 00:15:11,620 And it was stuck in his cheek, but he couldn't move. 315 00:15:11,620 --> 00:15:16,490 And he could hear people talking and he didn't-- he 316 00:15:16,490 --> 00:15:17,430 just couldn't move at all. 317 00:15:17,430 --> 00:15:19,690 And I think this must be the spot where 318 00:15:19,690 --> 00:15:21,890 the nail went in right there. 319 00:15:21,890 --> 00:15:22,950 He was pretty proud of that. 320 00:15:22,950 --> 00:15:28,810 321 00:15:28,810 --> 00:15:31,090 NARRATOR: The man who hammered those nails into Clervius's 322 00:15:31,090 --> 00:15:34,010 coffin was Antoine Veus, the morgue attendant 323 00:15:34,010 --> 00:15:37,804 at the hospital where Clervius was certified dead. 324 00:15:37,804 --> 00:15:40,610 ANTOINE VEUS: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 325 00:15:40,610 --> 00:15:43,280 INTERPRETER: After 18 years, everybody said he's raised, 326 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:47,440 he's raised, Narcisse has come back to life. 327 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:50,370 I said no, it can't be true. 328 00:15:50,370 --> 00:15:53,190 But afterwards, he was brought to the hospital. 329 00:15:53,190 --> 00:15:57,540 When he arrived, I said, yes, that's him-- the man who died. 330 00:15:57,540 --> 00:16:01,900 And he said, here's where you drove the nail into my cheek. 331 00:16:01,900 --> 00:16:03,740 When you were nailing down the coffin, 332 00:16:03,740 --> 00:16:05,900 this is where the nail hit me. 333 00:16:05,900 --> 00:16:08,660 It made me jump, he said. 334 00:16:08,660 --> 00:16:10,850 It was then I realized it was true, 335 00:16:10,850 --> 00:16:12,310 that he really was a zombie. 336 00:16:12,310 --> 00:16:16,284 337 00:16:16,284 --> 00:16:19,400 NARRATOR: Clervius claimed he could remember his death, 338 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:21,540 burial and resurrection. 339 00:16:21,540 --> 00:16:25,200 Today, Wilfred Dorissant finds it hard to talk. 340 00:16:25,200 --> 00:16:28,340 But he was able to tell his story to his friend, Verdieu, 341 00:16:28,340 --> 00:16:31,220 when he first came back. 342 00:16:31,220 --> 00:16:33,550 VERDIEU DUROZEL: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 343 00:16:33,550 --> 00:16:36,280 INTERPRETER: When he first came back, he could talk to people. 344 00:16:36,280 --> 00:16:39,640 I used to go around to his house to play dominoes. 345 00:16:39,640 --> 00:16:42,040 While we were playing, we used to chat. 346 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:43,640 He told me that while he was dead, 347 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:46,660 while he was in the coffin, he could hear everything. 348 00:16:46,660 --> 00:16:48,110 He told me that during the wake, he 349 00:16:48,110 --> 00:16:50,320 could hear his mother crying. 350 00:16:50,320 --> 00:16:52,230 He heard his father speaking while his coffin 351 00:16:52,230 --> 00:16:54,200 was being put in the tomb. 352 00:16:54,200 --> 00:16:59,110 His father said, go, my son, go to God, if God has taken you. 353 00:16:59,110 --> 00:17:03,230 But if an evildoer has done this, God will judge him. 354 00:17:03,230 --> 00:17:05,140 All of this really happened. 355 00:17:05,140 --> 00:17:06,720 I know because I was there, too. 356 00:17:06,720 --> 00:17:08,108 357 00:17:08,108 --> 00:17:11,430 [CHANTING] 358 00:17:11,430 --> 00:17:14,540 NARRATOR: Patients believe the secrets of zombification 359 00:17:14,540 --> 00:17:16,760 are hidden in black magic temples. 360 00:17:16,760 --> 00:17:30,310 [CHANTING] 361 00:17:30,310 --> 00:17:32,810 NARRATOR: This is the temple of one of Haiti's most 362 00:17:32,810 --> 00:17:35,715 feared sorcerers, Altesse Paul. 363 00:17:35,715 --> 00:17:39,353 [CHANTING] 364 00:17:39,353 --> 00:17:44,534 [DRUM AND BELL MUSIC] 365 00:17:44,534 --> 00:17:47,750 INTERPRETER: The witch doctors claim they work magic. 