Zombieland (2009) Reviewed by Bryan Schuessler
Ruben Fleischer, (producer of Fantasy Factory, Rob and Big) has directed one of the most humorous, action-packed, zombie films infused with gore on such a charming level that one forgets they are watching a movie on flesh-eating zombies on a completely apocalyptic level. The comedic value nad intensity surpasses Shaun of the Dead. The gore level is close to being on par with many of the zombie films of the last decade and caters to an audience with a sharp wit, good eye for humor, and a love of the zombie film genre with knowledge ability of all the rules for a zombie apocalyptic uprising. The film starring Woody Harrelson (Natural Born Killers) and Jesse Eisenberg (Adventureland), possess so much chemistry between the two who performed on such a wonderful level, in a seemingly perfect match of characters. Followed up with supporting actresses Emma Stone (Superbad) and Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine), this casting team has created one of the better troupes for comedic banter within characters.
The introduction to Zombieland starts off as no other movie that I have seen, winning me over with the first bang of the epic bell that is in Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls”. As if playing that song in the intro was not enough to get one’s heart racing, the film goes even further by editing a sick montage of violence, mayhem, and extremely inventive ways to tear a living dead zombie apart. Metallica’s first three albums are my favorite and it was nice to see one of my favorite songs used in a film that revolves around zombies. There almost was a 3-D look and feel to the introduction, throwing the credits in your face and making them a part of the mayhem. I actually sat there headbanging to the tune of Metallica with a perversely evil grin creeping across my face until the very end of the montage. I was saying to myself, ” If this is the only decent part of the film, I will have left the theater a very happy man.” Thankfully, the film continued to get better and better.
The story works well in telling the story of Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), who narrates throughout the film, and how he has survived up until this point by learning and making a numbered list of do’s and don’ts when dealing with the reanimated dead. The plot is sprinkled with so much humor and classic lines of humor through-out the dialogue I was literally laughing almost every 5 minutes, if not more. After Columbus meets up with Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a no non-sense, ass-kicking, twinkie-obsessed, fearless, hard-ass, things really start to heat up. Tallahassee has outfitted a Cadillac Escalade with an iron wedge on the vehicles front grill that is used for plowing through anything that is in its way: cars, debris, living-dead zombies. You know- the usual!
So now Columbus and Tallahassee have formed a bond, driving around looking for Twinkies and any other survivors which is when they run into Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), their zombie destroying posses growing two members larger. The chemistry that each character has each other works out perfectly, complementing each other. Harrelson’s edgy bad-ass personality reminded me of bits and pieces of him from Natural Born Killers as Mickey Knox, although much nicer.
The film has some excellent scenes of gore and blood splattering, thrown in with dashes of gut-busting humor and wise-cracks, making it the most enjoyable zombie film that I have ever scene. Really making it easy to compare to Shaun of the Dead, which I really liked, Zombieland takes the action-humor-horror mixed genre to the next level. The relentless pace of the comedic zombie kill-fest was relentless and never let up. But, the biggest surprise of it was having a delightful cameo by one of my favorite actors of all time, Bill Murray (Caddyshack, What About Bob?, Stripes). Bill Murray comes into the picture when our crew of four head out to California, stopping at Hollywood on their way, to do a little house-crashing to relax and load up supplies and what not. They go to Bill Murray’s lavish crib, stopping to get a map of the stars on their way. After our trio finally gets to the amusement park which has been the ultimate goal for Wichita and Little Rock, we see where the title truly comes into play. I believe that slaughtering the undead at an amusement park filled with roller coasters, gravity defying drops and dip rides, and freak-filled haunted house attractions is the way to go to keep the audience interested at all times. Thrown into the mix is a killer Rock soundtrack that adds some adrenaline to every scene it is thrown into.
Zombieland is a massive brain-hemmoraging of carnage, humor, wit, and savvy edits entwined with characters full of substance, charisma, and laugh outloud lines of comedy that the genre of this film crosses many and aims to please all. Go and see this film and learn all about battling the forces of the undead, while laughing along the way.
