A Scout's Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse

Christopher Landon, 2015

IMDB

3/5

The zombie comedy / zomedy genre is a growing one and thats a good thing. If it weren't for these variations on the genre we would just have a stale template with slightly different tones in six new cinematic installments every year. Edgar Wright's 2004 Shaun of the Dead could easily be regarded as the harbinger of this new generation of zomedy films and is the reigning jewel. Romero's decades of contributions certainly had comedic elements in it, but they were all still rooted in serious tone where people feared what was going on around them. One of the distinctive attributes with the Zomedy genre is the oblivious nature to it. The people aren't distracted by the collapse of civilization. There's more of a silly video game fun-ness involved.

Scouts Guide is more like Zombieland than some of the other Zomedies in it's sandbox model and conspicuous stylism. But it's much sloppier than Zombieland. In fact, it's quite the mess. But there is one thing that saves Scout's Guide from pure spoil. It's the unique scenarios that it creates. These scenarios excuse the movie to a certain degree. Cat zombies, Zombies on trampolines, stripper zombies, zombie Britney Spears fan. Absolutely ridiculous, yes. But absolutely entertaining and undeniably funny. If someone can sit there and watch a zombie mumbling Britney Spears lyrics and not at least chuckle, I'm not sure what will make them laugh. These scenarios make you laugh and make you laugh a little again the next day just thinking about them. You will want your friends to see them too so you can laugh together. Scout's Guide isn't breaking any ground by any means but it's a junk-food Zomedy delight.

Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead

Tommy Wirkola, 2014

Can I Stream it?

3/5

Picking up at the end of the first Dead Snow film, Martin (Vegar Hoel) manages to escape the small army of Nazi Zombies. But he soon finds himself in a hospital and subdued. He discovers that obtaining their gold wasn't the only thing that the Nazi's wanted. They also want to fulfill some missed opportunities from World War II.

You always hope that a sequel can take the original premise of it’s predecessor and build upon it. Dead Snow 2 certainly does this. While the simple story-line of the first film worked well, the sequel manages to elaborate on the premise. At times it's completely ridiculous. On paper, the plot is preposterous. But because it's put in the right hands, it works. It works because it never takes itself seriously. It ventures into the Shaun of the Dead zomedy realm, while also riffing on 1999's Idle Hands (possibly the first film to do so). It pokes fun at the American obsession with the zombie genre, and the sci-fi genre for that matter. Not afraid to employ such tropes as the bored cop looking for some action. The protagonist assembling a group of amateurs to take on the big big boss, the David vs. Goliath device. It doesn't hold back on the gore, being completely unforgiving to humans old and young. Wirkola gets quite creative with the carnage: zombie pets, organ extraction, siphoning gasoline through human intestines. It probably won't work on everyone, either. Some people likely expect more of a serious Walking Dead-like approach to the zombie genre. But films like this are great because they aren't afraid to venture out a bit, attempting to shift to something other than cold Dystopian horror. When the zombie movies stretch into the comedy realm its refreshing, serving as a palette cleanser of sorts. In fact, most of them are pretty good (Zombieland, the aforementioned Shaun of the Dead, Fido, My Boyfriend's Back, Warm Bodies to name a few). The general zombie genre is an over-saturated category of film with more bad than good. Dead Snow 2 manages to evolve from the ordinary, taking some risks that could have just as easily placed it in the campy realm but instead puts it right up there almost on the same level with Edgar Wright's 2004 zom-com.

Warm Bodies

Jonathan Levine, 2013

Can I Stream It?

3/5

Young zombie "R" (Nicholas Hoult), who retains a sense of consciousness after turning undead, finds himself changing yet again after coming into contact with  living human Julie (Teresa Palmer).

