Zombieland

*****
UK Release Date: October 7th 2009

A shy student trying to reach his family in Ohio, a gun-toting tough guy trying to find the last Twinkie, and a pair of sisters trying to get to an amusement park join forces to travel across a zombie-filled America.

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin

Surely zombie films are starting to wear thin. Thankfully 2009's Zombieland has its own abundance of taste. It packs a lot for a film that clocks just under 90 minutes.

There's no living soul in the world, except Columbus (Eisenberg) an ungainly, gawky fellow and Tallahassee (Harrelson) whose obsession with finding Twinkies is half the reason why he's angry. Joining them are sisters Wichita (Stone) and Little Rock (Breslin). The quartet are mesmerising to a tee, and hold the story together well. Whether its smashing a shop to smithereens  or a montage of bickering in the car about past normalities you know you're in for a few laughs. 

In a world they call Zombieland where they're likely to end up as a 'human happy meal' you'd expect it to be swamped with the living dead. Well, it is and it isn't. The writers have centered the plot on the characters and the zombies are secondary to them. Zombieland is a solid, thrilling ride. Each of the four have their own motives, or final destination. In a world riddled with the infected, what are you to do... where are you to go?

Eisenberg demonstrates a few key rules before embarking on his journey. He takes us through some rules of survival, aided by random victims running for their lives. These aren't your typical zombies that usually appear in Shaun of the Dead or Romero's Dawn of the Dea. They're fast, and not to be taken lightly, just like Zombieland.

Eisenberg shines and Harrelson hits a personal best, but Stone and Breslin feel a little undertone. Last to mention but surely not the least is the film's cameo. Incredibly prestigious and highly famous, the cameo has become Zombieland's focal point. Not to ruin too much, it's probably the best cameo to ever appear on screen. Thankfully the rest of the film lives up to it.