IT IS still unknown when the cinemas in Ireland will reopen. Until then we still rely on Netflix. Their films tend to be more miss than hit but every now and again they get a good one.
Army of the Dead has a really good premise. There has been a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas. The American government has blockaded the city and is planning a nuclear strike to wipe out the zombies. All the money in Vegas has been written off by the casino’s insurance companies who have paid out - one of the least believable aspects of this zombie film - so if someone went in to raid the vaults of the casinos the money is free. But you have to get out alive, and these zombies are fast and they have tigers (How? who cares ).
Ex-special forces agent Scott Ward (Dave Batista ) is tasked with getting out the money in a 'one last job' type scenario. He gets together a team of safecrackers, helicopter pilots, and tough nuts to break in and bust out before the nuke hits. It is one hell of an elevator pitch.
Director Zach Snyder made his name in 2004 with an excellent remake of Dawn of the Dead. Now he has returned to the genre that got him attention in the first place.
It is funny that with all the superhero movies we are subjected to on a monthly basis, this film, which is not based on a comic strip, has the energy and humour of the best type of comic book. It is bright and flexible. Perhaps not being tied to any source material means it feels very free.
On the other hand, it is not flawless. It is far too long - two and a half hours and you really feel it in the middle. Some of the side characters are not quite as much fun as the movie would like you to think. Maybe a few big name stars would have gotten a little more out of the smaller roles - think of the way the Ocean's 11 series handles its ensemble cast. That said, English language new comer, Matthias Schweighofer (a big star in Germany ), who plays the safe cracker, is having great fun and I believe is already cast for lead in the sequel.
Army of the Dead is in the very good, but not great pile. It is big, dumb and lots of fun. There is nothing wrong with that.
