Director: Jeff Barnaby
Year: 2020
Country: Canada
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie
Plot:
Living on an Indian reservation, a special tribe of Indians finds themselves forced to defend their home state when a zombie virus is unleashed upon the community, and when it dawns on the group that their chances for survival are dwindling staying at the camp they take the fight to the creatures to stay alive.
Review:
This was a fantastic and enjoyable genre effort. Among the film’s best aspects is the enjoyable amount of zombie action that takes place throughout the film. The early setup of the plague worming its way into the fabric of their society undetected but still there with the discovery of the infected fish and the other villagers in town who begin attacking everyone in quiet ambushes that signals the later turn into the post-apocalyptic wasteland that the area becomes later on. With the overrun area full of zombies that require protective measures to ensure they don’t get in and plenty of ingenious offensive barricades that dispatch the creatures, they create enough of a presence here that the finale makes for an impressive action sequence as the creatures reach their camp and are forced to take the offensive to protect themselves. The action throughout the run-down buildings is fast, fun, and brutal featuring tons of great gore and some emotional resolutions for some of the characters.
As well, there’s also a lot to like here with the build-up present in terms of getting the family introduced and their way of life. The innocent nature of their lifestyle is given a rather intriguing start here involving the various day-to-day lifestyle they go through being targeted by the locals who see them as being different because of their heritage. The fact that there’s not much else to separate them beyond their Native background so to see that being used to put them down that much beforehand makes for a surprisingly fun and enjoyable time when the turn comes and they’re the only survivors. Seeing them turn from victims to forceful fighters with a ruthless aggression streak ready to take what they can to keep the tribe alive and still display a sense of humanity taking in others is a fantastic sight, and combined with the other factors holds this one up overall.
There are a few issues present here. The film’s biggest flaw is the fact that there isn’t a lot to like with the low-key energy during the first half, as while there’s a lot to like with the concept of the setup there’s not much in the way of exciting action going on. The behind-the-scenes work on the family on the reserve as they encounter the stereotypical abuse for their nationality work here because they’re easy and well-worn tropes that aren’t done with any new ideas or concepts, which when combined with the lack of zombie action makes for a long time to go before it gets interesting. The other minor factor here is the continued usage of that storyline as this goes on, with no one having learned anything about staying safe in the middle of an apocalypse as they continually preach the need to rescue survivors feels quite forced and unrealistic, somewhat limiting the appeal of its message but not enough to affect the film much.
Overview: ****.5/5
Filled with plenty of enjoyable aspects and quite a lot to like about it while the minor flaws are not all that detrimental, this one emerges as a highly enjoyable effort with a message that may or may not appeal to all. Give this one a look if you’re a hardcore zombie fanatic or those interested in the subject matter while there isn’t a whole lot that won’t appreciate what’s going on here.
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