If you're purchasing a ticket for a movie with a title like "Zombieland," you can expect a film that doesn't take itself too seriously, provides some good laughs and sprinkles in the appropriate amount of zombie violence.
Well, with director Ruben Fleischer's outrageous, post-apocalyptic comedy, what you expect is what you get.
For a mix of comedy and horror, it certainly isn't Shaun of the Dead (to be honest, what is?), but "Zombieland" provides laughs through subtle, witty remarks as well as physical, energetic comedy.
It probably won't have you burying your head in your chest like the twins in "The Shining" will do to you, but there are enough surprise scares and buck shot exploding zombies to warrant the horror sub-genre.
The flick begins following loner college kid Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) on his trek through a desolate, zombie-infested country to Columbus, Ohio.
The quiet, methodical character credits surviving this long to not ever being tied down to close friends or family, but more importantly, his 31-point list of survival rules.
Columbus' humorous, yet effective list includes items like "3. Beware of bathrooms" and "18. Limber up."
These personal reminders to Columbus cleverly pop up in text that interacts with the rest of the environment throughout the movie as he narrates his struggle at surving in the cannibal-ridden country.
After a few triumphant run-ins with flesh-hungry cannibals thanks to these tips, Columbus comes across redneck and badass Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), because apparently in a world swarmed with ravenous undead, survivors go by the name of their hometown rather than their own.
Tallahassee loves firearms and prides himself on his unmatched zombie-killing abilities, but his passion for a good Twinkie has him on a mission to find the world's last golden sponge cake with creamy filling.
Tallahassee and Columbus form an unlikely duo and continue their journeys together, before shortly running into Witchita (Emma Stone), who is on a mission to take her younger sister Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) to Pacific Playland so she can recapture some of her childhood that was wasted on trying to survive in a zombieland.
The foursome rally together, battling the undead and despite Wichita's trust problems, Columbus begins to develop feelings for her that go beyond zombie-slaying comrades.
The events that ensue throughout "Zombieland" mix consistent laughs with just enough zombie gore stuck in between.
There are times, however, when it seems to struggle between its two genres, either running dry of laughs or not producing the sense that the characters are ever actually in danger.
Naturally, the audience sympathizes with the narrating and charmingly shy and self-conscious Columbus.
And how can you not love a cowboy-hat-wearing, shotgun-toting zombie slayer spouting off lines like "It's time to nut up or shut up" played by Woody Harrelson?
But there's never any worry for Tallahassee surviving because he's so adept at what he does -- dispatching the undead.
The two female protagonists, however, never flesh out their back stories and the only real sympathy for them is the fact they're two lone, young women battling against a violent, toothy end.
A lack of character development makes it hard to really care about these two characters, which makes it difficult to fear for their fates.
However, once you push the lacking horror elements aside and realize "Zombieland" certainly preoccupies itself with providing the laughs rather than the scares, it's simply a fun and entertaining movie set in a likewise world.
What's refreshing about "Zombieland" is that it knows its place and doesn't try to set a new standard in the horror world, which is a pitfall trap most zombie films can't seem to hurdle.
It sets out to be nothing more than entertaining, acknowledging it's a film centered around once-dead, flesh-eating creatures, and the result shows.
This kind of intelligent restraint puts "Zombieland" in my books as the best zombie-centric film since Spain and 2007's "REC" (and in case that reference entices you to watch it, bring a change of pants because "REC" IS scary).
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
