Catches most of the love behind the Zombie fantasy.

Rating: 8/10 (13 October 2009)

Zombieland - The world is once again (or maybe it's the same virus as the one in Shaun of the Dead) ravaged by a virus that turns the world's population into hordes of mobile (is the running/walking debacle really so worthy of ire? Either would destroy the world) cannibals. The main character is Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), a squeamish nerd who has survived so long because of strict adherence to a rulebook that neatly skips over most of the mistakes horror film characters fall prey to. He soon meets Tallahassee (played with vinegar and vigor by Woody Harrelson), a man with a savage penchant for killing zombies. They meet two untrustworthy young women (Emma Stone and Abigail Bresnin) and the four slug it out joyfully in an apocalypse of enormous proportions.
The film marvelously captures most of the love most teenage men have for the zombie scenario. In a word or two: legitimized anarchy. If the story lacks direction for any reason it's this. One of the best sequences (of which there are several) shows the foursome breaking everything in a shop just because they can. The jokes come often and are amusing, with pop culture references aplenty. One cameo made me fall in love with the film. There really is nothing like the comedy greats of the 80s and 90s, is there? The opening credits sequence would be the best if the Dawn of the Dead remake hadn't done theirs so perfectly.
The film only sparingly adheres to reality so as not to detract from the fantasy. Running out of ammunition never seems to happen. It's hard to imagine three out of four of the crew, capable as they are at times, faring any better than millions of other people, much less the US Army. But speculation about that hardly seems the point of the film. The final quarter is nothing if not constant visceral fun.
If I have some minor issues, apart from the ammo tiffs, it's this: The casting of the film seems extremely calculated. We have a kid that looks and acts like Michael Cera, the hot girl from Superbad, the cute kid from Little Miss Sunshine, and Woody Harrelson. If there weren't zombie nudity, blood, and cussing here I'd say it's practically a family friendly film. I've become a little less of a fan of comedy relying on pop culture over the years because it relies on an audience's knowledge of other films, not the film standing on it's own merits. But I don't want to flog an undead horse too harshly, especially such an entertaining one. I'd gladly watch Zombieland again, and it remains at least the second best zombie comedy ever.
The masses have spoken: we love us some zombie films, and it is a fantasy that will likely spawn countless more movies, both comedic and horrific, being made. And for once, I'm okay with that. A-