Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Dating's Going to Be Tough After the Zombie Apocalypse


When I was young, I found the whole dating thing a bit awkward. My main problem, I think, was I didn't know how to flirt. I could carry on a conversation, of course, debate politics, gossip, drink .... but the nuances of behaving in a cute or sexy way eluded me. I eventually hooked up with a guy who was no more adept at the nuances than I was, a dude who confessed to be being terrified of women, and we got married.


What can I say? Dating and relationships, in your teens and early 20s, are tough. Imagine if you were navigating these waters in a greatly decimated population? Or if you had no way of communicating interest in a girl besides smearing smelly zombie goo on her face or staring creepily at her? Or getting to know a lady by eating her late boyfriend's brains? Damn. I practically had it easy.

Warm Bodies is a somewhat unconventional zombie tale told from the perspective of R., who is one of the undead. In this fictional world, zombies lose their humanity gradually. R. hasn't begun to decompose yet, and while he's lost his human memories, he still has some human emotions. He knows he will gradually degenerate, eventually turning into a "boney," a vicious walking corpse with no remaining shred of humanity. He spends his time roaming an abandoned airport, with other zombies, and wondering about his undead companions' history as humans. That and hunting for fresh human brains.

There's a catch, though. When you eat a person's brains, you experience some of their memories. That can't be easy. On the other hand, R. gets to briefly re-experience what it is to be human.

When he finds himself attracted to a beautiful young woman, Julie, something in his soul begins to reanimate. He feels driven to protect her and to try to find a way to connect with her. It's difficult since his communication mostly consists of mindless grunts. But his increasingly human feelings give him hope.


I enjoyed the unusual spin this movie put on the hugely popular zombie apocalypse theme, and I liked the world it created, a bleak landscape featuring a deserted, zombie-ridden airport and a hollowed out, mud-soaked suburban neighborhood. I enjoyed the way it played with light and color as the bleakness gradually faded.

There were also some funny moments. I loved the little satirical touches, poking fun at the cluelessness and social ineptitude of the living. "This is my best friend. By best friend I mean we occasionally grunt and stare awkwardly at each other." At some point, R. also says something like, "It must have been better when we could really communicate." Hah! Well played. Reminded me a bit of the satire in Shaun of the Dead.

So while I found this a basically predictable and unsurprising comedy-romance, not nearly as funny or engaging as Shaun of the Dead or Zombieland, it was enjoyable. The narration was humorous, and the story had shades of "Beauty and the Beast" and Romeo and Juliet, but with its own unique twist. I'm also giving this movie some latitude since I'm considerably older than its target audience. Plus an eclectic, kick ass soundtrack always helps. How can you not love a zombie who collects vinyl records?

Random Thoughts:
  • This was a good date movie, even if we were the oldest couple in the theater. And even though I watched this film because I couldn't talk The Hubby into Side Effects. :-)
  • I liked seeing John Malkovich as a zombie killing patriarch. Love him.
  • My husband and I were disturbed by the scene where R. and Julie finally kiss. Why? Our first thought was "I wonder whether he's brushed his teeth since the last time he ate brains." Seriously. Think about it.
  • The boneys were actually kind of creepy. I liked that.
  • At one point the boneys were lined up, one row behind another, ready for battle. And I had the stupidest random thought: "How awesome would it be if we heard music and they all started to dance right now ... a freaking undead flash mob?" Yeah, I know. I probably shouldn't have had that mixed drink in the restaurant before the movie.

    Maybe next time I'll just have fruit cocktail and a Corona.
Read Another Review: Two Dollar Cinema

My Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

20 comments:

  1. Good review. The attention to characters and their relationships is what made this film so special and stand-above the rest of the rom-coms that usually come out, especially around this time. It's not groundbreaking, but at least it's enjoyable.

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    1. Thanks, Dan. It was a fun movie. Glad you enjoyed it. :-)

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  2. Love the title of this post! And the teeth brushing thing - LOL! I always wonder about that in movies too, even when zombies aren't involved!

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    1. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks about things like that. :-)

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  3. "I wonder whether he's brushed his teeth since the last time he ate brains." Ewwww! I would have thought the same thing though, lol!

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    1. Well, it does put the whole "morning breath" problem into perspective.

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  4. The whole idea of a zombie with a smart ass voiceover in his head and falling in love annoyed me but I did like some of those lovely satirical moments though. Shame there wasn't more of them!

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    1. Yes, it would have been cool if they had done more with that.

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  5. Definitely want to see this one. Looks like a bit of silly fun. I know a lot of purist zombie film fans have been somewhat disappointed with this one, but why not have a little fun with a standard film genre?

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    1. Absolutely! Genres are meant to be played with. I hope you enjoy the movie.

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  6. Ahah, your title is a good one, Steph. To be honest, I'm not fond of zombie movies but the idea here sounds interesting and I quite like Hoult, so I might give this a rent.

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    1. Thanks, Ruth. :-) It might be worth a go, especially since you're a fan of Hoult. It's not a standard zombie movie.

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  7. Great review! I'm going to try to see it tomorrow, this looks fun and I love Malkovich!

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    1. I hope you like the movie. For me, seeing Malkovich in this film was a nice surprise. :)

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  8. I swear, absolutely swear, that I didn't know that this was a movie aimed at teenage girls.

    And then I frickin' love it?

    Seems rather telling.

    Thanks for the link!

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    1. There's no shame in that, M. At least you aren't a "Twihard." :-P

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  9. Loved your review, and the brains breath comment cracked me up. I like a good zombie movie but think this one might be a dvd pick for me :)

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    1. Yes, this seems like a good one to wait for on DVD. Thanks, Sheree!

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  10. "Predictable and unsurprising" - that was my my biggest issue. It looked like a nice, quirky zombie romance, but, overall, I thought it was rather conventional. 3/5 for me.

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    1. Sounds like our reactions were similar. It earned an extra half star from me, because it made me laugh. :-D

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