Zombieland, featuring Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg, is the tale of a ragtag group of zombie apocalypse survivors as they make their way through what’s left of the now barren United States. Columbus (Eisenberg) is heading toward you guessed it- Columbus Ohio which is awesome in its own right. However, on his way he runs into Tallahassee who also is on his way to try and make sense of all the carnage and be at peace. Besides an insatiable desire to find Twinkies, the only thing Tallahassee finds more satisfying and natural is killing Zombies. As the two continue their journey they eventually run into Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), her little sister and the four take on the open road in one of the most satisfying zombie romps in recent history.
While Zombieland doesn’t tread any new ground, it certainly does so with a style all its own. Columbus is a stark contrast to Tallahassee, living by a series of strict rules that he maintains are responsible for keeping him from becoming a tasty meal for the legions of undead roaming the countryside. Tallahassee on the other hand, prefers to shoot from the hip and is as reckless as he is proficient at dispatching their predators. The two end up making a great team and the stylized text displaying all of Columbus’s rules appear periodically within the scenes keeping the whole movie a lot of fun without taking itself too seriously. This is more than evidenced the first time we get to see the ‘zombie kill of the week’ medallion light up the screen after a particularly gruesome headshot.
As for Wichita, she serves as the obligatory romance aspect and ever-present reminder of what to keep fighting for. Despite having plenty of action nearly nonstop (and one kickass opening credit sequence), her presence in the story is a necessary one to keep the pace measured and acceptable for viewers who got dragged to Zombieland against their will. Not to mention, if we learned anything from Shaun of the Dead it’s that romance and re-animated corpse headshots go together far better than you’d expect. Demographic-appealing romance subplot aside, there are even a few very heartfelt moments throughout that really lend some depth to the characters (especially Tallahassee). While they do feel a bit odd where they’re dropped into the film, the characters go together well and in a way it’s forgivable seeing as how in a zombie apocalypse there probably aren’t a lot of shining opportunities for emotional introspection and self-discovery.
But then again, how many among you will head out to the theater looking for a deeper understanding of the human condition in Zombieland? I’d wager zero unless you’re the artistic type seeking out an indie morsel where ‘zombie’ is metaphoric for a desolate, consumer-driven, value inept look into masses. (Hint: it isn’t.)Nope, it’s just a good old-fashioned end of days zombie slaying flick with plenty of style to go around, great acting, and one unexpected, over-the-top cameo I shan’t spoil for you here.
While it’s true that in a sadly ironic twist Zombieland plays by the rules a little too closely, it’s completely forgivable when you can just kick back and appreciate the film for what it is.
Zombieland gets 8 out of 10.
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