Movie Review: World War Z

If there is any movie you should watch this summer; that is if you have been living under a rock, or been too busy, or just didn’t want to catch the summer movie bug and decided to stubbornly sit them all out, I urge you to watch this one. Yes, it was that good. I was not only pleasantly surprised; I was shocked. I was disturbed after it was done. On my way out, I was very aware of the fact that there was only one exit door against the sheer mass of people milling out of the cinema hall. What if one of them transformed into a malevolent, biting thing?

The movie was directed by Marc Foster and written by Matthew Michael Carnahan. The beginning shows signs of something wrong going on in the world- news report of feral animals and dead dolphins, roving mobs and rioters- but it seems small and inconsequential. Nothing prepares you for the violence that eventually erupts onscreen. Brad Pitt (Gerry Lane in the movie) who is a retired United Nations trouble shooter (and also a producer of the film) is driving in the family car with his wife and two children, and they are stuck in traffic in downtown Philadelphia, when things just start unravelling. First, his wife comments on the unusual number of helicopters circling in the air. Then motorcycle cops start whizzing by, with no explanation. Suddenly, a huge garbage truck comes spiralling down and plows through waiting cars and bodies, and then an explosion goes off ahead, and chaos ensues. Everybody starts running. Your heart is racing, and you’re unsure for them, but you still don’t know what is happening. Everybody is confused. Until you look through Brad Pitt’s eyes and spot a human in the midst of the unrest, who gets bitten and turn into a mad, shaking, blood thirsty monster. And you realise it’s Zombie time.

The horror greatly accelerates, and in order for Gerry to keep his family safe, he has to resume work for the UN and try to find the origin of the virus, so that he can eradicate it. He travels all over the world and we can see the effects of the undead in North Korea, Israel (which tried to keep the zombies out by building a wall), and the rolling hills of Nova Scotia, where he has to blow up a plane that suddenly gets infected with zombies. The scenes are unnerving, which is a delightful change from all the other high budget war and action movies we had seen this summer. All the bashing in the new Superman and smashing in Iron Man 3 were good and everything, but left me feeling not an ounce of emotion for those involved. World War Z is a whole other story. It would leave you gripping your chair and questioning the ferocious danger man can pose when the animal within him is unleashed.

IMDB rating: 7.2/10

Duration: 116 minutes

Rating: PG 13