‘We Are Zombies’ Review
Stars: Alexandre Nachi, Derek Johns, Megan Peta Hill, Vincent Leclerc, Benz Antoine, Carlo Mestroni, Guy Nadon, Patrick Abellard | Written by Jerry Frisson, Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell | Directed by Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell
Knowing this film comes from RKSS – the Canadian filmmaking collective composed of François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissell – I couldn’t wait to see it. These three previously created Turbo Kid and Summer of ‘84. Both excellent movies, with Turbo Kid being one of my very favourite movies. They also have another film out this year – Wake Up – which looks just as great, but for now, I was happy to watch We Are Zombies.
The first thing to note about the movie is that it’s not the usual zombie movie. The directors have tried to do something a little bit different. We see a city infested with the living-impaired — also known as non-cannibal zombies — and three slackers are after easy money but must fight small-time crooks and an evil megacorporation to save their kidnapped grandma. So those expecting a typical zombie apocalypse-style movie but be a little bit disappointed. Initially. It does head down a more typical path a few times though.
Perhaps most of all in the gore. It’s no surprise if you have seen their previous work, that these filmmakers bring the gore with fantastic practical effects work. There is no shortage of gore that literally sprays out of body parts. Guns, saws and wrestling moves are all used to take down the zombies. Ad a few humans too. Not only that but the make-up for the ‘living-impaired’ is spot-on too. Most of them look like your traditional zombies but look great.
Another thing that the filmmaking trio are great at, is making likeable characters and they do just that in We Are Zombies. The three leads on paper are your typical nerdy losers for the most part. But the brother and sister dynamic works and the best friend making up the trio adds something a bit different. The three actors – Alexandre Nachi, Derek Johns and Megan Peta Hill – have to take most of the credit though because it’s their performance which makes them so likeable. You’ll be rooting for them and they’ll make you laugh plenty of times too.
Most of the comedy got a laugh, with not many dud lines. The story as a whole didn’t really feel dynamic enough possibly. It didn’t feel massively original but in truth, it didn’t really need to be. I would happily take a sequel (the ending alludes to it) even if it is a more typical end-of-the-world zombie movie.
The final third is when the action really kicks and genre fans will get a kick out of how much gore there is and how entertaining it is on screen. There are plenty of horror fans who are also wrestling fans, so seeing a powerbomb, a clothesline and other moves destroying zombies will raise a smile. There’s the trademark synthwave music used throughout, and not only does it work excellently, but it’s also a nice nod to early zombie movies such as Dawn of the Dead. And if we’re talking about influences here, Shaun of the Dead fans will no doubt enjoy this.
We Are Zombies is unlike any other zombie movie you’ll see this year and it’s another hit from RKSS.
**** 4/5
We Are Zombies is available to watch now on Streambox.
