Army of the Dead

Director - Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead, Sucker Punch)

Starring - Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy, L.A. Slasher), Ella Purnell (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Kick-Ass 2), and Omari Hardwick (Kick-Ass, Power)

Release Date - 2021

Genre - Action/Horror/Sci-Fi

Tagline - "Always bet on dead"

Format - Streaming (Netflix)

Rating (out of 5):

     We haven't received a lot of new releases this year for obvious reasons but the big releases we have received have all been very entertaining.  This year is the year of Zack Snyder after we were given the Snyder Cut of Justice League a few months ago and the promise of Army of the Dead only made the blow of the pandemic feel tolerable.  Army of the Dead is one that I was really looking forward to checking out and when news broke that it was premiering on Netflix I knew that I would be seeing it fairly early on.  Snyder has yet to let me down and I knew he wouldn't with this one.

     The film follows Scott Ward (Bautista) who is tasked with putting together a team and entering Las Vegas which is now blocked off from the outside world following a zombie outbreak.  He is tasked with securing 200 million dollars that is left in a vault of a casino.  However, there is a new breed of zombie lurking behind the walls of the closed off city and another motive for the group to be sent in.

     Army of the Dead has split movie fans since it was released.  Some people went into it expecting a genre changing film from the director of Justice League.  However, the movie was meant to be fun and nothing more.  It's a popcorn flick that mixes action and horror while not trying to be anything more than fun.  The acting in this one is what you would expect from a movie like this.  The cast is all amazing actors that really get into their roles but these are the types of performances that will not be winning awards.  We get some hilarious one liners and comical portrayals of bad asses that gives this film some much needed humor.  With that being said, I really liked Dave Bautista as the lead.  He always entertains and this film is no exception.  The characters, especially the "alpha" dead really make this film what it is.  I enjoyed the diverse cast of characters and how each actor portrayed them.  The story for this one is mindless action and horror.  If you go into this one expecting a "realistic" zombie movie you will be very disappointed.  Which bring me to the question "what the fuck is a realistic zombie movie?"  Really, I want to know.  So many people on social media shit all over this movie because it wasn't realistic.  Regardless, if you go into this one expecting the next Dawn of the Dead you will not have a good time.  However, if you go into it expecting a zombie movie from Zack Snyder and starring a professional wrestler then you will have a lot of fun.  Finally, the film is a showcase of effects.  We get so many amazing practical effects in the deaths.  The deaths are extremely bloody and violent with the film making great use of the practical effects.  The make-up effects look great as well with the zombie queen quickly becoming the face of modern horror.  With that being said, there is several instances of visual effects that looked extremely cheap and rushed.  They didn't match the film what so ever and really took away from the scenes.  I enjoyed the film but I can't figure out why they would make the decision to use poor CGI when I've seen no-budget films use it more effectively.  Overall, Army of the Dead is mindless fun that I could watch on a continuous loop without becoming tired of it.  If you are the type of person that takes things too seriously or have the need to pick everything apart then you will not have a good time.  However, if you are open minded and looking for something straight forward and fun to watch then this one is for you.  It's not Snyder's best but it's very entertaining.