366 00:17:47,750 --> 00:17:51,060 But perhaps a practical knowledge of natural poisons 367 00:17:51,060 --> 00:17:53,990 lies behind their expertise. 368 00:17:53,990 --> 00:17:57,040 It's rumored they have secret laboratories to prepare 369 00:17:57,040 --> 00:17:59,770 poisonous potions which fool families 370 00:17:59,770 --> 00:18:01,495 into burying their dead alive. 371 00:18:01,495 --> 00:18:04,280 372 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:07,410 Altesse Paul it uses all kinds of plants and animals 373 00:18:07,410 --> 00:18:08,770 in his potions. 374 00:18:08,770 --> 00:18:11,910 But the exact ingredients are trade secrets. 375 00:18:11,910 --> 00:18:14,090 His most closely guarded formula is 376 00:18:14,090 --> 00:18:17,590 the recipe for making zombies. 377 00:18:17,590 --> 00:18:20,300 ALTESSE PAUL: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 378 00:18:20,300 --> 00:18:22,790 INTERPRETER: This secret I can never give you. 379 00:18:22,790 --> 00:18:25,070 And the reason I can't give you this secret 380 00:18:25,070 --> 00:18:27,460 is because it's a huge secret which I share 381 00:18:27,460 --> 00:18:30,760 only with my voodoo brothers. 382 00:18:30,760 --> 00:18:32,980 If I have anything to do with zombies, 383 00:18:32,980 --> 00:18:36,010 I keep the secrets to myself. 384 00:18:36,010 --> 00:18:39,390 It's very dangerous to give them to you just like that. 385 00:18:39,390 --> 00:18:42,340 But if you were initiated, it would be my duty 386 00:18:42,340 --> 00:18:44,580 to give you the secrets, because you 387 00:18:44,580 --> 00:18:46,890 would be my legitimate child. 388 00:18:46,890 --> 00:18:48,970 That's the only way I can reveal the secrets. 389 00:18:48,970 --> 00:18:51,850 390 00:18:51,850 --> 00:18:55,510 NARRATOR: But there's a catch-- anyone who has been initiated 391 00:18:55,510 --> 00:18:57,820 is forever sworn to secrecy. 392 00:18:57,820 --> 00:19:00,390 The witch doctors count on no one daring 393 00:19:00,390 --> 00:19:04,230 to break the oath of silence. 394 00:19:04,230 --> 00:19:07,250 This man was once a much-feared voodoo sorcerer. 395 00:19:07,250 --> 00:19:09,690 But now he's a Christian evangelist. 396 00:19:09,690 --> 00:19:13,850 As brother Dodo, he preaches against his old trade. 397 00:19:13,850 --> 00:19:17,080 FRERE DODO: I used to make zombies, I regret it so much. 398 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:20,490 Sometimes I can't help crying. 399 00:19:20,490 --> 00:19:24,920 NARRATOR: Brother Dodo can reveal how zombies are created. 400 00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:27,170 FRERE DODO: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 401 00:19:27,170 --> 00:19:29,710 INTERPRETER: The process is easy, even common. 402 00:19:29,710 --> 00:19:31,950 It makes people swell up. 403 00:19:31,950 --> 00:19:34,740 The main ingredient is crapaud la mer, 404 00:19:34,740 --> 00:19:37,290 the sea toad, or puffer fish. 405 00:19:37,290 --> 00:19:40,270 That's what you use. 406 00:19:40,270 --> 00:19:41,790 You make a powder out of it. 407 00:19:41,790 --> 00:19:45,700 You mix it with maximiate and with a lot of other powders. 408 00:19:45,700 --> 00:19:48,800 You put ashes, water bugs, and earthworms in it. 409 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:51,290 You must have crapaud la mer. 410 00:19:51,290 --> 00:19:54,025 All these ingredients, you use to knock people out. 411 00:19:54,025 --> 00:19:57,820 412 00:19:57,820 --> 00:19:59,770 When they take this puffer fish powder, 413 00:19:59,770 --> 00:20:02,480 they swell up like a barrel. 414 00:20:02,480 --> 00:20:05,740 The powder seeps through the pores of the skin 415 00:20:05,740 --> 00:20:06,950 and destroys the blood. 416 00:20:06,950 --> 00:20:12,924 417 00:20:12,924 --> 00:20:14,290 ARTHUR C. CLARKE: Could these revelations 418 00:20:14,290 --> 00:20:17,980 give a scientific explanation of the zombie phenomenon? 