Z is for Zombie, and that's good enough for me.
While normally, Z would be for Zu, in this case it isn't.
This time, it's for Zombieland. This is a film I've been wanting to see for quite some time. Now, just so you're aware, this review will have some spoilers. If you have not seen it, DO NOT
It's amazing how fast the world can go from bad to total shit storm.
Time to Nut Up or Shut Up! From the opening sequence, I was almost certain that I was going to enjoy this film. With Jessie Eisenberg reciting his top four rules of surviving Z-Land and explaining how the Zombies came to be, I was relieved that it went the route of 28 Days Later (Another of my favorites) in that they weren't *exactly* Zombies in the Walking-Dead sense. Instead, the Zombies in Z-Land are actually the unfortunate result of a mutated version of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease from a bad burger at a "Gas 'n Gulp"
Jesse Eisenberg is quickly becoming my favorite dopey-doe-eyed actor meant to represent the neurotic outcast early twenty-something. Not that the category really can have too many in it to begin with, but Jesse is a damn sight better than Michael Cera, Jonah Hill, or anyone else who was in any films with the words "Step","Drillbit", "Super", or "Role", if you know what I mean. I fear that once he hits his 30s, though, he will fall into a lull in his career until he can hit his 40s stride ala-Steve Carell as a past-his-prime neurotic outcast.
But, enough about Jesse.. let's get on to the real star of this film: Tallahassee! I have not seen Woody Harrelson nail a role this well since Natural Born Killers. He was able to really pull it out, despite the obvious trouble of trying to remain funny while acting as if you truly are fighting for your life. When he isn't turning Zombie Killing into an art form, he's firing off great one-liners clever enough that if you don't at least chuckle you should probably check your pulse to be sure you're not becoming a zombie yourself! What really impressed me about this role is not only did he manage to be a convincing badass, but there's also a special treat showing Woody's acting range where he shows great vulnerability. You'll have to see that one for yourself though.
There are a lot of pitfalls this film could have made, yet avoided adeptly, but there was one it didn't manage to hop over: Romance. The always-pathetic and romantically awkward Eisenberg started the film with a narrated bit about his love life, or lack there of, and how he has always dreamed of brushing a girl's hair behind her ear. It's obvious that Z-Land tried to go for the typical R-rated Comedy-Romance but fell flat by making Eisenberg a little too pathetic and Emma Stone a little too callous. Overall, the film could have done without the attempted-romance (yes, I'm officially making that a crime.)
If you're a fan of Zombie Comedy films, or Dark/Horror Comedy in general, Zombieland is probably for you. It is, in my opinion, just as good as Shaun of the Dead but did something fresh and new that I have never seen any Zombie Comedy do; it avoided falling back on using parody of other films of the Zombie Genre. No 'coming-to-get-you-Barbara'. No shopping malls. No military bases, prisons, or otherwise heavily-fortified strongholds. Just four people orphaned by Z-Land trying to find some semblance of a normal life.
I give it seven-and-a-half out of ten half-eaten brains.
By Yearrghsworth
This time, it's for Zombieland. This is a film I've been wanting to see for quite some time. Now, just so you're aware, this review will have some spoilers. If you have not seen it, DO NOT
It's amazing how fast the world can go from bad to total shit storm.
Time to Nut Up or Shut Up! From the opening sequence, I was almost certain that I was going to enjoy this film. With Jessie Eisenberg reciting his top four rules of surviving Z-Land and explaining how the Zombies came to be, I was relieved that it went the route of 28 Days Later (Another of my favorites) in that they weren't *exactly* Zombies in the Walking-Dead sense. Instead, the Zombies in Z-Land are actually the unfortunate result of a mutated version of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease from a bad burger at a "Gas 'n Gulp"
Jesse Eisenberg is quickly becoming my favorite dopey-doe-eyed actor meant to represent the neurotic outcast early twenty-something. Not that the category really can have too many in it to begin with, but Jesse is a damn sight better than Michael Cera, Jonah Hill, or anyone else who was in any films with the words "Step","Drillbit", "Super", or "Role", if you know what I mean. I fear that once he hits his 30s, though, he will fall into a lull in his career until he can hit his 40s stride ala-Steve Carell as a past-his-prime neurotic outcast.
But, enough about Jesse.. let's get on to the real star of this film: Tallahassee! I have not seen Woody Harrelson nail a role this well since Natural Born Killers. He was able to really pull it out, despite the obvious trouble of trying to remain funny while acting as if you truly are fighting for your life. When he isn't turning Zombie Killing into an art form, he's firing off great one-liners clever enough that if you don't at least chuckle you should probably check your pulse to be sure you're not becoming a zombie yourself! What really impressed me about this role is not only did he manage to be a convincing badass, but there's also a special treat showing Woody's acting range where he shows great vulnerability. You'll have to see that one for yourself though.
There are a lot of pitfalls this film could have made, yet avoided adeptly, but there was one it didn't manage to hop over: Romance. The always-pathetic and romantically awkward Eisenberg started the film with a narrated bit about his love life, or lack there of, and how he has always dreamed of brushing a girl's hair behind her ear. It's obvious that Z-Land tried to go for the typical R-rated Comedy-Romance but fell flat by making Eisenberg a little too pathetic and Emma Stone a little too callous. Overall, the film could have done without the attempted-romance (yes, I'm officially making that a crime.)
If you're a fan of Zombie Comedy films, or Dark/Horror Comedy in general, Zombieland is probably for you. It is, in my opinion, just as good as Shaun of the Dead but did something fresh and new that I have never seen any Zombie Comedy do; it avoided falling back on using parody of other films of the Zombie Genre. No 'coming-to-get-you-Barbara'. No shopping malls. No military bases, prisons, or otherwise heavily-fortified strongholds. Just four people orphaned by Z-Land trying to find some semblance of a normal life.
I give it seven-and-a-half out of ten half-eaten brains.
By Yearrghsworth