Quite a ride

Rating: 7/10 (4 July 2013)

All in all, it was a very enjoyable cinematic experience. Very fast pace, lots of scares and tense moments, and besides everything I noticed that the movie managed to keep a hold of the whole audience until the end where I watched. There were a couple moments where hysterical laughter and collective sighs were heard throughout...
Now as far as doing justice to the book, it veers off pretty quickly, the main difference being that in the book you get several different viewpoints that end up forming a bigger picture. I had no expectations going in as soon as I read online (about a year ago) that "the zombies were running, they were the fast kind". Every fan of the genre knows that it's unusual for something positive to follow this last two sentences, so I was expecting something more along the lines of "28 Days" instead of "The Dead" series (which does no justice at all to the book).
I can understand people getting angry about this as someone who appreciated the book, that this was actually a waste of an excellent book in its translation to the cinematic format, but since I had no expectations to begin with, the "running zombies" ended up adding to the overall pace of the action, and with the best 3d rendition I've ever seen in a movie, it ended up feeling more like an amusement park ride than an actual movie experience. The only major critique is the way it ended, it left me with the impression that the production topped out of their budget before they noticed they had to end it...
All in all, totally worth a watch. The 3d is natural and gorgeous, and makes the whole experience very involving. Coupled with the pace, it was FUN.