World War Z (PG-13)

      Based on the book of the same name by Max Brooks, World War Z is a thrilling apocalypse film. Beginning with an opening credit sequence that installs a sense of foreboding in the viewer (more on this later), World War Z does not let up on the excitement until the last minute. Sure to be a hit for both zombie and movie lovers alike, this film leads the viewer on a quest full of excitement and terror that one is sure to remember.
      World War Z opens on ex-UN worker Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) and his family taking a trip into the city of Philadelphia. When the family car is stopped by heavy traffic, Gerry steps outside to investigate. As soon as he leaves the car, a police officer shouts at him to stay with his family... and then is hit by an eighteen wheeler. Soon the city dissolves into chaos as the undead make their appearance. After several close calls with zombies, Gerry gets his family out of the city and eventually, onto a United Nations aircraft carrier. However, upon conversing with his friend Thierry Umutomi (Fana Mokoena), Gerry discovers that he must join a quest to find a cure for the zombie plague if he wants his family to stay safe upon the carrier. Thus begins the globe-trotting race to save the Earth before it falls to the undead.
       As a fan of the novel, I will admit that I was rather nervous when I saw the first trailer for World War Z. First of all, the zombies were all wrong. In the book they were slow and moaned whenever they see their prey. In this movie, the undead sprinted at the humans and... screeched? Secondly, the novel didn't have a main character. It was more of a collection of interviews with survivors of the Zombie War. This was in fact one of the many reasons why the book worked so well. However in the movie version, the main focus of the story is Gerry Lane. Lastly, I'm not exactly a fan of Brad Pitt. I don't really like his movies (except for Moneyball and Ocean's 11) and I am of the opinion that he needs to cut his hair.
        All this being said, I saw World War Z twice in theaters and loved every second of it.
        Everything about this film blew me away. Not only that, all of my preconceived notions ab

A hoard of zombies climb the wall surrounding Israel

out it were proven wrong almost immediately. The running zombies were an interesting change that actually turned out to be a great idea. I was convinced of this right after our first glimpse of the undead. In this scene an unnamed man is bitten by a zombie and begins transforming into one of the ghouls. This was, perhaps, my favorite sequence in the whole film. As the poor man begins changing, the voice of a child counts down the seconds until he is fully transformed. When he is, he turns and jumps through the air at the car containing Gerry's family and smashes his head against the truck's windshield. This vicious display proved to me that fast zombies were an excellent (albeit terrifying) change to the story. Even the zombies' bone-chilling screeches were fantastic
         Having an actual main character in World War Z was a good call as well. This is what made the viewer care. We want Gerry to succeed and we want his family to survive the crisis that is gripping the world. Also, as critical as I am of Brad Pitt, I believe his acting was most impressive in this film.
          One of my favorite parts of World War Z is actually the opening credits sequence. This was comprised of carnivorous animals tearing into their prey and news anchors discussing sickness and end-of-the-world scenarios. What is so masterful about this is that everything in the sequence points to a zombie epidemic without actually saying it.
          World War Z is filled to the brim with moments both shocking and beautiful complete with a haunting score that floats through the film with natural perfection. I really enjoyed World War Z and would be sure to recommend it to anyone. This film seems, at first glance, like it shouldn't work. But nonetheless, it really does with all actors, writers, and director pulling their weight and then some. Overall, I would rate World War Z a 4.25 out of 5. Thank you for reading! be sure to check out my next review for Now You See Me.