Zombieland
Zombieland. Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg
It ruins nothing to reveal that the final showdown in “Zombieland” takes place in an amusement park. To note that some characters in a zombie movie do incredibly silly and stupid things even in the face of impending zombie mayhem breaks little new ground in film criticism.
To point out, however, that “Zombieland” may be one of the smarter and more entertaining, and certainly bloodier, films to come along in some time might prove a more productive conversation.
Earlier this decade, Danny Boyle’s terrifying “28 Days Later” injected new life into the zombie film, giving audiences horrifying and dizzying images of previously slow-moving zombies sprinting after victims. A remake of George Romero’s “Dawn of the Dead,” aptly titled “Dawn of the Dead,” appeared a few years later as did “Shaun of the Dead,” a surprisingly tender and frightening dark comedy that played with as many genre conventions as it adhered to, killing characters it had taken considerable time to develop as likeable.
“Zombieland,” which comes out in the same year as a zombie film about zombie Nazis, takes the familiar conventions of the zombie tale and goes zombie apeshit with them.
Early in the film, Columbus (Jesse Eisenburg), the film’s awkward yet loveable, narrator, explains that a virus of some sorts has turned most of the world into flesh-eating zombies.
Like the zombies in Boyle’s film, these zombies mean serious business, sprinting furiously before tearing into their unlucky victim’s flesh, something Columbus learns early in the film when his hot neighbor tries to take a bite out of his face.
The moment, played as much for laughs as it is scares, is his first real intimate encounter with a lady friend, Columbus tells us, thus making him the film’s virginal protagonist.
After the zombies descend on Austin, Texas and decimate the city, Columbus leaves his dorm room and sets out across the United States to reunite with his parents in Columbus, Ohio.
All the characters in “Zombieland” get names based on their hometowns, such as Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a boisterous, gun-toting Texan—are there any other kind—who Columbus befriends early in the film.
Columbus and Tallahassee encounter other characters/cities throughout the film, including Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), to say nothing of a surprise cameo that it would be unfair and rude of me to spoil except to note that it provides the film with easily its funniest and memorable scenes.
And, so it goes with “Zombieland.”
Characters encounter other characters—mostly zombies though—and along the way say incredibly funny things.
Mostly, those funny things follow other funny things such as obscure references to the talking pig film “Babe” and the actors hurl them at each other with such wit and deadpan delivery that it makes the film breeze by quickly.
Not too quickly, however, for those concerned the film might deliver little in the way of zombie mayhem.
“Zombieland” serves up the gory zombie treats, even pausing to display proudly the title “Zombie Kill of the Week” on screen before a nun drops a piano on an unsuspecting zombie.
The film does this often. Columbus shares with viewers his rules to survive a zombie invasion and the film references those rules with onscreen titles anytime a character uses one to thwart an attack—i.e. the “Double Tap,” a reminder to always shoot a zombie twice to make sure it is sufficiently dead.
“Zombieland” is clever like that, even if it does get a little too silly with main characters putting themselves in obvious peril at the end of the movie just so the film has an excuse to go all amusement park on us.
Still, that is “Zombieland,” an excuse to go on a zombie-killing spree alongside a bunch of characters named after U.S. cities. Eisenberg and Harrelson never permit a dull moment when their characters appear on screen. Eisenberg does Michael Cera-lite with his awkward, dry comedic timing but only long enough to make his character his own and make us forget about Michael Whatshisface.
“Zombieland” doesn’t reinvent the zombie genre wheel so much as it douses it pig’s blood and wraps flashy Christmas lights around it before sending it flying down a steep hill just for the pure fun of it all. And, for the low price of a movie ticket, “Zombieland” offers 80 minutes of pure fun, wheel-rolling, and zombie killing. Step right up.
Grade: B+
