In 2012, you couldn't turn on the television or open your internet browser without hearing about zombies. They were the ''in'' thing. Every creative person had a zombie project in the pipeline: a zombie screenplay, a zombie novel, a zombie chapbook, zombie, zombie, motherfuckin' zombie. There even was a young adult paranormal romance with zombies made. It couldn't get any more fucked up. Author Max Brooks (heir to Godfather of absurdism Mel Brooks) sold a lot of copies of his novel WORLD WAR Z during that zombie revival period, which was essentially the pseudo-adult response to Stephenie Meyer's laughable TWILIGHT saga vampire revival literary movement.
I'm sure understand I don't have a lot of patience for gimmicks that publishers and movie executives are trying to sell me. Anyway, the movie adaptation of WORLD WAR Z lingered in production for a couple years and missed the gravy train by about a year. When it came out, zombies were still cool, but not as much. The movie barely made its money back in theaters and it was a ridiculous production. I watched WORLD WAR Z because Josie has this obsessive love/hate relationship with apocalypse movies and here are my thoughts.
I'm sure understand I don't have a lot of patience for gimmicks that publishers and movie executives are trying to sell me. Anyway, the movie adaptation of WORLD WAR Z lingered in production for a couple years and missed the gravy train by about a year. When it came out, zombies were still cool, but not as much. The movie barely made its money back in theaters and it was a ridiculous production. I watched WORLD WAR Z because Josie has this obsessive love/hate relationship with apocalypse movies and here are my thoughts.
I haven't read the novel, but it's apparently pretty different from the movie. So I'm not going to focus on the adaptation. Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) is a retired U.N investigator and a full-time family man. When shit hits the fan and zombies start wreaking havoc in the streets of Philadelphia, Gerry and his family barely escape to a U.S army freighter he parlayed his way to, using his contacts from his U.N days. The only catch is that if he wants his family to remain under military protection, he has to go out on the field and investigate the source of this virus. Gerry is the best of the best at investigating (of course), so he is sent across the globe to South Korea, Israel and Whales to find a cure to this disease that's rapidly decimating mankind. Facing the most dangerous challenge of his career, Gerry rises to the occasion because, what the hell else is he supposed to do? Lie down in the street and wait for zombies to eat his face? So he puts his shoulder into it and takes a swan dive into the heart of darkness.
WORLD WAR Z is visually stunning, the way most Hollywoodian superproductions are. There is a tremendous sense of scope to it and cameras are sweeping through epically-sized battlefield at an intoxicating speed, without leaving any sensory detail out of the frame. It's impressive at times and it has a strong sense of identity. When you're watching WORLD WAR Z, you always know you're watching WORLD WAR Z and not a repackaged half-baked summer success from four years ago.
It has a commanding presence, but it's not an impactful movie. It doesn't make a statement about the human condition and doesn't have any wisdom to share in general. WORLD WAR Z is a series of hollow peek-a-boo scares with zombies surging into the frame and clucking in a threatening manner. Once again, I don't know if the novel suffers from the same cruel lack of depth, but I suppose it doesn't since you REALLY have to go out of your way to make a written narrative so bare. WORLD WAR Z is trying to squeeze a cheap scare out of you way more than it's trying to tell you a good story, but it is a beautiful movie.
It has a commanding presence, but it's not an impactful movie. It doesn't make a statement about the human condition and doesn't have any wisdom to share in general. WORLD WAR Z is a series of hollow peek-a-boo scares with zombies surging into the frame and clucking in a threatening manner. Once again, I don't know if the novel suffers from the same cruel lack of depth, but I suppose it doesn't since you REALLY have to go out of your way to make a written narrative so bare. WORLD WAR Z is trying to squeeze a cheap scare out of you way more than it's trying to tell you a good story, but it is a beautiful movie.
WORLD WAR Z is deeply indebted to video games. If you've played several shooters and adventure games in your life, you'll recognize patterns you're used to see in games, but not in movies. The extraction scene from the military base in South Korea for example, with the markmen on top of the walls, the moving shadows and the whistling bullets would've made a great scene in an online shooter. The layout of the W.H.O facility reminded me of games such as Half-Life and Dead Space. Point is, I'm sure WORLD WAR Z would've PLAYED well if it were a video game.
Unfortunately, it was a frustrating experience in that regards as my viewing felt like watching the longed, most self-indulgent cut scene in the world. I wanted Gerry to survive and go back to his family, but these run, jump, hide, fight adventures are better experienced behind a controller, where you feel responsible for the protagonist. Seeing Gerry Lane run and fly through gorgeous, albeit zombie-infested landscapes was interesting if a little uninvolving.
I'm being very critical of WORLD WAR Z here, but it's a movie that owns what it does. It doesn't do much, BUT it does what it does well: create hopeless pandemic landscape and soulless flesh-eating, plague-wielding monsters. The fact that it has very humble narrative ambition is both its blessing and its curse, really. It made the end product cohesive and mildly enjoyable, but it's not a movie meant to make a lasting impression. WORLD WAR Z's highest ambition is to keep you from hating yourself for allowing it two hours of your time. It won't question your beliefs or redefine the boundaries of your perception. Ironically enough, WORLD WAR Z is an early omen of the fall of society, when humans will be connected to entertainment they only mildly love 24/7, so it keeps them consuming entertainment instead of inspiring them to change their lives. Josie would say this is crazy talk, but that's my ultimate takeaway from WORLD WAR Z: it's a highly competent action/disaster movie that has for only purpose to develop the loyalty of entertainment craved audiences around the world. It's not exactly a waste of your time, but you could do better things with your life than watch this.
I guess I'll know tomorrow morning if WORLD WAR Z got me super cynical or if I stumbled upon an Illuminati population control experiment. In that case, SHARE THIS POST, KEEP IT ALIVE!
Unfortunately, it was a frustrating experience in that regards as my viewing felt like watching the longed, most self-indulgent cut scene in the world. I wanted Gerry to survive and go back to his family, but these run, jump, hide, fight adventures are better experienced behind a controller, where you feel responsible for the protagonist. Seeing Gerry Lane run and fly through gorgeous, albeit zombie-infested landscapes was interesting if a little uninvolving.
I'm being very critical of WORLD WAR Z here, but it's a movie that owns what it does. It doesn't do much, BUT it does what it does well: create hopeless pandemic landscape and soulless flesh-eating, plague-wielding monsters. The fact that it has very humble narrative ambition is both its blessing and its curse, really. It made the end product cohesive and mildly enjoyable, but it's not a movie meant to make a lasting impression. WORLD WAR Z's highest ambition is to keep you from hating yourself for allowing it two hours of your time. It won't question your beliefs or redefine the boundaries of your perception. Ironically enough, WORLD WAR Z is an early omen of the fall of society, when humans will be connected to entertainment they only mildly love 24/7, so it keeps them consuming entertainment instead of inspiring them to change their lives. Josie would say this is crazy talk, but that's my ultimate takeaway from WORLD WAR Z: it's a highly competent action/disaster movie that has for only purpose to develop the loyalty of entertainment craved audiences around the world. It's not exactly a waste of your time, but you could do better things with your life than watch this.
I guess I'll know tomorrow morning if WORLD WAR Z got me super cynical or if I stumbled upon an Illuminati population control experiment. In that case, SHARE THIS POST, KEEP IT ALIVE!
