If you liked “Shaun of the Dead,” then you will love “Zombieland” (opened October 2 throughout San Diego). Doubling as a zombie survival guide, “Zombieland” has the prefect mix of zombies and comedy. I’ve never seen a crowd laugh so much throughout the entire movie. From the get go, the crowd was rolling with laughter followed by long drawn out sessions of clapping. In the film there were zombies eating people, zombies shot in the head, evil clowns, and the long and desperate search for the last Twinkies before they expire (a kind of Holy Grail quest). And you can’t forget Bill Murray, but I’ll leave the details of that a secret.
“Zombieland” has the basic “last four people left on Earth” squad, or as I like to say, a Quad Squad, but it’s not the usual group of friends. First we have a nerdy, never-going-to-get-a-girl kind of guy who goes by the name of Columbus. Next we have the tough cowboy dude with an expertise in zombie slaying; he goes by Tallahassee. Third, we have the hot kind of girl who loves to take advantage of you, Wichita. And finally, the gold digger in training --Wichita’s little sister -- Little Rock. These four characters are united by fate and form a kind of odd family unit after just a few minor problems, including car jacking, robbery, lying, and trying to deceive one another. Nothing too big though, I mean it is the zombie apocalypse.
The movie's basic plot is about the four characters grouping together in order to survive what they call "Zombieland,” and although each of them has their own goals that they are setting out to accomplish, they learn that they must work as a team. In addition, who doesn't enjoy a good zombie movie? Zombie movies are ultimate because zombies are brainless freaks running around looking for humans. They are dumb and fun to kill. Pretty much everyone is instinctively born knowing how to survive a zombie invasion, Right? You know what to do? But movies still do feed off the legitimate fear people have of a real zombie invasion. In the end, I was disappointed in the length of the movie, barely pushing past the hour and twenty minute mark. I could have used more. I would definitely recommend this movie. “Zombieland” (rated R or horror violence/gore and language) is a must see for zombie lovers and newbies to the zombie world alike.
--Jesus Gomez is a senior at Mount Miguel High School. His favorite movies include “Donnie Darko,” “Tommy Boy,” and “The Crow.” He wanted be a film critic because he says, “I love being heard and I love watching movies.”
