Once a sub-genre of horror films, the zombie movie has now become so popular you can’t swing a severed limb over your head without hitting one at the multiplex. The genesis of the modern zombie flick began with George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, in 1968 and while his later film, The Crazies, did not feature creatures of the flesh-eating sort, it certainly was a first-cousin to the Dead movies.
Breck Eisner’s remake takes Romero’s premise — the inhabitants of a remote town are driven mad when their water supply is contaminated — and puts a modern spin on it to gruesome effect. It doesn’t take long for Sheriff David Dutten (Timothy Olyphant) and his deputy Russell (Joe Anderson) to figure out something is amiss. With one rabid townsperson after another popping up and the discovery of a downed military plane, these two realize the threat they face is way above their pay grade. After a botched quarantine effort by the militray, Russell, David, his pregnant wife Judy (Radha Mitchell) and her assistant Becca (Danielle Panabaker) try to get out of the county without being nabbed by the military or savaged by rabid beasts.
Eiasner doesn’t seem all that concerned with delivering any sort of social statement here, and that’s fine. He’s more concerned with delivering effective shocks tinged with dark humor and for the most part he succeeds. The pacing is taut and the film contains three set pieces that are keepers, one including a runaway bone saw, another a most imaginative use of a steak knife. Both of these sequences will have horror fans squealing with the delight.
The film’s major fault is that it puts its principals in peril too often and flirts with repetition. However, the strong cast and the raw 1970s horror flick vibe Eisner creates elevates The Crazies above the more tepid recent entries in the genre.
Contact Chuck Koplinski at ckoplinski@usd116.org.
This article appears in Mar 11-17, 2010.
