The horror movie genre has been hit hard since its inception.
No one really gives it any credit, and when new movies come out they are typically torn apart by the media. Zombieland was in danger of falling into this trend, but to my surprise and delight it did not.
At the perfect running time for a horror movie, 89 minutes, Zombieland is a non-stop thrill ride filled with gore, romance and a whole bunch of comedy.
The film opens with a slide show of zombie attacks in various situations, setting the tone for the movie. It is literally a continuous romp of zombie battles. The story is based around four people living in the United States after a virus turned the majority of the world into undead flesh eaters. The characters, who are all purposefully named after cities, grow to trust each other over the 89 minutes while battling the undead hordes.
Three main points in this movie make it phenomenal.
First, there is the gore. Every good horror movie needs a healthy surplus of gore and Zombieland is no different. What makes this movie so wonderfully grotesque is how real the blood and guts look. Typically horror comedies are not known for spending a lot of money on the graphics. This movie does. This film hits a wide range of disgusting from green bile vomiting to a woman’s Achilles tendon being torn out via a zombie’s mouth. This may seem revolting, but the combination of the graphics and comedic script allows viewers to forget how wonderfully bloody this film is.
Secondly, this movie’s script is pure brilliance. Complete with a cameo from Bill Murray, who plays himself; Zombieland will have the audience in stitches. Don’t be fooled though. Amidst the countless number of laughs and one-liners there is some heart to this blood bath. Tallahassee’s (Woody Haralson) son is killed by the zombies prior to him coming into the film. Columbus (Jessie Eisenberg) is just trying to get back to his family in Ohio and Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) are two sisters looking out for each other. This break from the comedy creates the perfect dichotomy in the script. It allows the audience to gain a personal relationship with the characters, keeping the audience continuously interested in what happens.
Lastly, there is the run time. Though not something typically discussed with movies, many films are flawed by long or short run times. Zombieland is perfect: not too long to bore the audience and not so short viewers will be left feeling unsatisfied.
The only thing really wrong with Zombieland is the new standards it sets for horror films. It’s already hard to take zombie films seriously, and now we have a comedy so wonderful in the genre it will make people loathe serious undead films.
All in all, this is a small issue. Zombieland is the perfect way to spend an evening; lots of laughs, tons of fun and loads of gore.