Directed by Zack Snyder, Army of the Dead takes place following a zombie outbreak that left Las Vegas in ruins, walled off from the rest of the world. When Scott Ward (Dave Bautista), a former zombie war hero who’s now flipping burgers on the outskirts of town, is approached by casino boss Bly Tanaka (Hiroyuki Sanada), it’s with the ultimate proposition: break into the zombie-infested quarantine zone to retrieve $200 million sitting in a vault in a casino before the city is nuked by the government. Having little left to lose, Ward takes on the challenge, assembling a ragtag team for the heist. With a ticking clock, a notoriously impenetrable vault, and a smarter, faster horde of Alpha zombies closing in, only one thing’s for certain in the greatest heist ever attempted: survivors take all.
Having stepped away from comic book films, Zack Snyder has gone back to his filmmaking roots that started with 2004’s Dawn of Dead and has complete control, with no studio around to mess with his vision for what looked to be a bonkers zombie film. I was lucky enough to get the chance to watch the film early in a theater this past Friday before its release on Netflix, making this my first theatrical watch since March 2020. And my oh my was this a release worth seeing on the big screen.
I fucking loved this movie. Army of the Dead surprised me in so many ways, simultaneously delivering a lot of what I was expecting, but also many more things that I did not expect in the best ways possible.
This is essentially a heist film with zombies but it’s a heist film that has perfectly crafted tension and an awesome narrative that adds new life to the zombie genre, plus heart, great characters with great actors performing them, unhinged bloody action, and fantastic visuals. This was an unrestricted creation that has not only become one of my top favorite films of this year but also one of my top favorite zombie films of all time.
Zack Snyder definitely made the right choice breaking away from comic book films and working on something a bit more original because he really gets the chance to show off his talents as a filmmaker here. This is a heist film that hits a few familiar beats we have seen in other heist films but it also takes new and bold directions, making it more unique than just having zombies added to the mix.
This is also an action-packed film that can be compared to the likes of James Cameron’s Aliens for not only how the action is perfectly executed by embracing elements of horror, but also how it handles the characters. Every character has their own unique personalities that are shown through the actors and actresses’ performances and also through their fighting styles and weaponry. Some of the characters are ones you may have seen before in a heist and zombie films, but the way they are done makes it feel fresh and new again and you do get attached to all of them, whether you are rooting for them or hate them and want them to suffer.
One of the biggest issues zombie films these days fail to do is make convincing characters, but thanks to a great cast and script they were able to make all these characters lovable in their own way and got us really invested in them.
While everyone is awesome there are some standouts as you would expect. The biggest among them is the lead character played by Dave Bautista. This is honestly Dave Bautista’s best performance to date in his acting career. I always loved him as Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy and I also loved him in his brief role in Blade Runner 2049 where he got to show his true acting chops. But I feel the performance he delivers in this film completely sets a whole new bar of incredible acting from him.
His character, Scott Ward, is dealing with and confronting things from his past, ranging from being estranged from his daughter Kate (Ella Purnell) to fighting the armies of the dead when the outbreak first happened in Las Vegas, to mistakes from his past beyond those events that begin to surface throughout the film. He is where most of the heart and emotion of the film comes from as Batista makes this character, who on the surface seems like a zombie-killing badass, into a fully fleshed-out character that you get so attached to throughout the film, with believable relationships with the other characters in the film including his daughter. He delivered some amazingly emotional moments that hit me hard in unexpected ways.
The film shows that Dave Bautista deserves to have more significant lead roles in the future cause he truly is amazing as an actor in every possible way and has gone far beyond being a former WWE star.
The character Vanderohe, played by Omari Hardwick, was an absolute treat to have on scene as a man who is both a soldier and a philosopher of sorts in a funny way, and I found him very enjoyable. But another enjoyable and absolutely hilarious character was Ludwig Dieter, played by Matthias Schweighöfer, a German safecracker. Matthias delivers such a funny performance that I wasn’t really expecting, providing easily one of the most lovable characters in the film who isn’t annoying in the slightest.
