A film review by Craig J. Koban October 15, 2009, |
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ZOMBIELAND
Columbus: Jesse Eisenberg / Tallahassee: Woody Harrelson / Wichita:
Emma Stone / Little Rock: Abigail Breslin / Neighbor: Amber
Heard / OK guy: Mike White |
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No.
Seriously.
Just ponder this: Zombies are mindless and unfeeling (although they
do have a passion for eating people); they are also slow and lumbering (if
you exclude a few recent zombie films, like the very decent Zack Snyder-helmd DAWN OF THE DEAD) which makes them humorous to look at; and
they have a hilariously overzealous appetite for just human blood and
organs (which begs the question: should they not moderate their diets a
bit? What will they munch on once
all the humans on earth have been eaten?).
What’s perhaps most guffaw inducing is that they are – in most
examples – insidiously non-defensive. They hobble towards their prey with the pace of a geriatric in a
wheelchair only to be easily blow to bits because of their alarming lack of
self-preservation. Even
funnier? Their zombie
brothers and sisters continue on forward after one zombie has been whipped
out only to also befall the same fate.
I mean, they are the most uproariously easy targets in the history
of the cinema. Alas,
perhaps the finest way to make zombie movies these days is to make them
ripe for comedy, seeing as they have become progressively less menacing
with each new film. Hamming
it up with these hysterical creatures seems like the only sure-fire method
of success, and that’s precisely what Ruben Fleischer (making his
directorial debut) and Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (the screenwriters,
who previously penned shows for Spike and MTV) have done with the
affectionately entitled ZOMBIELAND, a slick, fast paced, and gut-wrenchingly hysterical homage and satire of the undead
creatures. Although not
reaching the high laugh quotient and smart subversive edge of the film
that inspired them, SHAUN OF THE DEAD (arguably the freshest and funniest
zombie film ever), Wernick et al do a bravura job of mixing gory,
splatter-house action sequences with acerbic, Three
Stooges inspired high jinks. Of course, the zombies in the film are
predictably…well…zombie-like and the story they operate in is one that
has endless regurgitated elements from pervious genre films, but there is no
mistaking ZOMBIELAND as a fresh, clever, and insidiously goofy 88-minute
fun house freak show. Okay,
so the zombies are not strictly of the Romero variety (much like many
recent movie zombies, they are the by-product of a vicious global plague).
The biological illness has rotted peoples’ brains, leaving them
as nothing more than cannibalistic killing machines. However, they still remain the highly obligatory human
survivors that have not been “turned” into flesh eaters…yet. The narrator (and one of only a small handful of survivors)
is named Columbus (the terrifically understated comic-character actor Jesse
Eisenberg, who harnesses a Woody Allen-esque ability to be
self-deprecatingly neurotic to score huge laughs) who is named after the
city he fled from (he was once, in an inspired flashback, nearly killed by
one of his door neighbors at college). Considering
that Columbus does not fit the profile of a rough and rugged post
apocalyptic survivor (he’s a yuppie, skinny nerd decked out in Gap
Khakis and packing a shotgun), he still has nonetheless survived his trip
across the country in an effort to get home to his parents.
How has he kept alive?
Well,
by having a list of 31 very specific rules to staying alive (which are
amusingly shown as video game style graphics on screen).
Some of his rules seem like a dissertation that attacks the
conventions of nearly every bad horror film of the last several decades
(like, always look in the back seat of parked car before entering) whereas
other seem comically inspired (like, maintain good cardio so you can
outrun zombies, always be weary of bathroom stalls, and – most
importantly – always, always use the double tap your prey with
your gun to make sure
the ghouls are good and dead). By
the way, if you accidentally break the rule about checking the back seat,
don’t worry, as long as you follow another rule (wearing a seatbelt) you
can make incredibly sharp brakes to send the zombie passengers right
through the front windshield). At
one point on his trek Columbus encounters another lone human survivor, a red
necked, Twinkie loving, and shotgun wielding zombie killer named
Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson, whom has not cheekily cut loose in a
liberating comic performance like this since THE PEOPLE VS. LARRY FLINT)
who is on his way to Florida for two things: to kill as many zombies as he
can in the most deplorable manner possible and to find Twinkies (which
are very rare). As
Columbus’ voice over informs us, Tallahassee has “set the standard for
‘Not to be fucked with’” and it soon becomes apparent that this
country bumpkin totally lives
up to his moniker. Tallahassee
is no normal zombie ass-kicker. Nope.
