- 88 minutes. Rated R.
Over the course of the past year, I have apparently referenced Zombieland three separate times in four separate reviews. Why do I like this movie so much? Is it just that close to the zeitgeist bulls-eye? Or do I somehow see myself in the survivalist yuppie heroes of this popular comedy?
The truth is manifold. Read on.
Zombieland is the story of four survivors of the Great Plague of the 21st Century. According to our hero and narrator, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), “Mad cow became mad human became mad zombie.” (It’s pathetic that I can quote this movie when the writing is this bad.) Columbus, a nervous nerd and highly unlikely apocalypse survivor, is on his way from college to his home in Ohio to find out if his parents have survived. He manages to thumb a ride from tough redneck Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), who becomes his friend.
Tallahassee’s driving motivation is the acquisition of a Twinkie. (Because they’re awesome, that’s why. And for other reasons that are implied in spoilery ways later in the film.) While looting a grocery, the duo meet Wichita and Little Rock, two girls who make their way by stealing from the remaining human survivors. Again, despite circumstances, they all become close as they make their way to an amusement park on the West Coast that is rumored to be zombie-free.
The characters have real names, but use the names of their home cities instead in order to avoid becoming too attached to one another. That’s a pretty clever device, since this particular zombie movie is barely about zombies at all, but instead focuses on how people become close. In fact, some fans may find this movie somewhat disappointing in its lack of zombie time. Though they do appear now and then, zombies are not so much an immediate threat as a factor in how the main characters get to know one another.
Zombieland has had a long flirtation with TV, which has come to nothing, and it seems unlikely that a sequel will happen. This may be because the original cast is unwilling to stretch the magic; Woody Harrelson has already said that he’s not interested, and without his hilarious performance, the film would lose a lot of its appeal.
This particular movie worked out well thanks to great production and a cast that was obviously having a lot of fun. (Many of the best lines in the whole film are ad-libbed, especially those with Bill Murray.) But it’s also kind of a unique gem: a funny zombie movie involving pretty ordinary people, and as one of a kind, it feels more special.
Within the movie, lights and toilets still work, gas is available, and nobody gets bitten. Even other funny zombie films like Shaun of the Dead, which inspired Zombieland, and Warm Bodies, which operates under a similar premise, seem serious in comparison. While die-hard zombie heads might find the lighthearted attitude annoying, it’ll appeal better to viewers who aren’t really that serious about zombies.
There are some weak points, including some random character behavior and one or two lines that clunk in disappointing ways. (“Take away a man’s son, you’ve truly given him nothing left to lose.” This movie just does not do serious well.) These problems aren’t severe if you’re watching for the cast and the cute tricks. But its flaws are also a good indication of this film’s likely candidacy as a cult classic, in that it’s got both lots of charm and a few issues. That means staying power. Your kids will “discover” this film in their teens and consider it hip, and you’ll get to have discovered it first. If that isn’t a recommendation for a movie, I don’t know what is.
