Zombieland

Rating: 4.5/5

In what is essentially a Simon Pegg and Nick Frost movie with an American backdrop, Zombieland is equal parts hilarious, disgusting, and fun.

Amongst the deserted streets of America, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) is fighting for survival in a zombie infested wasteland. The only reason he has stayed alive as long as he has, is because he follows a very strict set of rules. However, his rules are put to the test when he stumbles upon Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a zombie killing machine in search of the last remaining Twinkie.

Columbus and Tallahassee make the decision to stick with one another as they travel across the country. On their travels, they meet two girls, Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). Attempting to increase their chances of survival, the four of them decide to take on Zombieland together.

Though it is clear that Zombieland took inspiration from other horror-comedy films like Shaun of the Dead, it has plenty of its' own originality to make it a unique and hilarious addition to its' genre. Of the many creative elements that were put into Zombieland, Columbus' rule book sticks out to me as one of the movie's best. Not only do his guidelines actually make sense, but the way they appear on the screen and become a part of the enfolding action is truly innovative.

Considering that this is a movie about an apocalyptic world, there is obviously going to be a minimal amount of living characters in the film. Jesse Eisenberg has played awkward and timid roles before, but I think Zombieland is where he does it best. His character could very easily have been obnoxious or irritating by the end of the film, but Eisenberg was able to give Columbus just the right amount of quirkiness to make his character lovable and someone to root for. Not to be forgotten are the excellent performances by the rest of the cast. Harrelson perfectly portrays Tallahassee. He gives his character all the traits of someone who was born to hunt zombies, but is also able to bring unexpected emotion into the role.

Though they sometimes don't get much recognition, I feel that the special effects make-up department that worked on Zombieland deserve just as much credit as the director and cast. Not only do the zombies take a slightly different spin on the classic look of the living dead, but each one is made up to look different from the other. Even when they are swarming around their victim in a grizzly hoard, you can spot the differences between every zombie, and it is that incredible attention to detail that makes Zombieland not only an entertaining film to watch, but an impressive one as well.

Zombieland is a movie that has the unusual ability to make me laugh and be nauseous all at the same time. Whenever I watch it, I know that it will make my stomach turn, but it is always worth it.