Rules for Survival, Twinkies, and Bill Murray

Zombieland

Directed By: Ruben Fleischer

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin

Rated: R

1 hrs. 20 min.

A college student referred to as Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) narrates as he deals with the zombie apocalypse. His main goal is to make it all the way from Texas to Ohio to see if his parents are still alive. Along the way he meets up with a man called Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) who is on a mission of his own: to find the last remaining Twinkies in America. On the journey east they meet Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), two con girls who are also on a mission, which is to make it to Pacific Playland amusement park in California, a place rumored to be zombie-free.

This film was a lot of fun. It definitely fits into the same category as Shaun of the Dead as a comedy zombie film (a zom com if you will). The running gag is the voice over narration given by Columbus in which he gives his rules for surviving the zombie apocalypse. At first I thought the voice over was going to get old, as voice overs usually tend to do when used excessively, and it did seem a little bit too much a couple times. For the most part, however, the narration was interesting and entertaining. Columbus is such an amusing character and someone you tend to identify with so easily, despite his tendency to be really awkward. The rules he lists throughout are funny and, to be honest, some pretty good rules that I would be following if I were in the same situation. These survival rules are referred to multiple times each, but I still laughed every time, especially with the rule "Double Tap."

Woody Harrelson is easily the best part of Zombieland. Tallahassee is a crazy guy who lets off steam by smashing the windows on mini vans and celebrates finding a stash of weapons and a Hummer by shooting off guns. Most of the best lines come from him, such as "Thank God for rednecks!" His enthusiasm as he spouts off to Bill Murray (yes, Bill Murray has a cameo) how much he loves him and his movies makes for a great laugh-out-loud scene.

Zombieland is definitely a must see. It's not just a movie for zombie film enthusiasts, its a movie for everyone, although zombie fans will probably enjoy it just a little more since Columbus's rules reference so many zombie film conventions. There are awesome zombie killings including a glimpse at one of the coolest "Zombie Kills of the Week" and the therapeutic crushing of a clown zombie, tons of outrageous lines, and surprisingly touching moments. While younger audiences and/or zombie fans may like it just a little more, anyone can enjoy it.

Grade: A -