"Warm Bodies" is a flawed but entertaining mix of "Night of the Living Dead," humor, and romance

Rating: 8/10 (5 June 2013)

Zombie movies are a dime a dozen right now. This charming little mix of action, horror, and a love story changes things up a bit. It provides a satisfying experience, yet left me surprised there wasn't more funny parts.
"Warm Bodies" tells the tale of a zombie named R (Nicholas Hoult). R spends his days wandering through an airport aimlessly. One day he saves a girl named Julie (Teresa Palmer) from an attack by the walking dead. The two become unlikely friends, which appears to restore R's humanity over time. Have they discovered a way to bring the zombie masses back to life?
As a whole, "Warm Bodies" works. I have to say I was expecting more humor than I got. While it was funny, it fell short of delivering the grins trailers promised. Director / Writer Jonathan Levine did a great job with creating a bond between the two lead characters. However, Julie accepts the fact that R ate her boyfriend way too casually.
The zombie carnage and gory imagery isn't downplayed anywhere near as much as one would expect in an adaptation of a young adult novel rated PG-13. There's plenty of scenes of the living dead eating dinner. Creatures called "Bonies" also offer a higher level of horror than what one would expect from a zombie romance / comedy.
Although "Warm Bodies" doesn't deliver the laughs I was expecting, it's still an entertaining and warm film. It's a less campy and more serious mix of 1993's "My Boyfriend's Back" and "I Am Legend." There's something for horror fans and romantics to enjoy in this movie.