A refreshing look at the zombie story

Rating: 7/10 (3 January 2014)

As is often the case, this story can be seen as another retelling of what has come before -- zombies, boy meets girl, boy meets girl from a forbidden family, and so on. That's particularly the case for the Romeo and Juliet aspect of Warm Bodies, right down to the balcony scene. But ultimately, I found this to be a funny, enjoyable, and refreshingly different entry in the zombie genre.
Nicholas Hoult does a fine job as R, the zombie with feelings whose inner monologue carries the story, and Teresa Palmer is also good as Julie, R's living love interest. The plot is dangerously simple, but the film engages the viewer by leaning heavily on the likability of its stars and using humor and intelligent writing effectively -- the zombie security guard reflexively scanning other zombies at the airport security checkpoint, the things R keeps in his airplane home, funny throwaway lines by R and M (Rob Corddry) -- to keep the audience entertained throughout.
There are plot holes and nit picks if you want to find them, but it's a zombie movie, so willing suspension of disbelief is a requirement. If you can check those tendencies at the door and leave yourself open to this film's charms, it can be a pleasant surprise.