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Nick Wagner |
Date: 2009-09-18

Let me start off by saying that I'm a huge zombie fan. Whether they're Romero's slow-moving shamblers or the fast-moving runners from Return of the Living Dead / 28 Days Later, I will give any zombie movie a try. Enter Zombieland, which when I heard about it, I instantly thought of that direct-to-DVD drivel you see on the rental store shelf that can barely pass as a B-movie. After watching the trailer however, I was genuinely intrigued. Luckily, my friend managed to get her hands on a few preview passes and what I saw was one of the most fun and enjoyable movies I've seen in years.

I'll say it now: This movie is NOT scary. If you go in expecting scares and frights, you're in the wrong place. While there's the occasional "boo" scare, Zombieland is a horror-comedy in the vein of Evil Dead II, The Return of the Living Dead, Shaun of the Dead, etc. As a matter of fact, the director was inspired by Shaun of the Dead to make Zombieland. The horror-comedy mixture is is a very hard thing to pull off, but this movie does it pretty well, leaning more towards the comedy.

The cast is great, with Woody Harrelson being the stand out. He is such a great tough guy and delivers some truly great one-liners that it brings back memories of his Natural Born Killers days. Jesse Eisenberg is the "goofy dorky guy" that keeps popping up in movies these days. He does a good job, but is nearly indistinguishable from someone like Michael Cera, who plays the exact same role every time. I liked this guy better because frankly I'm sick of seeing Michael Cera these days. Emma Stone (aka Jules from Superbad) plays a good tough girl and looks exactly like she did in Superbad, which isn't a bad thing. Abigail Breslin is fine, but she felt slightly out of place. There's also a bigger-than-a-cameo role by one of the funniest actors of all-time, but I don't want to spoil it here. Trust me, it's hysterical.

That's about it for the cast, except for the zombies themselves, which are very well done. They're gross, gooey, and vicious and the make-up and special effects look fantastic, especially now in the age of CGI crap. The movie does not skimp on the gore, so be prepared for a healthy serving of blood, guts, and zombie bites. The post-apocalyptic scenery looks amazing and really pulls you into the film. Zombie fans, you will not be disappointed.

The comedy is executed quite well. While whether something is funny depends purely on personal taste (pun intended), I think this movie balances gross-out humor, sight gags, witty banter, black comedy and plain-old "Number 2" jokes perfectly. One of the funniest bits is when Woody Harrelson's character rides a roller coaster while simultaneously wielding a shotgun and shoots zombies that follow him around the track. It was clever and a blast to watch. Think of your favorite comedy; Zombieland is probably not as funny as that, but it will definitely make you laugh. It's not the funniest movie ever, but it does an admirable job.

Other than that, I can't think of anything else to say. I have minor nitpicks, but most of them are standard horror clichés that didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the film itself. Do yourself a favor and check this one out, it's a great horror-comedy.

Jason T. Fetters |
Date: 2009-10-03

Right from the start Zombieland is in your face. The opening sequence alone is just great and recalls Max Brooks' The Zombie Survival Guide. Also, it doesn't try to copy Romero's Dawn of the Dead or any of the other countless zombie movies.
It's a very direct film that doesn't waste time with needless character buildup, that would only slow the pacing. Characterization is achieved in between humor and action sequences and that approach works well.
Zombieland starts by introducing the overly cautious and neurotic, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) who reminds me of Woody Allen back in Allen classic comedy films of the 70's.
Columbus is the quiet geeky guy who probably spent his high school years over thinking every detail and was quite possibly bullied by jocks. Now in a zombie infested world, he is forced to become more manly and athletic when taking on the undead.
Then there's Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) who is the gung ho bad ass. I think every zombie movie needs a Tallahassee type because they are so much fun to watch. Harrelson really steals the show in Zombieland. I don't think I've seen him this good since Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers. He looks like he could have fun in any situation in life pre or post zombie infected. I like the scene where Tallahassee is standing next to a bright yellow Hummer and just randomly firing a machine gun.
Next up are the manipulating sisters, Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) and Wichita (Emma Stone) who are both cute and annoying. I was annoyed with their characters at first and as their characters developed they became a little more tolerable. You also need sisters like this in a post zombie world because they will keep you on your toes. They are fun in their own ways and have both survived tough times together. Their strong bond makes them believable and you accept them for who they are.
With all the wonder characters and backgrounds aside, this is really about killing zombies. Who doesn't want to roam America's highways shooting zombies?
It's the ultimate road movie, as the four travel together and fight hundreds of zombies along the way.
As much fun as that is, the ending sequence at the amusement park, cranks up the fun a lot higher. The combination of rides, amusement park games, and shooting zombies is very entertaining.
Director Ruben Fleischer does a tremendous job directing action in the last half of Zombieland.
That's what these movies are all about to me. The cheap thrills of just going for it and taking out all that pent up aggressive shooting, stabbing, running over, hammering, and beating the undead any way you can.
Overall Zombieland is a lot of fun and a good way to kick off this Halloween season. I hope more horror movies come out this good in Halloween.
Some of my favorite Zombie movies are Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Zombi 2, Undead, Shaun of the Dead, Return of the Living Dead, Cemetery Man, Tokyo Zombie, Braindead, and The Dead Pit.
Zombieland deserves its place in the upper echelon of the Zombie movie canon.

