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The Vow

A saccharine and paint-by-numbers slice of romance, which is largely boosted by the appeal of its two leads.

Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace (3D)

The under-utilised 3D adds little to this prequel, which only serves as a sore reminder of the brilliance of the original films.

Any Questions For Ben?

The talented bunch of actors ably cut through the surface gloss, but it’s tough to remain invested in the plight of the self-absorbed lead.

Shame

It starts off as brutal but arresting stuff, and the two lead performances are scorching, but disappointingly dissolves into a case of tragedy for the sake of tragedy.

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Zombieland (Film)

by Anthony O'Connor | December 01, 2009 18:39 | Edited December 01, 2009 18:40

Funny and entertaining, but as a horror film it lacks the scares.

Sitting somewhere between Max Brooks' Zombie Survival Guide and Shaun Of The Dead, Zombieland is an entertaining albeit over-hyped action rom-zom-com. Narrated by misanthropic college student, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), the film takes place in a post-apocalyptic America, where a virulent form of mad cow disease has turned most of the populous into flesh-eating, fast moving cannibals.

 

Columbus is on his way to see if his parents are still alive, and soon meets up with a scrappy group of survivors, including Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson in one of his best roles), Wichita (the lovely Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). We pause here only to mention that the characters name themselves after their home town so as not to get attached to each other because death could be lurking around every corner.

 

Therein lies the film's main problem: apart from one of the best title sequences ever, and a brilliant opening where Columbus explains his "rules" for zombie survival (with examples), the "zombies" are never really all that scary. In fact, they come off as more of an annoyance than anything else (until the climax, but even that's a bit limp).

 

Shaun Of The Dead is the far superior film, as it treats the zombies with the fear and respect that they deserve. For instance, the scene where Shaun has to shoot his mum is absolutely heart-wrenching. Zombieland has no darker shades like this.

 

Yes, it's charming, well shot and funny, but there are no real scares to be found. This hasn't stopped it from becoming the most successful zombie movie of all time, but horror fans should know that this horror/comedy is heavy on the latter, and light on the former. It's worth a watch, but is a trifle uneven and derivative.