After a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries takes the ultimate gamble by venturing into the quarantine zone for the greatest heist ever.
Director: Zack Snyder
Cast: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera, Theo Rossi, Matthias Schweighöfer, Nora Arnezeder, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tig Notaro, Raúl Castillo, Huma Qureshi, Garret Dillahunt
Release Date:
Genre: Action, Crime, Horror
Rated R for strong bloody violence, gore and language throughout, some sexual content and brief nudity/graphic nudity
Runtime: 2h 28min
Review:
Army of the Dead represents a return to the genre that made Zack Snyder a name in the movie business. His remake of Dawn of the Dead is a film that shouldn’t have worked on multiple levels but ended up becoming something special. It was enough to make him a marketable director so his return, after his somewhat grueling trek through the DC Extended Universe, to genre is intriguing enough. Freed of having to navigate established character, you can feel Snyder clear his palette on screen. In doing so, he channels a slew of sources like Michael Bay’s Armageddon, James Cameron’s Aliens, Romero’s Day of the Dead and Land of the Dead with a splash of Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive for good measure. It is all draped in a heist film with larger splatter effects and for a large chunk of its runtime works even with some readily apparent pacing issues. The characters are sufficiently fleshed out, so they don’t feel like fodder for meat grinder. Dave Bautista leads his motley crew effectively even if he’s given one too many dramatic sequences which he can’t quite nail. He does have a specific sort of quiet, pensive intensity that gives him a level of authenticity which works well for his character. He has solid chemistry with his on-screen daughter, Ella Purnell, and love interest, Ana de la Reguera. Each storyline is given enough time to play out even with some unexpected surprises. Omari Hardwick and Matthias Schweighöfer also make a fun onscreen duo of lethal philosopher and safecracker who have some of the best comedic moments. Theo Rossi and Garret Dillahunt both turn in mustache twirling levels of villainy which is fine, but you’re left feeling that the film could have used them to better effect. The large ensemble keeps the whole thing moving even during some of its slower moments but there some obvious fat that could have been cut. Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead feels refreshing but it also displays some of his directorial excesses in this love letter to genre filmmaking.
B-
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