Director: Brit Sellers, Diana Sellers
Year: 2025
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Zombie
Plot:
In the middle of a zombie apocalypse, brothers manage to reunite and try to put their failed dreams on hold when one of them gets bitten and starts the process of turning into a zombie, bringing them closer together as they struggle to survive in their new environment.
Review:
This was a decent enough indie zombie effort. Among the better elements here come from the emotional background established here that paints the brothers in a likable enough manner to drive the drama forward. Dropped into the middle of the apocalypse where the dead are out and alive, this one manages to bring about the different means of their relationship being explored as they come to the realization that they’re not going to live out their lives with the one brother getting bitten and showing signs of being turned, giving this opening section a rather solid touch. Even though there’s plenty of moments here involving them living their lives before the outbreak or the after-effects of the bite that dooms the one into becoming like the dead, it helps to build the bond they share so that the gradual display of guilt expressed over not being able to save him from the creature as the sickness starts to become more obvious that he’s turning. As well, his relationship with his girlfriend, who tries to help him deal with the change and make safety plans, is a fine touch that feels natural and grounded in the scenario, helping to make the story here immensely touching.
On top of that, there are also the occasions here where it makes for some rather thrilling times encountering the zombies in the middle of the woods. The initial encounters in the forest of the family trying to save each other from an approaching zombie swarm make for a strong opening, with some solid tension due to the kids being involved as well as the different tactics trying to kill off the creatures. The later scenes where the two brothers trying to fight off an approaching zombie only or one of them to get bit is even stronger with the kind of realistic touch that denotes how much the main characters are children with the kind of roughhousing choreography that takes place here and set up the solid final half where everything gets thrown into disarray with the race to get to safety from the hordes of zombies. This makes the usual assortment of high-end genre content, as the endless encounters with the zombies interrupting their journey to get to safety, make for a rather fun time where everything comes together to impact the trip and provide the kind of zombie carnage expected of these kinds of genre fare, giving this one enough to like to hold it up.
There are some drawbacks to this one that hold it back. The main drawback on display is the wholly disappointing and outright sluggish pacing that makes for a tough time getting any kind of momentum. The fact that the film opts for more of a drama-heavy approach in the way it handles the relationship between the brothers and other members of their family is the main cause of that happening, as the story is more geared towards them caring for him in the stages before he finally turns. This is capable overall for what it is, while also being quite draining to get through when most of the action is kept off-screen to accommodate these moments together, which is what might turn off genre fans looking for more overt genre carnage, since that is limited to a few select moments spread throughout. This is the kind of slow-burning storyline where it holds back on the zombie action until the finale, for everything to get involved in the genre qualities for the most part, and it does have the low-budget limitations as well to contend with, where it's plainly obvious regarding the make-up and gore effects despite all the action present there. Overall, these are enough to hold this down slightly.
Overview: ***/5
An immensely effective if slightly flawed indie zombie film, there’s a lot to like here that manages to keep this going against a few minor drawbacks that are present. Those with an interest in this type of indie genre fare, who appreciate this style of zombie fare, or who are curious about it, will want to give it a shot, while most others out there should heed caution.
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