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Erika (17788 KP) rated The Dead Don't Die (2019) in Movies
Jun 15, 2019
Hilariously Self-Aware
Zombie-comedies are the only kind of zombie movies I enjoy, and this was no exception.
Bill Murray (who was previously in Zombieland), and Adam Driver are the main characters, as cops in a small town (maybe in NY?), and their chemistry is deadpan and hilarious. Driver mentions multiple times throughout the film that 'This is going to end badly', finally Murray's character asks him why he keeps saying that. Driver's character responds that he read the entire script. Murray proceeds to call Jim Jarmusch an a-hole, since he didn't get the whole script. I about died of laughter over that.
Tilda Swinton's character is completely whack-a-doo, and cuts off zombies' heads with ease with a samurai sword. Because, as everyone knows, kill the head.
The entire movie is absurdist, and the humor might not be for everyone. It's gotten really bad reviews from a lot of critics, so I may be in the minority. Chloë Sevigny's character was the only one that completely annoyed me.
It's ultimately an homage to zombie films and, of course, an allegory of modern times, with people being absorbed in their mobile phones, unaware of the real world around them.
Bill Murray (who was previously in Zombieland), and Adam Driver are the main characters, as cops in a small town (maybe in NY?), and their chemistry is deadpan and hilarious. Driver mentions multiple times throughout the film that 'This is going to end badly', finally Murray's character asks him why he keeps saying that. Driver's character responds that he read the entire script. Murray proceeds to call Jim Jarmusch an a-hole, since he didn't get the whole script. I about died of laughter over that.
Tilda Swinton's character is completely whack-a-doo, and cuts off zombies' heads with ease with a samurai sword. Because, as everyone knows, kill the head.
The entire movie is absurdist, and the humor might not be for everyone. It's gotten really bad reviews from a lot of critics, so I may be in the minority. Chloë Sevigny's character was the only one that completely annoyed me.
It's ultimately an homage to zombie films and, of course, an allegory of modern times, with people being absorbed in their mobile phones, unaware of the real world around them.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated The Dead Don't Die (2019) in Movies
Jan 7, 2020 (Updated Jan 29, 2020)
Several Wild Animals
The Dead Don't Die is truly a bizarre experience.
Jim Jarmusch has crafted a gratuitously deadpan and self aware zombie film that tackles tired genre tropes in unique and confusing ways.
Truth be told, I was ready to hate it. I knew that it wasn't the same style of zombie-comedy as Zombieland, or Shaun of the Dead, and I expected to be bogged down in pretentiousness - I'm happy to admit that I was wrong in this case.
A lot of the complaints I've seen about TDDD is precisely that. That, and the fourth wall breaking, but those are two aspects that I actually really liked.
The humour is really subtle for the most part. The dead pan delivery of a lot of the script was quite jarring at first, but it didn't take long for it settle, and I actually ended up finding it pretty funny, just not in-your-face funny (which is a good thing).
The fourth wall stuff verges on being too-clever-for-its-own-good but it just about pulls it off, and gives an interesting alternate thought process to the general narrative.
The cast is brimming with people that I like and love - Bill Murray, Adam Driver (surely a full blown man crush by this point), Chloë Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover, Tilda Swinton... God damn I even love Iggy Pop. It's a great cast list for sure, and the charming and witty script gives them all a lot to do, even if some of the many characters feel under developed at times.
The zombie aspect is a bit if a back seat for me. I was certainly more invested in the aforementioned cast, than any actual zombie action, but I enjoyed the 'classic' shuffling zombies in a small town setting for what it's worth.
I'm not sure what I expected from The Dead Don't Die, but it certainly wasn't what I got, and that precisely why it stands out.
Jim Jarmusch has crafted a gratuitously deadpan and self aware zombie film that tackles tired genre tropes in unique and confusing ways.
Truth be told, I was ready to hate it. I knew that it wasn't the same style of zombie-comedy as Zombieland, or Shaun of the Dead, and I expected to be bogged down in pretentiousness - I'm happy to admit that I was wrong in this case.
A lot of the complaints I've seen about TDDD is precisely that. That, and the fourth wall breaking, but those are two aspects that I actually really liked.
The humour is really subtle for the most part. The dead pan delivery of a lot of the script was quite jarring at first, but it didn't take long for it settle, and I actually ended up finding it pretty funny, just not in-your-face funny (which is a good thing).
The fourth wall stuff verges on being too-clever-for-its-own-good but it just about pulls it off, and gives an interesting alternate thought process to the general narrative.
The cast is brimming with people that I like and love - Bill Murray, Adam Driver (surely a full blown man crush by this point), Chloë Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover, Tilda Swinton... God damn I even love Iggy Pop. It's a great cast list for sure, and the charming and witty script gives them all a lot to do, even if some of the many characters feel under developed at times.
The zombie aspect is a bit if a back seat for me. I was certainly more invested in the aforementioned cast, than any actual zombie action, but I enjoyed the 'classic' shuffling zombies in a small town setting for what it's worth.
I'm not sure what I expected from The Dead Don't Die, but it certainly wasn't what I got, and that precisely why it stands out.
Andy K (10821 KP) Jun 15, 2019