The Cured (2018) by David Freyne


Director: David Freyne
Year: 2018
Country: Ireland/France
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie

Plot:
In the midst of a zombie pandemic, the struggle to reintegrate formerly infected members back into regular society hits a snag when the uninfected continually press to remove them back once again, and when it finally hits a breaking point the zombies are released that brings it back full circle.

Review:

For the most part, this was a rather lackluster genre entry. One of the biggest issues with the film is that there's so much drama here instead of horror in the first half that it's a slough to get through. The great concept at play here involving the zombies coming back to their humanity presents a rather intriguing and enjoyable setup that could've provided this one with a lot of fun, yet instead the film just resorts to endless conversations about the rest of humanity not wanting to give them any kind of attention just resorts to repeated dealings about them still being aware of the past. It's hammered home so often that it just becomes unnecessary after a while to keep on going through that route which just isn't effective or interesting at all.

On top of that, the drama about the way of life for the infected in society is just plain dull and not that enjoyable at all. The main sticking point is that the treatment of the formerly infected don't really bring anything remotely interesting to the table, causing this to be excessively drawn-out and boring. The social commentary supposedly in play here, about the military control over the cured and how they intend to hold the control over them while heeding the call of the rest of the civilians to put them down offers up an interesting idea that this one's bogged-down pacing doesn't want to answer. It's all just too bland to really hold much weight here by not being much of a zombie film for this entire section of the film as it takes forever just to get anywhere.


The other really big flaw to be had is the film's overriding sense of cliche and familiarity that tends to creep into this one. The idea of trying to overcome the confines of their past is an idea that will provide plenty of rife familiarities in that it will set up so much of what actually transpires just from executing its general premise. The endless rounds of guilt-trips that substitute for actual conversations between the two sides, the war brewing between them is set up to fail from the outset so it's not a surprise when it does turn into a repeat of the zombie outbreak and none of the situations within the film are a surprise as outcomes are telegraphed from the second the situation presents itself which really do the film no favors overall. Altogether, these are what hold the film down.

The film does have a bit to really like about it. That is mainly due to one of the most intriguing and creative storylines in the crowded zombie genre, what to do when the epidemic has been cured and is found to be reversible allowing for the formerly infected to become human again. Faced with the disturbing concept of being aware of what they did as zombies and how they acted, this actually provides a truly captivating idea that provides much of the fodder for the first half. Likewise, the final half where it really lets the zombies loose to prepare for a full-scale war that really works nicely providing the kind of traditional zombie action and gore that's usually present in the genre and it's all the better for it with all the fine blood and make-up work there. It's what raises this one up despite the flaws.


Overview: */5
A just plain boring and highly dull British drama masquerading as a zombie film, there's not much to this one beyond it's few scale enjoyable elements and a fine central idea. This is really only recommended to those who prefer to think this deeply and analyze the kinds of themes present within here, while those looking for outright action should avoid like the virus being carried in the infected.

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