World War Z: NR #45

Sorry for missing last week, I didn't really have anything for ya. So this week, I decided to finally see a big summer blockbuster, one that's been somewhat controversial. It's been in a development hell for a while and that's made people even more skeptical. Has it proven those people wrong, or does it live up to those expectations? Let's find out in my review of...

PLOT
Gerry is an ex-UN operative and now lives in Philadelphia with his wife and two daughters. One day, the city is overrun by ravenous infected people, essentially zombies, who number in the thousands. After escaping and finding refuge on a UN navel cruiser, it's confirmed that this epidemic has spread all over the world and is toppling major cities. Now, in order for Gerry and his family to stay aboard the ship, he needs to travel the globe and find a cure for this infection.



PROS
"World War Z" may be the most intense movie you'll see all summer. There are many tense and nerve racking scenes that make the movie something special. You'll be on the edge of your seat whether Brad Pitt is sneaking through a small hallway or are running in the big city.

While the zombies are the new fast runners and are mostly CG, they are still terrifying. You've probably seen the parts where they are climbing on top of each other to get over obstacles, and that is truly scary in context.

The film starts at the beginning of the apocalypse, and that's great to see. Very few apocalyptic stories take place at the beginning and I wish more of them did. The first 20 minutes or so are chaotic and intense and really make for a great start to this film.

The pace is very fast and rarely lets down. It moves at break net speed and stops for no more than 3 minutes. It's very exciting and keeps you entertained for the whole 2 hours.

There's also a new twist on the zombie genre that's introduced near end that I really enjoyed. It's creative and makes this somewhat cliched story a little more unique.


CONS
The film follows a very repetitive structure. Brad Pitt goes to a place he thinks his safe, all hell breaks loose, he escapes, rinse and repeat. While this formula does work and never fails, it does become a little tiring near the end.

Brad Pitt's family in the movie are more of an object than characters themselves. This makes it a little hard to care about them. While they are a motive for Bard Pitt to keep fighting, they're just that, a motive, nothing else.



CONCLUSION
While I could go into more detail about how this film is flawed, it doesn't matter. You won't care about the small things when Brad Pitt is going down a dark hallway in absolute silence, you on the edge of your seat, just waiting for that one zombie to pop up, scare you half to death, and start the next big action set piece that'll leave you sighing in relief, if just for a moment. I loved this movie and recommend that you see it in 3D. While they don't do much with it, whenever they do take advantage of the 3D, it's awesome. For those still on the fence or are die-hard skeptical fans of the book, I highly recommend this movie and can't wait to see it again.


RATING
RUN TO!