Much better than feared with plot holes you can parachute through.

Rating: 7/10 (17 July 2013)

While a prefer more gore in this type of thing, I didn't really miss it this time. The film, which seems 20 minutes too long, has some clever ideas but quite a few unrealized ones. The strongest sell for this film is that, despite some uncomfortably boring moments and some unconvincing acting, it comes back with big, juicy scenes that keep you excited. Many films fail at that and the audience walks away feeling half-disappointed even with the pluses. The early scenes with the family and the mismatched reactions they have to "the end of the world," somehow makes one feel like the family dynamic was unnecessary. No one reacted correctly to the sudden annihilation of mankind. I mean, not one person even said "What the hell is happening?" They all seemed like they had been through something like this once before. It's not like zombies take over the planet every day. The children are poorly written as characters. If I saw my parents half eaten by zombies, I'd be in a screaming fetal position for weeks. But Tomas is as unshaken as if he merely lost reception on his iPhone. And the outcome to the crashing airplane is stupidly unbelievable even for a film that's supposed to be unbelievable. The scenes in Israel are stunning and luckily, when you think the film is falling under it's own weight, they bring back visually powerful scenes to make up for it. You'll have to forgive them some for the flaccid ending which seems written 5 times. The points made at the end are even repeated. But, even with the trouble it has, it surprisingly keeps you entertained and convinced, which, especially with the overblown groaners they've spit out this summer, is hopeful.