Want to hear more from the actors and creators of your favorite shows and films? Subscribe to The Cinema Spot on YouTube for all of our upcoming interviews!
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
Zack Snyder’s zombie heist film, Army of the Dead, is finally here. Following years of anticipation and the trouble with Warner Bros., fans get to see his next masterpiece. It is great to see the filmmaker return to the horror scene after 17 years of adapted works and Sucker Punch.
Keep your eyes peeled for any incoming minor spoilers.
Plot Summary
The synopsis of the film is as follows.
After a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries takes the ultimate gamble by venturing into the quarantine zone for the greatest heist ever.
Dave Bautista plays Scott Ward, the leader of the mercenaries, while Ella Purnell portrays his daughter, Kate. She is his estranged daughter who volunteers with the World Health Organization.
Ana de la Reguera and Omari Hardwick play Ward’s close friends, Maria Cruz and Vanderohe, respectively. Matthias Schweighöfer plays the team’s German safecracker, Dieter, while Tig Notaro portrays their helicopter pilot, Marianne Peters.
Nora Arnezeder plays a Frenchwoman named Lilly, who also goes by “the Coyote.” Raúl Castillo plays sharpshooter Mikey Guzman, while Samantha Win plays his friend and teammate, Chambers.
Then we have the harsher characters. Theo Rossi plays a security guard, Burt Cummings. Hiroyuki Sanada portrays billionaire, Bly Tanaka, while Garret Dillahunt plays his right-hand man and chief of security, Martin. Richard Cetrone appears as Zeus, king of the Alpha Zombies, while Athena Perample plays his queen.
In smaller roles, Huma Qureshi appears as a single mother, Geeta, while Colin Jones plays Damon, a friend of Guzman. Colby Lemmon plays Laura Ward, the wife of Scott and the mother of Kate.
Discussion
To begin, I enjoyed watching this film. I do not consider it my cup of tea, but rather the type of tea for a rainy day. I also appreciated this ensemble of actors, for which we can thank John Papsidera and Kim Winther. We can also thank Stephanie Porter for the costume design. Upon seeing the film, I was utterly shocked at how well they worked together, but more on that in a bit.
Snyder’s cinematography is incredible, although I am not just talking about how visually pleasing it is. The framing is great, and leave it to Dody Dorn to do some good editing. Tig Notaro substitutes another actor in the role of Peters, and it’s almost as if no changes were made at all. (I may point out the almost awkward look at the character when the team steps into the zombies’ soil. However, if you don’t have a keen eye to catch that, then we can just brush that off.
Holy shit, that musical scoring as well as the soundtrack were both lovely. With the exception of one or maybe two, I am not familiar with any of the artists whose songs play in the background of the film. To be introduced to new music is nice, which helped kick off my summer.
Plot
I might be ambivalent about the plot. The film went well until there came a point where one character ruined matters for the rest of the group. This knocked down the dominos, propelling the narrative into a slippery slope that led to a worsened situation by the conclusion than when they started. The way the film ends is typical of a horror film, but the hype for the movie had me expecting a lot. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. However, if you fool me multiple times, then I should have known better that things will not go the way one would want.
In terms of writing, the pacing was somewhat slow but attempted to pick up once the team entered Las Vegas. There was no bad dialogue involved, resulting in what felt organic to me. If you keep attention on the film, there will be many surprises along the way.
Performances
Having been introduced to him in the Guardians of the Galaxy films, Bautista is magnificent in all ways. Aside from Spectre and Blade Runner 2049, the actor delivers so well in how he performs, while at the same time kicking some ass. The actor’s performance in Army of the Dead only alleviates my worries for his appearance in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune later this year.
I must also commend Hardwick, Reguera, Arnezeder, and even Cetrone and Perample for what they brought to the table. Next to Bautista, in my opinion, I loved Schweighöfer, Castillo, and Purnell’s respective characters, Dieter, Guzman, and Kate, the most. Dieter is good as the team’s nuisance but even better once he does his actual job. Guzman has everything he wants and chases all that he needs. It is when he loses these things that you see how deep he can get as a character. Purnell is outstanding, and I do not know where to begin without revealing any details.
Perhaps out of all the characters, I wish Rossi, Win, and Sanada’s could get more screentime in the film. I’ve seen Rossi in Luke Cage, Win in the DC Extended Universe, and Sanada in Rush Hour 3, Westworld, and Mortal Kombat. Having seen each of these actors’ potentials only made me wish they could have gotten longer durations under the spotlight. Who knows? Maybe we’ll see them in the Army of Thieves prequel or Army of the Dead anime series in the future.
With five main actresses, it was good to see them pass the Bechdel Test.
Final Thoughts
I was intrigued to hear a reference to Joseph Campbell by a character in the film. It makes sense since this particular character is shown to have graduated from college with a Bachelor’s in Philosophy. In fact, one other character, Damon (Colin Jones), rejects the mission, which is one stage in Campbell’s monomyth, or hero’s journey.
Army of the Dead is full — and I mean, full — of mythological references and allusions. If you are not too familiar with any of them, then it may be difficult to understand the wider scope of the film. Nonetheless, it had a myriad of moments that took a hold of my interest. Two major parts included the theoretical idea of time travel/ quantum physics, along with the film’s “ultimate [weapon of mass destruction].”
Overall, Snyder’s film possesses elements that I thought would look great in a story for almost half a decade now. After he’s been in the film industry for some decades now, I believe it’s time the filmmaker gotten some sort of fresh start or reboot. This is similar to a line from Schweighöfer’s character, Dieter: “Destruction or renewal. Death or rebirth.” Depending on how you perceive Army of the Dead, it is either one or the other, so here’s to hoping it’s the latter. If so, then we can consider the Man of Steel to Justice League DCEU era his liminal phase. With a diverse cast of actors like these people, you cannot go wrong with this film.
Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead is now out on Netflix!
Will you be seeing this film? If you have already, what are your thoughts on it? Let us know! For more heist, horror, Netflix, and zombie-related news and reviews, follow The Cinema Spot on Twitter (@TheCinemaSpot) and Instagram (@thecinemaspot_). You can also catch us on Facebook (TheCinemaSpotFB)!
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
