Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'World War Z'

Written by Scott Edwards and John Edward Betancourt 

Scotty’s Review
How will the world end? That is a question that you will ask yourself at least once in your lifetime. Some people think it will end with a meteor hitting the planet, or atomic bombs being dropped, or an alien invasion that leads to extermination, extinguishing our human existence. I will admit that while I enjoy seeing these ideas play out in movies, there is little chance of survival in these scenarios, and who in their right mind would not like a fighting chance? In reality, it could be something as simple as a virus that our human anatomy cannot fight off that may lead to our demise, but whether or not it would just kill us or change us would be the question.

This is the scenario that is tested in World War Z. A virus that causes people to become something else, where the term ‘Zombie’ comes into play. A man named Gerry Lane is called back into action by his former U.N. employer to try and find the root cause to this mysterious illness. Reluctantly, Gerry takes back the reigns of his past job and starts to search for a cure with a team of Navy Seals and a young virologist named Andrew Fassbach. According to the U.N.’s top brass, this young scientist is the best hope for finding a cure and saving the world from the pandemic.  

Following the adventures of Gerry Lane on his adventures through China and Israel, World War Z shows how quickly a society could break down and make it believable. With a supposed outbreak of rabies on their hands, the U.S. is slow to respond to the imminent threat on their hands and loses almost every major city in one day. With a virus that can be transmitted via a bite, and only taking twelve seconds to turn its next victim into a crazed freak, there seems to be no way to beat the oncoming herds. Most of the people that survive this plague are doing the only thing that seems sane, hiding.

Depending on your favorite genre of Zombie movies, you may love this movie or hate it. Let me give you my list of the good and the bad when it comes to this film.

The Good:  Fantastic visuals, there is a shot of a nuclear bomb being set off that comes up through the clouds as Lane is off to his next location. The acting is good but being a huge fan of Brad Pitt after his role in Moneyball, I struggle to find flaws in his performance. The storytelling was what you would expect from a Summer Blockbuster, it flows flawlessly and if you leave your seat, you will miss an important plot point.

The Bad:  Throw the novel out of the window if you are expecting the same thing. I was anxiously awaiting this movie to be made, but after hearing about how the script went through several re-writes, I knew that I would need to go into it with an open mind. As someone that was born into the zombie genre with the Romero freaks, I was surprised that becoming one would make you faster and stronger than you were when alive. Also, the zombies don’t eat anyone, they just bite you and move on. 

With that all said, this is a fun action flick. I can understand why they went in the direction that they did while trying to create the largest zombie film in history. If you had to write every scene in a flashback, you would not have one star to focus your story around. Honestly, if you just saw Brad Pitt sitting, asking questions, then leaving the room, would you be happy? Some people would be, but most would want something a bit more. I enjoyed this movie, and I was certainly entertained by the scale of destruction and madness as zombies take over the globe. Keep your head up and if you notice your friends biting each other, just get a magazine and some duct tape and prepare for the worst.

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John's Review
Disasters, whether we like to acknowledge it or not, are a part of our lives. Be it man made tragedies, or mother nature reminding all of us we just live here, they will touch us in some way. Yet in our modern era, there has yet to be a major global disaster, one that threatens mankind's very existence. But if one were to arrive, there seems to be a consensus that it will come in the form of a pandemic of some kind.

Of course in the creative world that opens up many a possibility and if there is any topic that tops our fictional list of potential pandemics it is the resurrection of the dead. Yet one aspect of zombie lore that has yet to be explored in the genre is the actual effect on our world in the opening days of the pandemic. Sure, we have seen the aftermath or some of the beginning of the end through the eyes of survivors but never the scale of such a disaster. At least, not until World War Z.  

But let's not spend too much time on the plot today, since you've likely seen this movie by now. Instead, let's address the other burning questions that are undoubtedly on your mind when it comes to this movie. Is it terrible? No. Is it going to leave you cheering when the credits roll? No. The film is just so-so, and with good reason, this is by no means a traditional zombie film, or a horror film for that matter. Truth is, this is a disaster movie that happens to use zombies as the disaster. But, the film gets major props for showing off what our world could look like if the dead were to rise and there are definitely chills that come from that.  
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​Yet what hurts World War Z are a few things. For starters, fast corpses always baffle me and I really don't know how a dead creature can do all of the things that these ones do. They swarm and they leap and I just don't understand how that happens when well...they're dead. But that is the least of the film's concerns, what really made this film just ‘okay’ was one important element when it comes to zombie flicks...hopelessness. Now that's not to say hope has no place in the genre, but at no point did I feel the despair that comes with the end of the world that I usually experience when watching other zombie films.  

It seemed like the answers were always there, and I do give the film credit for its solution to the zombie menace. But let's look at something important here. Death is a big deal. We fear it, yet we also welcome it. If a loved one is suffering from a terminal medical condition for months on end and they finally succumb to the illness we are relieved that their suffering has come to an end. On a more personal level death is the final page in a story of accomplishments for us. We work toward seeing that final page be filled with joy and satisfaction of a life lived to the fullest.  

In the George Romero world of zombies and the vast majority of zombie stories, that is robbed from all of us. There is no peace in our end, no celebration because we become an abomination. It rocks the foundation of our society and that is how the zombies win. We are traumatized by the fact that one of the ideals we hold closest to us is removed from our way of life. That is what I mean by hopelessness. Despite the survivors’ plight, it is in a way...all in vain.  

Not once did I feel that watching World War Z. Sure, people died, and I can even live without the blood and guts since it holds a PG-13 rating, but I can't handle the fact that there is limitless hope in a zombie film. Regardless, do check it out. Brad Pitt is outstanding as always as Gerry Lane and from a disaster film stand point, the movie does kick ass. Just check your love of zombies and the book at the door and you'll have a fine time.  

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