Today’s quick review: The Dead Don’t Die. The residents of Centerville, USA, face a spate of strange occurrences as an experimental energy technology pulls the Earth off its axis. The days grow longer, animals act strangely, and the dead rise from their graves. Caught in the middle of it all are Cliff Robertson (Bill Murray) and Ronnie Peterson (Adam Driver), the town’s police force, who cope with the zombie outbreak with surprising poise.
The Dead Don’t Die is a zombie horror comedy with an ensemble cast. The movie follows the residents of a small American town as they react to the zombie apocalypse. Bill Murray and Adam Drive headline a cast that includes Danny Glover, Tilda Swinton, Steve Buscemi, Selena Gomez, RZA, Iggy Pop, and Tom Waits. The movie pairs a funny and original script with a talented cast and skillful execution, but sacrifices story and pacing along the way.
The Dead Don’t Die specializes in understated humor. The characters react to the supernatural events around them with muted concern, putting a surreal twist on the usual zombie build-up of omens, disbelief, and panic. The zombies themselves are just as absurd: walking corpses drawn to the activities they participated in in life. The humor skews dry but consistently hits the mark, with well-timed jokes, great running gags, and a few bizarre twists.
The price of the film’s large cast is a lack of focus. The Dead Don’t Die bounces back and forth between characters without doing much with any of them, and even some of the film’s bigger stars get shortchanged. It also never builds up any momentum. The dry humor lends itself naturally to a slow build-up, but even so, the film takes a long time getting to the zombies, has little in the way of plot, and winds down instead of building to a finale.
The Dead Don’t Die is a solid pick for fans of the horror genre, mundane humor, and Bill Murray’s recent work. Its steady laughs, clever ideas, and interesting characters will make it a hidden gem for the right viewer. Those looking for more active humor, a substantive plot, or anything resembling a true horror film will want to look elsewhere.
For a zombie comedy with a similar thesis about the dead, try Shaun of the Dead. For one with more punch and even better characters, try Zombieland. For a more ridiculous, heartfelt spoof of the horror genre, try Tucker and Dale vs. Evil. For a budget horror comedy that mixes the mundane and the absurd, try Bubba Ho-Tep.
6.0 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.5 to 7.0 for fun humor and an impressive cast, hurt somewhat by its lack of momentum.