Scott Schiefelbein |
Date: 2010-07-20

Sure - you may quibble that there are not too many entries in this competition, but when it comes to Great Zombie Comedies, it's a pretty short list. "Shaun of the Dead" may have the edge because it came first, but "Zombieland" is a wondrously funny, violent and human send-up of the over-saturated Zombie genre.

Ever since "Scream" burst on the scene, a calling card of a hip movie is to walk the viewer through The Rules. "Zombieland" employs that cliche to great effect when we meet Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), a twenty-something survivor of an unexplained zombie apocalypse - this introduction is found in close proximity to one of the most ingenious sets of opening credits ever devised. Columbus - who could be Jonathan Cera's cousin - was never much of a people-person but now is desperate for human contact. He finds it initially in Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a smash-mouth redneck who loves nothing more than shredding zombie faces. Harrelson has that unique combination of sweetness and menace that makes him one of the most exciting actors in Hollywood - and he can play Southern as convincingly as anyone. Tallahassee's rules are no less fixed than Columbus's, and soon they are bonding over zombie carcasses and the Quest for the Last Twinkie.

Tallahassee and Columbus soon find two attractive, intelligent young women (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin) whose dedication to self-preservation may be a little extreme but provides some good comic moments. Despite some initial mishaps, the foursome is soon on the road together, seeking salvation in a zombie-infested wasteland.

Thanks to a witty script, some pitch-perfect acting, and one of the most inspired cameos in all of film, "Zombieland" is a true delight. No, this isn't "Casablanca" or anything close to it. But for what it strives to be, it's hard to imagine a better effort. High marks across the board.

Craig Whittle |
Date: 2009-12-15

ZOMBIELAND

STARRING: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Amber Heard and Mike White

WRITTEN BY: Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick

DIRECTED BY: Ruben Fleischer

Rated: R
Genre: Horror / Comedy
Release Date: 02 October 2009



You know it's been a bad year for movies when a film with a title like Zombieland gets a perfect score and was hands down the funniest film of the year. I'd even go so far as to say it was better than Shaun of the Dead.

I'm a sucker for zombie movies in general (even though there aren't that many great ones) and I see anything and everything that Woody Harrelson does. So throw the two of them together and you are bound to have one hell of a film right? Right!

Pile on more amazing actors like Jesse Eisenberg, who is destined to be the next John Cusack; Abigail Breslin who will be the next Julia Roberts; Emma Stone who will be a new someone all together and you're in for a genuine cinematic treat.

I was so excited to see this film and while I did have expectations for it, they were nowhere even close to what the film actually delivers. It could very easily be nominated for an Oscar for best original screenplay. It's filled with wit and twists, was shot beautifully and the comedy never skips a beat. No wonder these actors were down for the ride; the script must have been amazing.

The film starts out in the muck of the end of the world, overrun with zombies. It was one of the best opening credit sequences I have ever seen in my life and must have cost a fortune. There are never-ending stylized slow-motion shots of zombies being bashed and blown to bits and people being attacked; all seen to the amazing sounds of an old school track by none other than Metallica. And the great music doesn't stop there; we get plenty of great tunes throughout the course of the film.

We meet Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) who is named after his hometown in Ohio. Columbus is a softy of a kid who didn't have the greatest life pre-zombies and may actually prefer his life post-zombies; despite the fact that he very well could die a virgin in a world overtaken by zombies.

He was a loaner then and is an even bigger loaner now. In an attempt to stay alive, he's decided to play it safe and has created a hilarious but strategic set of rules to live by in order to survive this apocalyptic adventure. We learn these rules through laugh-out-loud narrated scenes of him and others in action with the zombies.

Zombies are pretty much the safest monster you would ever want to come into contact with in reality. I think that's what makes these movies so fun and likeable. Perhaps something else is that many of us want to be that guy or gal on screen, smashing and destroying zombies. You can do to them what you would secretly like to do to your annoying neighbor or arrogant boss, and feel absolutely no remorse whatsoever!

