Brief Story Line
Near Tazmania island, an experimental weapon was somehow detonated which resulted to immediate death of people in the city. However, some of them were rumored to be able to return from their death, although the military had decided they were dangerous and should be put to death immediately.
Ava Newman (Daisy Ridley - Cleaner, Murder on the Orient Express etc) an American woman whose husband Mitch (Matt Whelan - American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story TV series, Gary of the Pacific etc) was going for company retreat there, wanted to identify and bring back his body. She became part of volunteers who were doing the same mission and was later partnered with local guy Clay (Brenton Thwaites - Titans TV series, Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge etc).
Against the military's instruction to stay together, Ava decided to go further into the city to find Mitch with only the company of Clay. Along the way, they met with some of the awakened victims and also a soldier named Riley (Mark Coles Smith - Hard Rock Medical TV series, Last Cab to Darwin etc) who disapproved Ava and Clay's detour.
So what would happen to Ava and how would the story conclude? You could find out in this movie.
End of Brief Story Line
Before watching this movie, I already read the brief synopsis and was aware that it was about zombie survival. With the knowledge about the premise, obviously I had some expectation that it would be having plenty of intense action and zombie chasing. However it turned out to be a lot more drama than actions. Although I was not disappointed cause the story was pretty good and there were few horrifying scenes, I hoped there was a bit more balance in combining the drama and thriller.
Anyway, the film had a dark tone and was moving in a rather slow pace. It started to gain momentum half way through, but the horror was in a different form. Subsequent to those rather suspenseful scenes, the story slowed down again with few intense moments till the conclusion. Towards the end, there was an interesting scene which served as the final closure that left audience to decide themselves how they want to conclude the ending.
One of the reasons I was interested to give a try was the high rating from critics. And after seing this one, I could see why they viewed the movie highly cause it was seen as a non generic zombie story with praises specifically on Daisy Ridley's performance. I certainly understand the appeal of such traits for movie critics, although for casual audience like me and my wife, it was not exactly the thing we were looking for. The movie's story and cinematography were also highly regarded. Credits should be given to the writer & director Zak Hilditch who was already experienced in horror & post-apocalyptic genre for his works in 1922 adapted from Stephen King's novella and These Final Hours.
The movie had a duration of only 95 minutes without any mid or post end credit scenes. Aside from the cast above, there were only few people in minor roles such as Kym Jackson (A Christmas Castle Proposal: A Royal in Paradise 2 etc) as Lt. Wilkie and several others. It was an Australian production which should explain the many cast from there. During the whole movie, I felt that the screen was pretty dark but somehow I could still see quite clearly at nights. The best thing to me was definitely the sound effects. Despite its standard Dolby surround system, the sound particularly the ones made by those zombies were incredibly done and provided the terrifying effect for us.
Overall this was a movie that might be appealing for those interested in a drama about dealing with grief which just happened to coincide with the undead. However, I would have enjoyed it better if it was at least a bit similar to The Walking Dead which also had plenty of drama but the survival thrilling action sequence were quite balanced and made it more enjoyable for me. So if you are interested in drama heavy zombie survival movie with the main plot of finding closure, then I think you would enjoy it just like critics did. For those like me though, you just need to manage your expectation if you are going to give it a try.
Mike's movie moments rating: 3 out of 5 stars
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