Peelers (2017) by Sevé Schelenz


Director: Sevé Schelenz
Year: 2017
Country: Canada
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie

Plot:
After striking her small-town, the owner of an about-to-close stripclub just trying to close out the night finds that the patrons who've shown up covered in a strange oil have started to spread a zombie virus to the other patrons and have to band together with the survivors to get out alive.

Review:

Overall, this one was a fun and comedic zombie effort. One of the finest aspects to this one is the fact that there's quite a lengthy and wholly enjoyable aspects to getting this one started. That this one manages to go through a fun setup towards getting to know the staff and patrons of the establishment, giving us a detailed look at the different characteristics of the various girls when they're backstage before the show as well as getting to know the antics of the bouncer and bartender as well as her so that we can get to know everybody quite well before getting to the zombie outbreak starts this off rather nicely. Given that the scenes in the club showing them going about their regular duties and dancing while getting out some unusual issues that crop up in that line of work offers up an enjoyable start to this one as the slowly-emerging onset from the creature encounters makes for a great setup with us caring for everybody and getting to know them before we get to the action.

That action throughout the film is overall the best part here and really works nicely in the film. Granted a wholly entertaining series of early scenes here with the infected running through the various dancers and workers at the club, featuring the exceptionally fun scene in the private lounge taking out the dancer and her patrons as well as the infected killing off the staff in the kitchen unaware of what's really happening around them which goes hand-in-hand with the great scenes of the infected overwhelming the club and taking out the rest of the patrons. There's plenty of fun as well in the later scenes of the group stuck inside the bar which is quite fun, as the encounter in the dressing room, several enjoyable brawls in the kitchen with the rest of the group and the highly chilling series of encounters where they start hunting the creatures down throughout the establishment once they have a plan of action.


The cast here is just as much fun. Wren Walker as the main girl Blue Jean is quite enjoyable, being the tough, no-nonsense type who has to take a ton of hardships on her shoulders and still comes out of it as a happy-go-lucky type that wants the best for those around her. Caz Odin Darko as the hardass bouncer with a heart of gold Remy is the typical tough-guy who displays quite a lot of smarts as well throughout here so we're definitely on his side as he tries to battle the creatures. Her son Logan, played by Madison J. Loos, initially seems to be a reckless irresponsible wreck but is quickly shown to be a helpful if still reckless loose cannon that helps out in the end. Even some of the strippers here are given a nice amount of character as they feature some nice work to get this group to be a generally enjoyable time. With the creative method of bringing the zombies around and some fine gore and kills alongside the bountiful nudity, these here are what hold this one up overall.

There isn't too much really wrong with this one. The biggest problem here is the overt lack of explanation for what's going on, as this one tends to be quite ambiguous with what's really going on here. The idea of the zombie outbreak occurring through the oil exported from the underground site doesn't lead much to how that turns the people it comes into contact with into the creatures, as the lone concept given in the film is simply just the presence of the oil. The connection to a zombie outbreak is given through that explanation and it makes for a rather underwhelming time here. As well, there's really no need for the subplot about the pregnant stripper that still comes into work despite literally about to pop as it's a cliched and wholly overused plot device that has no real shocks or surprises considering where it's going to end up and doesn't add anything to the film due to that overdone setup. Otherwise, there isn't much really wrong with this one.


Overview: ****/5
With plenty to recommend about this one and only a few small minor issues, this was a fun and wholly entertaining effort that has far more to really like about it. There's plenty to like here for fans of these kinds of zombie efforts or those that are generally curious about this one, while those that aren't a fan of these kinds of efforts or like these over-the-top efforts should heed caution.

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