Another notable role was the helicopter pilot, Marianne Peters, played by Tig Notaro who replaced comedian Chris D’Elia after severe allegations against him surfaced. Since the whole film was completed before the pandemic, and doing huge reshoots would have been an extreme task, Snyder and his crew instead chose to digitally erase D’Elia from the film and digitally add Notaro in his place, filming her scenes by herself. I was at first concerned by this choice as I was unsure how Tig Notaro and the interactions with other characters would look. Thankfully, she looked perfect in the film and her interactions with everyone were not disjointed or off in any way.
And on top of it all, Tig Notaro delivers a great performance as this character, offering some great humor that was certainly similar to D’Elia’s style of comedy but with her own touch. While a part of me wonders what D’Elia’s performance could have been like, Snyder’s decision was completely understandable and felt like the right thing to do.
All these great characters are put together in a great story that, while hitting familiar beats, also takes unexpectedly dark turns and has some subtle self-awareness included that is executed brilliantly.
From the very beginning, which features perhaps the best and most humorous opening for a zombie film since Zombieland, the film sets up the kind of story you are getting: dark humor mixed with graphic horror as well as emotional stakes. The film isn’t afraid to be funny when it wants to be, as well as having subtle relevant themes on occasion, but it also isn’t afraid to get serious, providing heart and tension to the max in an instant. I can’t tell you how many times I was on the edge of my sea, as it establishes high stakes and goosebump thrills especially when it comes to the zombies.
It’s tricky to make zombies unique these days since you’d think that all the best ideas have been used up by everyone else. But Snyder manages to find a way to make these zombies unique by introducing a more evolved breed that is intelligent and organized. They are still animalistic, flesh-eating walking corpses but they have unique looks, personalities, and an increased threat level for our characters. Also, they are damn terrifying, especially with the incredible practical makeup and details that are done for all of them, making them very memorable.
And then we of course have the god damn zombie tiger who is just as awesome as expected. Zombie animals aren’t new but I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen a zombie tiger in a big-budget film on a theater screen. The tiger gets built up for a satisfying payoff that I know everyone is going to get a kick out of.
There are a lot of heartfelt scenes that I did not expect in this film especially in the slower moments between characters in between all the adrenaline-rushing scenes that were all brilliant and had me invested the entire time. Also, I do love some of the fun little homages the film has to other films, including one really clever one in the beginning to An American Werewolf in London.
The action is fun, with exhilarating and brutal gore that goes to many extremes. The action ranges from visual feasts for the eyes to claustrophobic close-quarters combat in tight spaces that really get you on the edge of your seat. This film features a lot of graphic sequences that add so much more to the stakes and can be both hugely entertaining as well as disturbing sometimes. A little warning though, there is one extreme scene in particular that I didn’t expect that I know will possibly put off some people.
The practical effects, CGI, and cinematography are top-notch, making this film visually gorgeous. This film has so many great shots and excellent sets, giving us a great look at a zombie-consumed Las Vegas that is 100% better than what was attempted in Resident Evil Extinction.
There was also notable use of Zach’s new up-close and out-of-focus filming style rather than the traditional filming style he’s had for years in previous films. For most of his films he’s had his technical Snyderisms that people love to make memes or rip into, but this is perhaps the least Snyderism-filled movie of his entire career and to be honest, it was a very welcome change.
I love the fact Snyder seems to be breaking away from what most people expect to see from him, trying something new and original that adds more visual beauty and enhances the film rather than having the same gimmicks we have seen so many times. It’s a kind of style I would very much like to see more from him in future projects.
Also seeing this on the big screen was an absolute joy and will probably be better than watching it on a small screen. So if you are going to watch this on Netflix I recommend watching it on the biggest screen you have.
The score by Junkie XL is excellent as expected but we also get a solid collection of songs that fit the Las Vegas setting in every way you can imagine. The music enhances all of the scenes of the film to a great extent, whether it’s for the bigger or smaller moments.
Army of the Dead is an awesome and very well-crafted film through and through. For me, it is Zack Snyder at his best as he delivers a film that is not only extremely exciting and entertaining, but also a film that gives strong characters, emotional investment, and takes risks that all pay off. A lot of people are going to be surprised by what this has to offer and it was truly the perfect film to watch for my return to the theater. I’m going to give Army of the Dead an A+.
You can find more of my writing on instagram!