A new life for zombies?

Rating: 9/10 (10 April 2004)

As a zombie fan I've to say I'm currently over the moon at the upsurge in zombie movies at the moment. From what I can gather I've Mr Danny Boyle and the great 28 Days Later to thank for that. It seems this has allowed films with the dreaded "Z" word to be bankrolled once again allowing for more undead shenanigans since the late 70s.
Even with all this in mind its amazing that a film like this was made. This is a romantic situation comedy where the situation is zombies attack!
I would have imagined that this would have been stamped too gory for fans of romantic comedy and too soppy for horror enthusiasts leaving it in limbo. However due to the success of "Spaced" this was thankfully given a green light and it works.. and its because of a great cast, script and execution.
Of special mention is The first 30 minutes of this film. Similar to the first few minutes of the latest Dawn of the Dead but vastly extended. We catch glimpses at every turn of the upcoming zombie menace as we follow Shaun through his day. Its funny in a nervous laughter way. One second we see army trucks that are being sent into contain a "problem in south east england" on the news only to see them pass by Shaun moments later. This may not sit well with more impatient audiences but it allows for some (shock!) character development and sets the scene wonderfully. The more attention paid the more you'll get out of it. A sequence when shaun flicks through tv stations and effectively misses all the news reports is worth the price of admission alone.
The real strength though comes from the fact that this is a refreshing change from the "survival horror computer gameesque" zombie films of late. It addresses how people would deal with zombies in a much more realistic way than the average zombie flick. Certainly from the perspective of a resident of a country which doesnt have a "right to bear arms" anyway! Even with access to guns the never ending ammo, perfect shot world often portrayed in American zombie films is unrealistic. This film has one gun and thats used atrociously / hilariously (eg. a one liner falling flat on its face because of not cocking a shotgun!).
Characters make do with what they have. They plan poorly and get themselves in bad situations for real reasons. Because they are stressed ...not because of an attachment to a pet. The only exception to this is where the comedy is allowed to overplay the reality of the situation. For example one scene has Shaun and his flatmate fight off the zombies with vinyl records. Its a bit detracting but also funny enough to justify its inclusion in the film.
Comedy elements extend to references to other genre films, especially romeros dead trilogy ("we're coming to get you Barbra!). These are probably included to keep the attention of the zombie nerds who may get bored when there hasn't been a decapitation in three minutes. However this approach is not perfect. There are times when theres probably too much zombies in a row then too much romantic comedy. So if you are there for one or the other you will think the film is dragging. Those who can appreciate both will be more than happy though and the moments when they intermingle perfectly are gold.
All in all if the current Zombie film craze wants to last any longer its going to need films like Shaun of the Dead to run with new and interesting ways of using what is in all fairness an already tired and well explored genre.