Being a zombie movie fan, I’ve sat through some great ones (Fulci’s Zombie) and some real junk like Children of the Living Dead, but no matter what I go into all of them with an open mind and hoping for the best. Is this the one that finally tops Fulci’s or another one that causes my mind to wander and ponder life’s great mysteries—like Freddie Prinze, Jr. having an acting career.
One thing I never look forward to is the zombie comedy. They never turn out scary or funny because the filmmaker tries too hard to make them so.
Obviously, there are exceptions like Shaun of the Dead and the relatively unknown Dance of the Dead. Granted, the whole concept of the dead coming back to life to eat the living is ridiculous enough (although when they die, I’m posting a guard at Rush Limbaugh and Kevin Smith’s burial spots because death will NOT stop them from eating), but as an older guy, I want my zombies decaying, shambling and dangerous….not comical. If I want to laugh I’ll watch the “fair and balanced” people at Fox News. Fortunately, the following film turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Usually, I’ll tell you about a film that has stayed with me over the years, but for a change, I decided to watch and review something that I’ve never seen before and hope for the best and that’s pretty much what I got:
Morgan, Ash and Johnny are three slackers who aren’t going to let the zombie apocalypse ruin the good life they’ve been leading—lounging in their underwear, drinking beer and calling girls they used to know to see if they’re still alive and looking for a man. To them, the zombies are just an inconvenience in the daily routine of beer and chip runs and not even zombified ex-girlfriends will stand in their way.
Once the old place starts to get boring, they decide to find new digs and encounter Stef and her dad. Stef is trying to obtain some infected blood that she can take to Stuart Island, where they can process a cure for the virus. After her father’s death during a zombie attack, they openly mock her and her story…all except Morgan, who’s looking to score.
Since she happens to be the only living girl they know the decision to help her get the blood sample is an easy one and it’s off to the lab she was working at. While she works on the sample, Ash explains how they all met, Morgan continues to hit on her, and Johnny shows her his berserker moves which earned him two knockouts in his boxing career—unfortunately, he only had two fights and he was the one who got knocked out.
A power outage sends Ash and Morgan to the basement where they proceed to lock themselves in, leaving Stef and Johnny to fight their way out of the lab as Ash and Morgan wiggle out of the basement through a pipe. They make a run for the car, with Johnny playing decoy, using his berserker moves ’til he’s overwhelmed by the zombies. They head for the airport.
Stopping for gas proves hazardous for Stef, who gets bit by the attendant after killing his son, but she still has time to reach the island before she turns. Ash helps her ready the plane while Morgan distracts the arriving dead and together they take off for the island. Morgan and Ash get some needed sleep and when they awake Stef is now a zombie and they strap her to the parachute, put the antidote in her pocket and toss her out of the plane. Too bad, they didn’t think to look for any more parachutes.
Miraculously, Ash manages to land the plane on the runway but they soon find the island has been compromised and the only people left are quite dead. Who will be the Last of the Living?
Starring Morgan Williams, Robert Faith and Ashleigh Southam as Morgan, Johnny and Ash, plus Emily Paddon-Brown as Stef this is not the movie for you if you are looking for buckets of blood. The blood is fairly secondary to the characters, who are very likable and the kind of guys you could see yourself hanging out with. We all know guys like this. A fun little flick from our friends in New Zealand. So, watch and enjoy, and I’ll be back next month with one of my favorite Roger Corman films, and if you behave…I’ll tell you about my absolute favorite Corman film in September.
