Arts & Entertainment

'World War Z:' War Worth Seeing

Debuting in theaters this weekend.

By Leslie Combemale
Cinema Siren

Before you even consider seeing World War Z,  you must erase all you know about the extremely popular novel by Max Brooks from your brain. Make it as vegetables to a zombie: immaterial and of no relation to the experience at hand… 

Can you approach seeing it as someone just hungering for the raw meat that is a tasty and suspenseful action movie you can sink your teeth into, where zombies figure? 

Moviegoers should run, not shamble, toward the nearest multiplex. You may ask 'Why? when you might have heard so much bad press about it...There have been a myriad of issues in getting this film to the screen.   
The near complete jettison of Max Brooks' cult-beloved book, the seemingly endless reshoots, the growing rift between director Marc Forster and Brad Pitt, and the more than year-long delay in its release, should telegraph an apocalypse not only onscreen but at the box office.  

Engrossing entertainment
As a critic, we are meant to ignore all that information, which is hard to do, especially as Cinema Siren is such a huge fan of the original novel. And yet…  chalk it up to sheer force of will on the part of Pitt and other diehard folks involved, World War Z has emerged as an extremely entertaining, thoroughly engaging flick that deserves an audience, and will even garner longterm fans.   

Whatever its long pre-release history, many who enjoy action adventures as well as zombie movie aficionados will find World War Z engrossing entertainment. The story concerns U.N. ex-employee Gerry Lane, who has to leave his wife and kids and re-enter the fray as requested by his ex-boss, when what look like zombies start killing everyone in the world within a matter of hours, causing whole nations to topple.  

Fast-running zombies
These are the fast-turning, fast running "viral" zombies (think 28 Days Later, not Night of the Living Dead). That alone will turn off some zombie purists, who will say they aren't real zombies*, although expert Doug Winter will tell you raptor zombies are nothing new, and were used in Umberto Lenzi's Nightmare City in 1980.  

Lane is tasked with accompanying a virologist and keeping him safe in his search for a cure or finding a way of effectively halting the end of civilization. Only good family men need apply: In exchange for risking his life, his wife and children will be offered asylum on a virus-free aircraft carrier. Lane accepts. Thus ensues a frantic trek around the world to find answers and save the world.  

Pitt is the only bona fide A-list actor in World War Z, and yet the supporting roles are all memorably performed, although none have nearly as much screen time. The Killing's Mireille Enos' portrayal of Karin, Gerry's wife, will continue to propel her to the top of the Hollywood food chain, though she isn't seen nearly enough in the film. She is featured most in the first scenes filmed in urban landscapes, which set the tone for the rest of the action. The biggest stand-out is Daniella Kertesz in her first big-screen appearance as Segen, an Israeli soldier who proves her mettle. 

More action, less horror
The weaknesses, given how connected we remain with the protagonist, are nothing that destroy forward momentum. The story is somewhat one-dimensional. But given the apocalypse threat, it's no wonder our hero is single-focused. The characterizations also suffer in maintaining consistent suspense and excitement. Since no one faults Fast and Furious 6 for that weakness, why quibble here?   

The best quality of World War Z is it is consistently more action and less horror, allowing for  potentially wider viewership, and that action is represented in diverse set pieces that keep the audience's attention. No sooner have they gotten used to frenetic city chaos, then the story is moved to a more claustrophobic environment, or a seemingly expansive rural exterior.  

Death lurks around every corner, and much as we know little more than the tenacity, passion to survive and desire to be reunited with friends and family, we still come to care whether the cast succeeds, not least because the fate of the world depends on it.   

All in all, I'd wager most reading this, even dissenters, will be happily surprised and temporarily transfixed by World War Z.  It deserves your support. Would Cinema Siren guide you into a nest of the undead without good reason? Eat up.  This is one zombie action thriller that will fill you up and leave you hungry for more.  

About the author: Leslie Combemale, aka "Cinema Siren," is a movie lover and aficionado in Northern Virginia. Alongside Michael Barry, she owns ArtInsights Animation and Film Art Gallery in Reston Town Center. She has a background in film and art history. She often is invited to present at conventions such as the San Diego Comic Con.  In 2013 she will moderate "Legendary Animators of Classic 60s Cartoons" at SDCC.  She previously moderated "The Art of the Hollywood Movie Poster" and is a perennial panelist on the Harry Potter Fandom panel. Visit her art gallery online at www.artinsights.com, and see more of her reviews and interviews on www.artinsightsmagazine.com.


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