419 00:20:17,980 --> 00:20:22,440 Perhaps we can reconstruct the witch doctor's secret recipe. 420 00:20:22,440 --> 00:20:25,490 First into the mix, and apparently the most important 421 00:20:25,490 --> 00:20:28,450 of all, is this creature, a puffer fish. 422 00:20:28,450 --> 00:20:31,030 423 00:20:31,030 --> 00:20:34,610 It's found in the tropical seas here off the coast of Sri 424 00:20:34,610 --> 00:20:38,550 Lanka, and also in Haiti, where it's known as 425 00:20:38,550 --> 00:20:42,010 crapaud la mer, the sea toad. 426 00:20:42,010 --> 00:20:43,725 And I could see why it might come in useful 427 00:20:43,725 --> 00:20:48,520 for zombification, because the skin and innards of puffer fish 428 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:51,810 contain a deadly nerve poison, 300 429 00:20:51,810 --> 00:20:53,855 times more lethal than cyanide. 430 00:20:53,855 --> 00:20:56,530 431 00:20:56,530 --> 00:21:00,940 Despite this, its flesh is prized as a delicacy in Japan. 432 00:21:00,940 --> 00:21:04,060 Every year, several unfortunate Japanese gourmets 433 00:21:04,060 --> 00:21:06,450 die after eating puffer fish that 434 00:21:06,450 --> 00:21:08,830 hasn't been properly prepared. 435 00:21:08,830 --> 00:21:11,115 Others more fortunate have appeared dead, 436 00:21:11,115 --> 00:21:14,000 only to come around just before their funeral, 437 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:16,390 telling amazed family and friends that they 438 00:21:16,390 --> 00:21:19,300 were conscious all the time. 439 00:21:19,300 --> 00:21:20,890 NARRATOR: Brother Dodo explains how 440 00:21:20,890 --> 00:21:24,740 the puffer fish poison works on the witch doctor's victims. 441 00:21:24,740 --> 00:21:27,260 FRERE DODO: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 442 00:21:27,260 --> 00:21:29,090 INTERPRETER: You don't die. 443 00:21:29,090 --> 00:21:32,510 If you were dead, I couldn't bring your physical body back. 444 00:21:32,510 --> 00:21:35,240 You hear everything that's going on around you. 445 00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:37,510 If your wife cries, you can hear her. 446 00:21:37,510 --> 00:21:39,850 If your husband cries, you hear him. 447 00:21:39,850 --> 00:21:42,330 It it's your children, you hear them. 448 00:21:42,330 --> 00:21:43,780 When you're brought to the morgue, 449 00:21:43,780 --> 00:21:45,245 you can hear the ambulance that takes 450 00:21:45,245 --> 00:21:49,270 you there When you're put in the coffin, you're conscious. 451 00:21:49,270 --> 00:21:52,190 When they take you to the cemetery, you're conscious. 452 00:21:52,190 --> 00:21:54,665 When they close your grave, you're conscious. 453 00:21:54,665 --> 00:21:58,000 454 00:21:58,000 --> 00:21:59,820 You're not really dead. 455 00:21:59,820 --> 00:22:01,740 Your heart still beats, but so low 456 00:22:01,740 --> 00:22:05,216 that no doctor's instruments can tell that you're still alive. 457 00:22:05,216 --> 00:22:06,710 It's an evil thing. 458 00:22:06,710 --> 00:22:11,260 459 00:22:11,260 --> 00:22:13,920 NARRATOR: As part of the continuing medical care devoted 460 00:22:13,920 --> 00:22:17,400 Wilfred Dorissant by the Haitian medical profession, 461 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:20,900 neuro-psychiatrist Dr. Roger Mallory plans to take 462 00:22:20,900 --> 00:22:21,860 Wilfred to Port-au-Prince. 463 00:22:21,860 --> 00:22:25,950 464 00:22:25,950 --> 00:22:28,750 He pronounces his patient fit to travel. 465 00:22:28,750 --> 00:22:37,230 466 00:22:37,230 --> 00:22:41,290 In the capital, he's arranged a brain scan for Wilfred. 467 00:22:41,290 --> 00:22:43,680 This may show if there's any damage. 468 00:22:43,680 --> 00:22:47,470 If there is, he'll try to pinpoint its cause. 469 00:22:47,470 --> 00:22:50,810 Was Wilfred starved of oxygen in his tomb, 470 00:22:50,810 --> 00:22:53,945 or could poison be responsible for his condition? 