Polone, G. (Producer) & Fleischer, R. (Director). (2009). Zombieland [Motion picture]. United States: Relativity Media.
Plot Summary: A comedic film about an unlikely group of survivors embarking on an extended road trip in a world plagued by zombies. A mild-mannered teen named Columbus meets up with adult loner Tallahasee, who has a fast truck and bad attitude. They encounter the teenager, Wichita, and her little sister, Little Rock, who con them repeatedly in their effort to survive in a world where no one is safe and no one can be fully trusted. The four agree to only know each by the names of their hometowns and soon become reluctant friends as they endure endless attacks by flesh-eating monsters. The team survives their quest for Twinkies, a visit to Bill Murray’s Hollywood mansion and a gruesome shootout with zombies at the Pacific Playland theme park. Throughout their adventure, they discover that by following a set of “rules” and remembering to “enjoy the little things” in life, including sympathy for each other’s losses, they can find salvation and for two of them, a true romance.
Critical Evaluation: A funny and fresh take on the traditional zombie horror film with good characterizations and excellent visual graphics. It’s not a serious exploration into the hearts of American teens, but it has poignant moments that we can relate to and an interesting look into what the world would be like if the only heroes turn out to be an earnest “nice guy” and a swindling, sexy girl. Despite the bloody gore and the humorous dialogue, the story concludes with a reward for each character after all: Little Rock gets to be a kid in a theme park, Tallahassee gets to prove he’s an ace killer through a dramatic battle with a mob of zombies, Columbus gets his first kiss with a girl her likes and Wichita finds a boy who is willing to risk everything in order to be with her. In the end, everyone learns that life can be exceedingly tough but that friendships will help them to endure.
Reader’s Annotation: How do you survive in a country that is overrun by zombies ready to attack you at every street corner? You think you might be the only guy left in the world until you meet a man with a bad attitude who is willing to let you ride in his big truck and help you shoot monsters. You want to go home and escape this crazy, scary world. That is, until you meet the girl of your dreams…
Information About the Director & Writers: Ruben Fleischer, a former music video director, created this hit as his first attempt at film directing. With experienced writers, Paul Wenick and Rhett Reese, they negotiated casting with Woody Harrelson to play the role of Tallahassee. Harrelson agreed but with the conditions that the film set be ecologically-friendly and that Fleischer agree to eat only vegetarian meals during the film shoot duration. Another two stars that they successfully secured for the film is ingénue Abigail Breslin and a cameo by film veteran, Bill Murray. A native of Washington D.C., Fleischer now has talent representation on Los Angeles and France. Due to the success of his first film, he is in talks for several future film projects, according to news reports.
Genre:
Teen Issues: Death & Deadly Disease, Outsiders, Homelessness & Foster Living
Contemporary Life: Coming of Age, Romance, Humor
Adventure: Survival, War
Paranormal: Monsters, Werefolk & Other Beasties
Science Fiction: Utopia/Distopia, Post-Apocalyptic
Other: Horror films, Teen Spoof films
Curriculum Ties: Social Studies class, English class, Filmmaking class, Recommendations for Reluctant Readers
Movietalking Ideas:
1.) What to do if you live in a world populated by monsters? Learn the rules.
2.) How to make friends with unlikely and sometimes unlikeable people
3.) Can horror movies be funny and interesting and gross at the same time?
4.) Don’t let a little blood, sweat and tears stop you from finding teen romance
5.) Every wanted to shoot guns and kill monsters? Now is your chance.
6.) If you really get scared by horror movies, this one will give you warm fuzzies instead.
Viewing Level/Interest Age: Ages 15+ (It’s rated “R”)
Challenge Issues/Defenses:
Potential Challenges:
• Extreme Violence
• Offensive Language
• Depictions of monsters, blood and death
Defense Strategy:
• Provide our Collection Development Policy (which includes Young Adult scope): http://ww2.cityofpasadena.net/library/collection.asp
• Refer to the viewpoint of teachers who think horror movies are good for teens:
http://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/seasonal/listscarymovies.html
• Refer to list of recommended horror movies for teens:
http://www.cinema-suicide.com/2008/10/30/10-horror-movies-you-could-show-your-kids-and-not-feel-bad-about/ and http://www.flixster.com/movie-list/the-best-teen-horror-movies
• Research movie reviews about and awards for Zombieland: http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/zombieland#critics and http://www.fangoria.com/home/news/27-international-frights/4262-zombieland-and-martyrs-among-sitges-award-winners.html
Why This Book Was Included: There haven’t been many chick flick zombie films and this one features a strong female protagonist who is cool, conniving yet caring underneath her heavy black eyeliner. This is a fun and raucous film for teen boys, too, as they can relate to the insecure yet earnest character of Columbus, who is just trying to get along in world that requires him to kill zombies, deal with the unsavory, think smart and win the girl. A fun, silly and satisfying movie to be enjoyed by all.
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