It's hard to take the undead seriously. They are often characterized as slow, brainless drones who manage to sneak up on people and render the world a barren wasteland. Therefore, the only good zombie films of recent years have been, for the most part, comedies.
Zombieland follows the tradition of
Shaun of the Dead by providing a fun, tongue in cheek, carnival-like experience.
Jesse Eisenberg's Columbus is one of the few survivors running around in a post-apocalyptic universe and is quite the unlikely suspect. He's a non-athletic, loner college student who has managed to survive by following a strict, self-established set of rules that include keeping up with cardio and being weary of public bathroom stalls. He is joined by the psychotic Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) who approaches zombie killing like a senior hazing a freshmen and is in search of his most valued treasure, the last Twinkie! Down the road, they meet Wichita (
Superbad's Emma Stone) and Little Rock (
Little Miss Sunshine's Abigal Breslin), a pair of sisters with trust issues.
Despite the title, the zombies aren't actually the stars of the film. The characters played fruitfully by Harrelson, Eisenberg, Stone, and Breslin exorcise near perfect comedic timing, delivering one funny line after another. Of course, a good deal of that credit also goes to the witty screenplay that pays both pays homage and pokes fun at the classics (a couple of which might surprise you!).
Perhaps the highlight of the film was a surprising cameo, whose final moments had me in stitches! I was seriously still laughing from it 20 minutes later. Unlike many others out there, I am not going to spoil who it is. Sure, most of you probably already know by now and those of you who do not could just look it up on IMDB if you wish. Personally, if you don't know, keep it that way! The moment works so much better if you keep the identity of "The King" a surprise.
If it's good Halloween fun you are looking for,
Zombieland most certainly delivers! It almost makes a zombie apocalypse look fun, you know, if weren't for all the death and mutilation happening in the background!
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