Rather, he uses a sickeningly innovative arsenal of weapons beyond
guns to kill his monstrous victims, with everything from hedge clippers,
to tire irons, to cars, to – my personal favourite – a ukulele.
Gotta admit, that latter item has never been used before. Columbus
eventually becomes Robin to Tallahassee’s Batman, and some of their
misadventures are interesting (I especially loved a moment when they find a
fully functioning Hummer loaded with firearms, to which the trailer trashy
Tallahassee screams into the air, “Thank God for rednecks!").
Eventually, the pair hook up with the only other survivors, two
sisters named Little Rock (a feisty Abigail Breslin) and her older sibling
Wichita (an alluring and sexier-than-normal Emma Stone). After a
series of setbacks, the entire posse decides to head to Southern
California, a rumored safe-zone free from zombie hordes.
This, of course, brings them to Beverley Hills where – through
the assistance of a star map – they seek shelter at the mansion of a
real life actor (playing himself, and showing what a resoundingly good
sport he is at mocking his image). I would not dare, as far too many other shameful critics
have, to reveal which actor appears to spiritedly lampoon himself, but
let’s just say that it is the most hysterical cameo in a long
time. His appearance culminates in one moment that had me laughing longer and harder than
any other from 2009. It
involves a shotgun, the actor himself, a very startled Columbus, and the
actor dissing one of his more notorious
paycheck films. Again,
perhaps the smartest element to ZOMBIELAND is that it goes straight for
laughs first and for scares a very distant second.
Fans of gross out horror films should not worry, though, because
the film is still wall-to-wall with gratuitously sadistic – but
ham-infestedly over-the-top – zombie killings (in particular I liked how
one elderly woman uses a suspended piano as a weapon).
I enjoyed how much sick enjoyment and invention the director and
screenwriters are clearly displaying here with the various methods to
murder the ghouls, but the real pleasure of the film is to see how well
they balance all of the visceral mayhem with a finely tuned comic
sensibility. Many of the
largest laughs come from the dialogue exchanges (ripe with pop culture
references, snide remarks, and perfectly timed dead panned insults).
One freakishly funny sequence involves Columbus indirectly insults Tallahassee’s
intelligence, to which he responds, “Wanna see how hard I can punch?”
There is also a scathing scene where Columbus
pathetically tries to chat it up with Wichita:
“Let’s play the quiet game,” she tells Columbus, to which he
sheepishly replies, “I’ve actually been meaning to ask you a question.”
She rightfully then snaps back, “You’ve obviously have never
played the quiet game!” Perhaps
the funniest line comes from Tallahassee; after he recounts a painful
moment from his pre-apocalyptic past he blubbers and states, “I have not
cried like that since TITANIC.” As
ravenously funny and smart as ZOMBIELAND is, the film is still beset with
problems. For starters, for a film that wittily satirizes the zombie
and horror genre, ZOMBIELAND’S script still falls victim for some of
the lame
clichés and conventions of the films it’s trying to mock.
For example, if you’re in a hummer, why jump out and crass it
into zombies when it’s the only thing between you and the zombies?
Also, why would anyone risk their lives after being at a
well-fortified celebrity mansion, safe from zombies, by going to an
elaborate amusement theme park? Wouldn’t
the noise and bright lights attract the zombies? Also, how in the world could ascending to the top of the
highest elevated ride in the park (which
bobs up into the air and down to the ground) secure yourself from a zombie
horde? I guess the point is
that there is no logical reason for the survivors to go to a carnival, other than
the logical movie reason of using the
rides as devilish props to kill even more zombies. ZOMBIELAND is a generously short film: at 88 minutes, it’s perhaps just the right length, especially when one sees that there is very little in the way of a substantial plot here. Then again, there is really no need for a story, just a series of vignettes that are designed to connect all of the film’s sinful comedy and gruesome and gooey mayhem. The best accolade that one could bestow upon ZOMBIELAND is that it knows exactly what it is: a very tongue-in-cheek horror comedy that places more stock in making us chuckle than terrifying us (which is another minor quip – the film is rarely scary at all). If you’re looking for an entertaining road comedy involving a college doofus, a vengeful red neck with a sweet tooth, a hot young girl-empowered hustler and her sister/partner in crime all blowing zombies to smithereens, then ZOMBIELAND will go down most assuredly well. After all, zombies are best reserved for sidesplitting laughs now anyways. Wouldn't you agree? |
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