Director: Joe Zerull
Year: 2011
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie; Horror/Comedy
Plot:
Forced to bring a group of disbelievers into a college dorm, a janitor leads the group through the halls which they soon find are filled with zombies reanimated through an on-campus experiment by a doctor operating with an experimental surgical serum and must find a way of getting out safely.
Review:
This turned out to be quite an enjoyable and cheesy zombie effort. One of the biggest pluses here is the fact that there’s a rather enjoyable atmosphere created by the goofy action presented. The central premise of taking the centralized concept of the hero escaping from the situation before the film starts and then returning to the scene of the crime with the others who are then dragged into the escalating situation when it turns out not to be properly handled as they get attacked by the overwhelming number of creatures comes off incredibly well. There's some rather enjoyable material to be found here as the plot allows this ample opportunity to get rather silly at times where the groups’ bumbling nature in regards to both offensive and defensive tactics against the zombies gets rather silly at times, utilizing mops and brooms for offense, slipping and sliding on blood-soaked hallways, and using everything from desks and notebooks to provide a barrier against the encroaching hordes as the over-the-top nature here keeps this one quite enjoyable. Combined with the jokes and word-play present, this one has more laughs than expected.
The other big factor here is that this one never forgets to have a hand in the scares which is what allows this one to keep the zombies as threats. They're the slow, shuffling variety which keeps the factor here based on the overall number of creatures there swarming around them as they fight them off, resulting not only in pretty enjoyable scenes but also plenty of action within as the group has plenty of time to fight them off. From the encounters at the main hallways that let them know they’re truly dealing with zombies despite the outrageous claim, the reanimated creatures appearing in the science lab to reveal what caused everything, and the attack in the classroom which makes for a highly effective and entertaining sequence. The big final barricade to stop them also comes off quite well with some intriguing holiday decor being used in the defensive and offensive weaponry alongside the heartbreaking material being used to stop them leading to a great ending on a high note. This also adds some pretty decent amounts of gore to the proceeds and makes for some rather entertaining measures.
This does have a few flaws here. Among its biggest issues is that the comedic nature wears thin after a while with some of the jokes losing their luster and becoming somewhat frustrating as this wears on. The constant arguing over what the creatures really are, in-fighting over who’s got the authority to do anything, or the series of interactions with the one friend who’s a little on the slow side do have the potential to be more grating than funny. There are still plenty of genuine laughs to be had here but it’s entirely possible not all of it to hit here which is the main problem, much like its secondary issue with the whole enterprise being loaded by a rather preposterous storyline that gets almost no fleshing out and remains ludicrous upon scrutiny. The location for this type of experiment is somewhat unlikely to happen, and the way it operates feels quite lackluster without a lot of build-up. Otherwise, there's a whole lot to like here.
Overview: ****/5
An immensely entertaining and enjoyable zombie comedy, there’s quite a lot to like here with only a few minor drawbacks that hold this one back overall. Those who appreciate this kind of genre effort, are hardcore holiday-horror fanatics, or love zombie films in general will have the most to like here while most others out there should heed caution.
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