World War Z

Z does not waste any time. Gerry Lane (Pitt) and family (relatively unknown actors) are headed out but are snarled in downtown traffic, a radio news report about odd breakouts of a rabies-like disease is background to their chatting, and then… it is on. Explosions, rioting, numerous and really fast maniac zombies are overrunning the non-maniacs, and all hell is breaking loose. It’s a spectacular, blunt-force opening that will have many nicely hooked. And the fact that the story behind the spectacle of undeadness is not all that bad, makes the anxiety that follows even more effective.

Z, directed by Marc Forster (Finding Neverland), has several things going for it that make it just a bit more special than the present crop of 2013 summer blockbusters. Most obvious among its particular attributes are the hybrid zombies. No dragging feet, half stroked-out gait for this crew – no sir. These dead things are revved up, super-charged, killing machines designed to run you down and eat you up. Scripting a virus that takes only 12 seconds to convert you into a super-powered, flesh-eating ghoul gives the film (at least in its first half) a great chaotic, this-thing-can’t-be-stopped pace. I actually found myself tightening my grip on the arm of my seat (slightly)… my breathing was noticeably affected (somewhat) - the early scenes are that edgy tense. 

Second, the film is not all together stupid… unusual for a big-budget summer scare flick. Although Z clearly gives up on the post-war retrospective approach of its source material (World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War), its simplified understory and style have just enough savvy and consistency to add to, rather than distract from, the film’s terror-ride core. Z does tease us, however, with what it could have been. For example; in a too-short scene, a caged and compromised CIA agent (cameo by David Morse (The Hurt Locker, Disturbia)) hints at the politics behind the disease and of the world’s reaction to it – why some nations are winning and some are losing. Sadly, there just is not enough time for such intrigue and Z chooses to move around the globe in a more conventional action-thriller path. Nonetheless; although Z can’t be described as cerebral in any way, or even all that original, the film is taut - the dialogue is crisp and smart, and the tension is as thick as molasses whether Forster is stressing us in high or low gear.

Which brings me to the movies final point-scoring element. Z is a zombie thriller, so by definition it’s going to be over the top. But unlike so many of the big box office action films this year, it does not pound you into submission with the relentless cacophony of sight and sound (like Man of Steal for example).  Instead Forster does something almost unheard of in this type of film; he shifts gears midway - from fast and frantic battles to a silent, slow, and tense walk through enemy lines.  I found this deletion of the obligatory crescendo toward a tiresome, hyperactive finale to be perfectly refreshing.

I believe Z to be the best of the summer blockbusters to date. The ending, however, is completely superfluous and out of phase (corny) with the rest of the show. So skip out a few minutes early; you’ll know when. But don’t get in there late... 12 seconds is not a lot of time.  7 out of 10.