Evidently many of us have an itch for killing and a taste for blood somewhere, way down deep inside of us; or these movies would not make more than 25 million dollars in an opening weekend. And by that I don't mean that we all want to go out and murder or kill; but at the very least a lot of us want to watch someone else do it (in movies of course).

Then if you consider the apocalypse side, as devastating as it would be, clearly we enjoy the idea of that as well. Look at all of these huge blockbusters over the last decade alone that have made a killing off of the destruction of our beloved planet.

Zombieland nails that fantasy in the chest. This is one of the major components that make this film work so well. Not only do we laugh at the zombies, but we get to see our characters partake in all of the great and worry-free stress-relievers that we would all enjoy doing if it were the end of the world; like smashing up a perfectly good store just because you can; or finding a deserted truck filled to the brim with delicious treats and no-one to tell you that you can't help yourself.

The character in the film that gets the most use out of this newly found freedom is Tallahassee; played by Woody Harrelson. Tallahassee may even like killing zombies more than The Bear liked killing Nazis in Inglourious Basterds. He refuses to use guns unless absolutely necessary. He finds way more pleasure in bashing them in with car-doors, banjos, baseball-bats and a million other common household items; and we get a kick out of watching him do it.

Harrelson may be a goofball in this film, but his performance is genuine and you believe him in every scene. All of the actors truly suck you in and sometimes you even forget you're watching a zombie movie.

Tallahassee meets up with Columbus and they almost instantly hit it off, despite the fact that they have virtually nothing in common; with the exception that they're in this mess together and neither of them has been infected. They decide to stick together.

Eventually the two of them meet up with two ladies: Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin); all of the characters call each other by the name of their hometown, which is a nice little touch. I won't spoil how funny their meeting is and I especially will not give-away where they all end up going.

I love the man's work but DO NOT read Ebert's review of this film until after you have seen it. A huge spoiler was revealed and I'm not sure he's even aware of how big of one it was; trust me folks, it's a big one. It's perhaps the funniest and most enjoyable section of the film and is spent with a Hollywood legend. The scenes with this person are beyond genius. I would very much like to know if the script was written with this character in mind, or if they were added later. God bless the filmmakers for putting that sequence together either way. It only adds to the comedy of the scene that Woody Harrelson co-starred in a film with this actor in real life, and yet it is never mentioned as Harrelson is acting here.

You would never guess that the artists behind this project were amateurs as far as the big screen is concerned. This is the first major film for both of the writers (Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick) as well as the director (Ruben Fleischer) but I'm sure we will be seeing a lot more from all of them. This is astonishing work for anyone in the business, let alone fresh talent. Rumor has it a sequel is already in the works.

Zombieland will give you your blood, it will give you more laughs than any of the comedies you've seen this year and you will be more than entertained and will probably want to see it again.

My only complaint is that I would have loved to see another 20 minutes or so with these characters slaying zombies; it was seriously that entertaining.

Hopefully Zombieland will show the writers and directors of 2009's biggest movies (with the exception of Star Trek) that clearly you don't need your film to be jam-packed full of useless explosions; and expensive but crappy special effects; and horrible actresses just for the sake of eye candy, to make it good. You just need to put the time into the story and let great actors do the rest.

nightman622 |
Date: 2010-07-26

Zombie culture aficionados rejoice! Your movie has arrived.

If you are a reader of zombie books, a lover of zombie movies, a player of zombie video-games (esp. that last one), you are in for a treat. Off the top of your head, how many rules can you think of for interacting with zombies? If you can think of more than 5, "Zombieland" is for you.

Unlike your uninitiated friends, you do not panic when confronted with zombies. You are well aware of their limitations. You understand that the situation calls for a cool assessment of priorities and resources, and suitable action. You've got to unlock a door while being chased by zombies. But they're closing the distance too fast. Do you turn around, scream horribly, and wait to be devoured?

NO! This is not some goofy B-movie!

You take a lap! Zombies are not bright! They don't know to just wait by the door until you come back and then eat you. They will follow you! All you have to do is put some distance between you and them, run back to the door with more time, and calmly let yourself in.

If this all makes sense to you, buy "Zombieland." If you fantasize about finding a massive cache of large caliber weapons and ammunition during a post-apocalyptic scenario, buy "Zombieland." If you plot what you would salvage from grocery stores after a zombie attack, buy "Zombieland." In fact, just buy "Zombieland." You'll thank me for it.