471 00:22:53,945 --> 00:23:06,996 472 00:23:06,996 --> 00:23:10,430 At the only computerized brain scanner in Haiti, 473 00:23:10,430 --> 00:23:12,980 Wilfred is prepared for the investigation 474 00:23:12,980 --> 00:23:15,085 by radiologist Dr. Gino Joachim. 475 00:23:15,085 --> 00:23:18,720 476 00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:20,980 For the first time, medical science 477 00:23:20,980 --> 00:23:24,900 can penetrate the brain of a man said to be a zombie. 478 00:23:24,900 --> 00:23:27,480 But doctors hope that the truth about Wilfred 479 00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:30,688 will be revealed when they analyze the results. 480 00:23:30,688 --> 00:23:37,032 [BEEP] [BEEP] 481 00:23:37,032 --> 00:23:40,936 482 00:23:40,936 --> 00:23:42,410 DOCTOR 1: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 483 00:23:42,410 --> 00:23:45,550 INTERPRETER: So here we have the brain scan of Wilfred. 484 00:23:45,550 --> 00:23:48,440 We didn't find any lesion of the cerebellum, 485 00:23:48,440 --> 00:23:49,950 but in the ventricular system, we 486 00:23:49,950 --> 00:23:51,470 can see that there is some damage 487 00:23:51,470 --> 00:23:55,730 of the right frontal cone, which we find here, and here. 488 00:23:55,730 --> 00:23:58,640 489 00:23:58,640 --> 00:23:59,940 DOCTOR 2: [SPEAKING HAITIAN CREOLE] 490 00:23:59,940 --> 00:24:04,220 INTERPRETER: Yes, Dr. Gino, I agree with you. 491 00:24:04,220 --> 00:24:06,480 I've often come across this sort of case. 492 00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:08,660 Shortage of oxygen could have been responsible 493 00:24:08,660 --> 00:24:10,440 for this kind of brain damage. 494 00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:12,830 Although it's true-- we might have expected larger lesions. 495 00:24:12,830 --> 00:24:16,290 496 00:24:16,290 --> 00:24:18,410 Nonetheless, the damage to the brain 497 00:24:18,410 --> 00:24:21,990 is consistent with him having suffered a lack of oxygen. 498 00:24:21,990 --> 00:24:25,480 499 00:24:25,480 --> 00:24:27,340 NARRATOR: The doctors have found brain damage, 500 00:24:27,340 --> 00:24:30,410 but can't yet establish its cause for certain. 501 00:24:30,410 --> 00:24:33,700 Perhaps Wilfred was starved of oxygen in his tomb. 502 00:24:33,700 --> 00:24:37,510 But other more natural reasons can't be ruled out. 503 00:24:37,510 --> 00:24:39,730 Investigations continue into this most 504 00:24:39,730 --> 00:24:43,340 extraordinary and poignant of all medical mysteries-- 505 00:24:43,340 --> 00:24:46,280 the riddle of the zombies. 506 00:24:46,280 --> 00:24:48,590 ARTHUR C. CLARKE: So, what can we believe? 507 00:24:48,590 --> 00:24:50,720 Perhaps the whole thing is a myth 508 00:24:50,720 --> 00:24:53,130 created by unscrupulous dictators 509 00:24:53,130 --> 00:24:55,130 to keep their people in check. 510 00:24:55,130 --> 00:24:58,080 Perhaps zombies are simply suffering from mental illness, 511 00:24:58,080 --> 00:24:59,770 or brain damage. 512 00:24:59,770 --> 00:25:02,520 Or maybe a rare neurological syndrome 513 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:05,560 is embroidered by folklore and superstition 514 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:08,600 into something magical and sinister. 515 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:13,220 Yet I'm inclined to take some zombie stories seriously. 516 00:25:13,220 --> 00:25:16,580 If the voodoo witch doctor's potions really do work, 517 00:25:16,580 --> 00:25:20,500 scientists may be able to create powerful new drugs, 518 00:25:20,500 --> 00:25:23,580 particularly anesthetics and painkillers. 519 00:25:23,580 --> 00:25:27,620 Thus, out of evil may come forth good. 520 00:25:27,620 --> 00:25:41,120 [HORN FANFARE] 521 00:25:41,120 --> 00:25:49,220 [CHORAL BACKING] 522 00:25:49,220 --> 00:25:59,770 [DRUMS PLAYING] 523 00:25:59,770 --> 00:26:01,000