World War Z

[Childress]

WWZ has generated a host of conflicting- and emotional- opinions. I dug the book but found the film succeeds on it owns terms.

This review is from: World War Z (Amazon Instant Video)

Never mind the naysayers, this Z flic is stupendous; intelligent, gripping, even touching in certain parts. One senses a certain fatigue with the Undead trope- movies dating back to the 60s and a popular TV series. Granted, World War Z doesn't follow the book. It's reported there were deleted scenes and (apparently) numerous rewrites during production but the final product stands on its own and merits a sequel.

Pitt contributes a solid performance minus most of the customary superhero excesses and Daniella Kertesz, as the wounded Israeli soldier, scores as his courageous yet heartbreakingly vulnerable sidekick.

There's little gore and the CGI effects and set pieces, for example the scenes within the walled off city of Jerusalem, stun the senses. The Zombies inspire genuine fright. Unlike the shuffling ghouls in Walking Dead, for example, these guys go for your throat sprinting.

I read Brook's novel and appreciated the sophisticated geopolitical take. But consisting essentially of vignettes and post facto interviews with survivors of Z encounters renders, frankly, the book less than ideal as a candidate for treatment on the big screen.