Jonathan Levine's heavily-CGI'd Zom-Rom-Com takes the threadbare zombie genre and ultimately delivers a refreshing twist. In a plot that could be pitched as My Boyfriend's Back meets BBC's In the Flesh mini-series, Levine provides an engaging story that is delivered using a simple three-act structure where zombie gets girl, zombie loses girl, zombie gets girl back. Through elaborate digitally-constructed set-design, Warm Bodies reveals a dystopian graffiti-glazed landscape where humans are really faced with two opposing forces: quick-moving zombies and even-quicker zombie sub-class Boney's (who greatly resemble the creatures in I Am Legend). The streets, largely unforgiving, are closed off by a fortified wall protecting the remaining surviving humans from the hungry brain-eaters in the remnants of the old city. Levine creates zombies that hunt in packs and have routines. When they capture a meal they feast on the brain. This gives them the ability to absorb their memories, all of which is displayed through snappy editing in which you yourself feast on the eye candy of warmly-lit sentimental moments from the unfortunate victim's past.

It's not only what Levine does with the story that makes it work, it's also what he doesn't do. He doesn't dumb the film down by spending time explaining things to the newcomer. He effectively lays out the back-story by using R's narrative. He also doesn't make things unnecessarily complex either by making the often-used social statements or satirical notes like so many other zombie films. Instead, he introduces you to R, who can barely mumble a word in the first few minutes. It's a slow build. At first you're stuck in the confines of an airport fuselage listening to old Dylan LP's with him. But as R's heart begins to beat again, and the color slowly returns to his face, the story comes to life. By the climax, you're on board and wish you could be there with a baseball bat in your hands fighting alongside everyone. 

Top 5 Zombie Films Of All Time

5. Dead Snow
(Tommy Wirkola, 2009)

How can you not love a film about Nazi zombies?  Its a Norwegian film shot on a budget of $800K. The opening scene of the movie is shot in a car with a group of medical students on their way to a Ski weekend in a remote cabin. The mountainous winter landscape is beautiful in the beginning of the film and maintains that same scenic beauty throughout - contrasted by gory, blood drenched snow.

4.Shaun of the Dead
(Edgar Wright, 2008)

The best "Zomedy" film made to date. I can't imagine ANYONE other than Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as the leads. They are so perfect as the oblivious buddies who have no idea whats going on around them. Like 28 Days Later, the film is entirely based in London. Funny throughout the entire film.

3. Dawn of the Dead
(George Romero, 1978)

Its probably considered a more complete, entertaining film than Night of the Living Dead but definitely not as iconic. Either way, very entertaining. Sure, its campy - and the makeup on the zombies leaves something to be desired - but I found myself living vicariously through the main characters. I found the beginning of this film to be somewhat confusing and diluted, but it picks up soon after and maintains that momentum through the rest of the film. I think a lot of people have had that childish fantasy of being able to live in a mall, grocery store, etc. and having it to yourself. You see that acted out in this film, with the conflict being that you never know how safe you really are. You have to be aware of the slow moving zombies and the bandits trying to inhabit your location.

2. 28 Days Later
 (Danny Boyle, 2002)

I have probably seen this film close to ten times by now. Danny Boyle provided so much realism that it really gives you a sense of how things would be if a global pandemic hit and turned everyone into rage fueled zombies. Some people say that this film is not a zombie film because 1) the zombies run and 2) because its a "rage" virus that makes them violent but not necessarily flesh eaters. I discount both claims and say that it reinvents the existing zombie genre and takes a more realistic approach. I have NO problem with zombies running. Cillian Murphy is great in the lead. The sequel "28 Weeks Later" is also pretty good, although not directed by Boyle (Boyle produced the film though). Danny Boyle apparently has a preliminary plot laid out for a "28 Months Later" that I would love to materialize within the next few years.

1. Night of the Living Dead
(George Romero, 1968)

This is the film that started it all. While some may consider it too campy and outdated... it HAS to be on the top of the list.This is the film that created the zombie genre without actually ever mentioning the word "zombies". Made on a budget of $115,000, the film has now grossed $30,000,000 worldwide. Because the film was shot in B&W, it gave Romero the liberty to use Chocolate syrup for fake blood. It was originally supposed to be a horror comedy, and ultimately became a highly influential film with ambitious, societal statements.